Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Dependence of TOA Reflectance Anisotropy on Cloud Properties Inferred from ScaRaB Satellite Data

Abstract An angular dependence model (ADM) describes the anisotropy in the reflectance field. ADMs are a key element in determining the top-of-the-atmosphere (TOA) albedos and radiative fluxes. This study utilizes 1-yr satellite data from the Scanner for Radiation Budget (ScaRaB) for overcast scenes to examine the variation of ADMs with cloud properties. Using ScaRaB shortwave (SW) overcast radiance measurements, an SW mean overcast ADM, similar to the Earth Radiation Budget Experiment (ERBE) ADM, was generated. Differences between the ScaRaB and ERBE overcast ADMs lead to biases of ∼0.01–0.04 in mean albedos inferred from specific angular bins. The largest biases are in the backward scattering direction. Overcast ADMs for the visible (VIS) wavelength were also generated using ScaRaB VIS measurements. They are very similar to, but a little smaller at large viewing angles and a little larger at nadir, than the SW overcast ADMs. To evaluate the effect of cloud properties on ADMs, ScaRaB overcast observation.
Effects of astaxanthin on accommodation, critical flicker fusion, and pattern visual evoked potential in visual display terminal workers

We evaluated the effects of astaxanthin, a red carotenoid, on accommodation, critical flicker fusion (CFF), and pattern visual evoked potential (PVEP) in visual display terminal (VDT) workers. As controls, 13 non-VDT workers received no supplementation (Group A). Twenty-six VDT workers were randomized into 2 groups: Group B consisted of 13 subjects who received oral astaxanthin, 5 mg/day, for 4 weeks, and Group C consisted of 13 subjects who received an oral placebo, 5 mg/day, for 4 weeks. No significant difference in age was noted among the 3 groups. A double-masked study was designed in Groups B and C. Accommodation aqilitude in Group A was 3.72 1.5 diopters. Accommodation amplitudes (2.3 +- 1.4 and 2.2& 1 .O diopters) in Groups B and C before supplementation were significantiy (~~0.05) lower than in Group A. Accommodation amplitude (2.82 1.6 diopters) in Group B after astaxanthin treatment was significantly @<O.Ol) larger than before supplementation, while accommodation amplitude (2.32 1.1 diopters) in Group C after placebo supplementation was unchanged. The CFFs and amplitude and latency of PI00 in PVEP in Group A were 45.0t4. 2 Hz, 6.54 1.8 gV, and 101.3~! ~6.5 msec, respectively. The CFFs in Groups B and C before supplementation were significantly (~~0.05) lower than in Group A. The CCFs in Groups B and C did not change after supplementation. Amplitudes and latencies of PI00 in PVEP in Groups B and C before supplementation were similar to those in Group A and did not change after supplementation. Findings of the present study indicated that accommodation amplitude improved after astaxanthin supplementation in VDT workers.
Bounds on the Spatial Richness of Multipath

In this paper wireless multipath elds are modelled using classes of orthogonal func- tional expansions based on the solutions to the Helmholtz (wave) equation. These expansions permit a multipath eld|generated by any num- ber of neareld, fareld, specular and diuse mul- tipath reections|to be modelled to any preci- sion in a region of interest. Two expansions are provided, one suitable for multipath elds which show no variation with height, and the other suit- able for general 3D elds. We establish that the dimensionality of the functional expansion, and thereby the multipath eld, scales with the size of the boundary of the region in space. When the region of interest is small in wavelengths, typical of antenna arrays apertures in practice, then the multipath eld can be modelled by only a small number, given by the dimensionality, of arbitrar- ily located sources. Multipath eld synthesis can be done using combinations of arbitrarily located distinct fareld, neareld, point and spatially dis- tributed sources. These results establish rigorous bounds on the spatial richness of multipath.
An experimental study on effects of increased ventilation flow on students' perception of indoor environment in computer classrooms.

UNLABELLED The effects of ventilation in computer classrooms were studied with university students (n = 355) in a blinded study, 31% were women and 3.8% had asthma. Two classrooms had a higher air exchange (4.1-5.2 ac/h); two others had a lower air exchange (2.3-2.6 ac/h). After 1 week, ventilation conditions were shifted. The students reported environmental perceptions during the last hour. Room temperature, RH, CO2, PM10 and ultra-fine particles were measured simultaneously. Mean CO2 was 1185 ppm at lower and 922 ppm at higher air exchange. Mean temperature was 23.2 degrees C at lower and 22.1 degrees C at higher air exchange. After mutual adjustment (temperature, RH, CO2, air exchange), measured temperature was associated with a perception of higher temperature (P < 0.001), lower air movement (P < 0.001), and poorer air quality (P < 0.001). Higher air exchange was associated with a perception of lower temperature (P < 0.001), higher air movement (P = 0.001), and better air quality (P < 0.001). In the longitudinal analysis (n = 83), increased air exchange caused a perception of lower temperature (P = 0.002), higher air movement (P < 0.001), better air quality (P = 0.001), and less odor (P = 0.02). In conclusion, computer classrooms have CO2 levels above 1000 ppm and temperatures above 22 degrees C. Increased ventilation from 7 l/s per person to 10-13 l/s per person can improve thermal comfort and air quality. PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS Computer classrooms are crowded indoor environments with a high thermal load from both students and computer equipment. It is important to control room temperature either by air conditioning, sun shields, or sufficiently high ventilation flow. A high ventilation flow is also crucial to achieving good perceived air quality. Personal ventilation flow should be at least 10 l/s. Possible loss of learning ability due to poor indoor air quality in university buildings deserves more attention.
The Additional Effects of Aflatoxin and T-2 Toxin Combination on Commercial Broilers : I : Effects on Performance Parameters and Internal Organs

The effects of aflatoxin (AF) and T-2 toxin (T-2) on the performance of broiler chickens were studied individually and in combinations. One hundred and sixty eight day-old Cobb broiler chicks were obtained from a commercial hatchery and divided into four groups in 2X2 Complete Randomized Design of three replicates and fourteen chicks per replicate, with dietary treatments of 0.0 (control), 0.5μg/g AF, 2.0μg/g T-2 and their combination (0.5 μg/g AF+2.0 μg/g T-2). The chicks were housed in deep litter independent conventional system with feed and water ad libitum throughout the experimental study. The toxin treated birds exhibited a significant (P≤0.05) decrease in body weight and feed consumption. The relative weights of pancreas, thymus and bursa of Fabricius were also reduced significantly (P≤0.05). These findings were more pronounced in the combined group. The data from the present study indicate that the presence of AF and T-2 in the diet can produce a synergistic affect on the performance of the birds.
A Role for Sp1 in Transcriptional Regulation of Phosphatidylethanolamine N-Methyltransferase in Liver and 3T3-L1 Adipocytes*

Phosphatidylcholine is made in all nucleated mammalian cells via the CDP-choline pathway. Another major pathway for phosphatidylcholine biosynthesis in liver is catalyzed by phosphatidylethanolamine N-methyltransferase (PEMT). We have now identified 3T3-L1 adipocytes as a cell culture model that expresses PEMT endogenously. We have found that PEMT mRNA and protein levels increased dramatically in 3T3-L1 cells upon differentiation to adipocytes. 5′-Deletion analysis of the PEMT promoter-luciferase constructs stably expressed in 3T3-L1 adipocytes identified a regulatory region between −471 and −371 bp (relative to the transcriptional start site). Competitive and supershift assays demonstrated binding sites for transcription factors Sp1, Sp3 (−408 to −413), and YY1 (−417 to −420). During differentiation of 3T3-L1 cells to adipocytes, the amount of Sp1 protein decreased by ∼50% just prior to activation of PEMT. Transduction of 3T3-L1 adipocytes with retrovirus containing Sp1 cDNA demonstrated that Sp1 inhibited PEMT transcriptional activity. Similarly, short hairpin RNA directed against Sp1 in 3T3-L1 adipocytes enhanced PEMT transcriptional activation. Chromatin immunoprecipitation assays confirmed that Sp1 binds to the PEMT promoter, and this interaction decreases upon differentiation to adipocytes. These experiments directly link increased PEMT expression in adipocytes to decreased transcriptional expression of Sp1. In addition, our data established that Sp1 binding was required for tamoxifen-mediated inhibition of Pemt promoter activity.
Query-sensitive mutual reinforcement chain and its application in query-oriented multi-document summarization

Sentence ranking is the issue of most concern in document summarization. Early researchers have presented the mutual reinforcement principle (MR) between sentence and term for simultaneous key phrase and salient sentence extraction in generic single-document summarization. In this work, we extend the MR to the mutual reinforcement chain (MRC) of three different text granularities, i.e., document, sentence and terms. The aim is to provide a general reinforcement framework and a formal mathematical modeling for the MRC. Going one step further, we incorporate the query influence into the MRC to cope with the need for query-oriented multi-document summarization. While the previous summarization approaches often calculate the similarity regardless of the query, we develop a query-sensitive similarity to measure the affinity between the pair of texts. When evaluated on the DUC 2005 dataset, the experimental results suggest that the proposed query-sensitive MRC (Qs-MRC) is a promising approach for summarization.
Malformations in a Chornobyl-Impacted Region

OBJECTIVE: One of the populations most exposed to chronic low-dose radiation from Chornobyl (Chernobyl in Russian) lives in Polissia, the region representing the northern half of Rivne Province (Oblast) in Ukraine. Here the patterns and population rates of malformations are reported and possible etiologic factors and regional contrasts are explored. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Malformations, as defined by international standards, noted among all 96 438 births in Rivne between 2000 and 2006, were analyzed statistically. Contrasts of rates in Polissia compared with the rest of Rivne also were investigated. RESULTS: The overall rate of neural tube defects in Rivne is among the highest in Europe (22.2 per 10 000 live births). The rates of conjoined twins and teratomas also seem to be elevated. In Polissia, the overall rates of neural tube defects are even higher (27.0 vs 18.3, respectively; odds ratio: 1.46 [95% confidence interval: 1.13–1.93]), and the rates of microcephaly and microphthalmia may also be elevated. CONCLUSIONS: The malformation patterns observed suggest early disruptions of blastogenesis, manifesting as alterations of body axes, twinning, duplications, laterality, and midline formation. The results are sufficiently compelling to justify continuing and expanding this investigation of malformations in chronic low-dose radiation-impacted regions of Ukraine.
Sustained Improvements in Cardiac Geometry and Function following Kidney–Pancreas Transplantation

Kidney–pancreas (KP) transplantation has been shown to improve left ventricular (LV) geometry and function 6–24 months after the procedure, yet whether these improvements are sustained in long-term survivors has not been demonstrated. This study examined whether early improvements in LV geometry and function were sustained 3–5 years after KP transplantation. Left ventricular function and geometry were prospectively evaluated prior to, and at 1, 2, and 3–5 years posttransplant using two-dimensional, M-mode, echocardiography with Doppler interrogation in the parasternal and apical views. The sample included 21 KP and a comparison group of 12 diabetic kidney-alone (KA) recipients. Long-term (3–5 years) data were obtained for KP recipients only. Although KA recipients had a longer duration of dialysis and worse diastolic function pretransplant, the groups were similar on other baseline measures. KA recipients experienced minimal improvements while KP recipients had significant improvements in cardiac function and geometry, both in terms of mean values and the percentage of KP recipients who experienced normalization posttransplant (p < 0.05). KP recipient improvements were also sustained at 3–5 years posttransplant on three of five measures, with 75% of long-term KP recipients achieving normal LV mass posttransplant compared with 31% pretransplant. Data indicate that significant impairments in cardiac geometry and function occur in diabetic KA and KP recipients. Though both groups experienced early improvements posttransplant, KP recipients achieved more dramatic and clinically significant improvements at 1, 2, and 3–5 years posttransplant. Additional studies are needed to examine the relevance of these findings with regard to the cardiac morbidity and mortality of these patients.
Diagnostic criteria and risk‐adapted approach to indeterminate thyroid cytodiagnosis

I read the commentary on a risk-adapted approach to an indeterminate thyroid cytodiagnosis written by Drs. Abele and Levine and would like to comment. I agree with the authors that thyroid lesions are excessively diagnosed and that the risk-adapted approach should be adopted in the cytologic evaluation of thyroid lesions. Unfortunately, in most cases of thyroid lesions, many of the suspicious clinical and radiological characteristics described by the authors are not immediately disclosed to pathologists. Although it is essential for pathologists to proactively communicate with clinicians to obtain this crucial information, I believe it is also important that physicians who possess integrated information on their patients use fine-needle aspiration (FNA) judiciously, so that the nodules with low-risk clinical and radiological features, such as case 1 in the article, are not aspirated but carefully followed instead. Otherwise, given the inherent inability of cytology to assess features associated with encapsulation and the increased use of ultrasonography-guided FNA, which can precisely target smaller solid thyroid nodules, indeterminate cytodiagnoses may increase. The authors suggested that the 15% national rate of an indeterminate thyroid cytodiagnosis (which actually appears to be 22% in the cited abstract) was in large part from overdiagnosis, compared with their rate of 5%. This result is difficult to evaluate given that the authors’ sensitivity was accounted for by a set of legal criteria as opposed to a quality assurance protocol, such as subsequent cytohistologic correlation. It would be an important addition to the literature if the authors could demonstrate the malignancy risk in each of their cytodiagnostic categories and compare them to those in the Bethesda System. In addition, I believe that the term ‘‘microfollicular neoplasm’’ does not necessarily add significant clarification to ‘‘follicular neoplasm’’ which, in the Bethesda System, refers to a cellular aspirate comprising follicular cells arranged in an altered architectural pattern characterized by significant cell crowding and/or a microfollicle formation with scant or no colloid. The adopted Bethesda term emphasizes but does not limit the use of the diagnostic entity to those lesions with a microfollicular pattern, given that some follicular neoplasms (especially those proven to be follicular carcinomas on histological examination) may present as syncytial clusters and single cells without obvious microfollicles. Hypercellular smears of macrofollicles are not considered to be an altered architectural pattern and, therefore, should not be of concern as long as there are no nuclear features of papillary thyroid carcinoma identified.
Human gingival fibroblasts release high-mobility group box-1 protein through active and passive pathways.

INTRODUCTION The nuclear protein high-mobility group box-1 (HMGB1) acts as a late mediator of inflammation when secreted in the extracellular milieu. In this study, we examined the effect of lipopolysaccharides from periodontal pathogens and apoptotic and necrotic cell death on HMGB1 production in human gingival fibroblasts (HGF). METHODS HGF from healthy periodontal tissue were cultured and stimulated with lipopolysaccharides (LPS) from Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans, Porphyromonas gingivalis, and Escherichia coli. We also initiated apoptotic and necrotic cell deaths in HGF. The HMGB1 released in the supernatants from stimulated or dying cells was measured. Immunocytochemical staining against HMGB1 was performed in LPS-stimulated HGF. RESULTS A significantly higher amount of HMGB1 was detected from necrotic and apoptotic HGF. LPS from A. actinomycetemcomitans, P. gingivalis, and E. coli significantly induced the production of HMGB1 in a time-dependent manner. After 6 h of LPS stimulation, HMGB1 was present in the cytoplasm of cells whereas its location was mainly nuclear after 24 h. CONCLUSIONS LPS from two major periodontal pathogens, A. actinomycetemcomitans and P. gingivalis, induced HMGB1 secretion from HGF. Apoptotic and necrotic cell deaths resulted in the enhancement of HMGB1. Our results suggest that HGF can be a source of HMGB1 by both active secretion and passive release, and that HMGB1 from HGF may contribute to periodontal tissue destruction.
The Elevated Interferon Gamma Production is an Important Immunological Marker in HAM/TSP Pathogenesis

Human T‐lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV‐1) is the agent of the HTLV‐1‐associated myelopathy/tropical spastic paraparesis (HAM/TSP), which may occur in >5% of patients during their lifetime. HTLV‐1‐infection causes disturbances in the immune system, and the viral load may also play an important role in the pathogenesis of HAM/TSP. Some cytokines are involved in the pathogenesis of this disorder. We have determined IL‐2, IL‐4, IL‐10, IL‐12 p70, IFN‐γ and TNF‐α production among HTLV‐1‐infected subjects from our HTLV‐out Clinic in Institute of Infectious ‘Emílio Ribas’ in Sao Paulo city, Brazil. PBMC obtained from healthy controls (n = 32), asymptomatic HTLV‐1 carriers (n = 68) and HAM/TSP patients (n = 44) were grown in the absence and in the presence of phytohaemagglutinin (PHA), and the supernatants’ fluids were measured for cytokines production. IL‐2 levels were increased in the asymptomatic HTLV‐1 carriers, and IFN‐γ was increased in both groups of patients (asymptomatic HTLV‐1 carriers and more significantly among HAM/TSP patients). IL‐4, IL‐10, TNF‐α and IL‐12 p70 levels were not significantly increased on both groups of patients, as compared with controls. The major finding of this study is that IFN‐γ was an important cytokine for the HAM/TSP pathogenesis. Therefore, immune modulation of IFN‐γ may be critical to treat of HAM/TSP patients.
Mortality in smoking discordant monozygotic and dizygotic twins. A study on the Swedish Twin Registry.

Among 706 male, dizygotic, smoking discordant twin pairs born in 1901 to 1925, 13 deaths occurred among nonsmokers or less exposed partners against 34 among smokers or more exposed. In 246 corresponding monozygotic pairs the figures were 14 against 9. The excess mortality among male dizygotic smokers was not associated with any specific cause of death. Four cases of lung cancer among males occurred only in smokers. Accidents and suicides seemed to be associated with smoking, supporting the hypotheses regarding differences in personality typebetween smokers and nonsmokers. Only time will show whether trends found are stable. The data suggest, however, that part of the greater mortality in smokers is not due to smoking per se but to factors associated with smoking.
Sensor-Centric Data Reduction for Estimation With WSNs via Censoring and Quantization

Consider a wireless sensor network (WSN) with a fusion center (FC) deployed to estimate signal parameters from noisy sensor measurements. If the WSN has a large number of low-cost, battery-operated sensor nodes with limited transmission bandwidth, then conservation of transmission resources (power and bandwidth) is paramount. To this end, the present paper develops a novel data reduction method which requires no inter-sensor collaboration and results in only a subset of the sensor measurements transmitted to the FC. Using interval censoring as a data-reduction method, each sensor decides separately whether to censor its acquired measurements based on a rule that promotes censoring of measurements with least impact on the estimator mean-square error (MSE). Leveraging the statistical distribution of sensor data, the censoring mechanism and the received uncensored data, FC-based estimators are derived for both deterministic (via maximum likelihood estimation) and random parameters (via maximum a posteriori probability estimation) for a linear-Gaussian model. Quantization of the uncensored measurements at the sensor nodes offers an additional degree of freedom in the resource conservation versus estimator MSE reduction tradeoff. Cramér-Rao bound analysis for the different censor-estimators and censor-quantizer estimators is also provided to benchmark and facilitate MSE-based performance comparisons. Numerical simulations corroborate the analytical findings and demonstrate that the proposed censoring-estimation approach performs competitively with alternative methods, under different sensing conditions, while having lower computational complexity.
Experience with Conventional Radiofrequency Thermorhizotomy in Patients with Failed Medical Management for Trigeminal Neuralgia

Background To evaluate the results of conventional radiofrequency thermorhizotomy (CRT) for trigeminal neuralgia (TN) in patients with failed medical management. Methods Patients with Trigeminal neuralgia who were referred to us for 'limited intervention' during the time frame July-2011 to Jan-2013 were enrolled for this study. CRT was administered by the Sweet technique. Pain relief was evaluated by the principle investigator. Results Eighteen patients were enrolled and completed a mean follow-up of 18.0 months. Pain relief was observed in 14 of 18 (77.8%) patients on the post-operative day, 14 of 18 (77.8%) at 1-month follow-up, 14 of 17 (82.4%) at 3-months follow-up, 12 of 15 (80%) at 6-months follow-up, 7 of 11 (63.6%) at 1-year follow-up and 2 of 6 (33.3%) 1.5 years of follow-up. Four patients required a repeat cycle of CRT; two at six months of follow-up and two at one year of follow-up. One patient was transferred for surgical intervention at six months of follow-up. Side-effects included facial hypoesthesia (n = 6); nausea/vomiting (n = 2), diminished corneal reflex (n = 13) and difficulty in chewing (n = 11). Severity of adverse effects gradually diminished and none of the patients who are beyond 6 months of follow-up have any functional limitation. Conclusions CRT is an effective method of pain relief for patients with Trigeminal neuralgia. Successful outcome (excellent or good) can be expected in 66.7% of patients after first cycle of CRF. The incidence and severity of adverse effects is less and the procedure is better tolerated by the patients.