Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Maggot therapy for treating diabetic foot ulcers unresponsive to conventional therapy.

OBJECTIVE To assess the efficacy of maggot therapy for treating foot and leg ulcers in diabetic patients failing conventional therapy. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS Retrospective comparison of changes in necrotic and total surface area of chronic wounds treated with either maggot therapy or standard (control) surgical or nonsurgical therapy. RESULTS In this cohort of 18 patients with 20 nonhealing ulcers, six wounds were treated with conventional therapy, six with maggot therapy, and eight with conventional therapy first, then maggot therapy. Repeated measures ANOVA indicated no significant change in necrotic tissue, except when factoring for treatment (F [1.7, 34] = 5.27, P = 0.013). During the first 14 days of conventional therapy, there was no significant debridement of necrotic tissue; during the same period with maggot therapy, necrotic tissue decreased by an average of 4.1 cm(2) (P = 0.02). After 5 weeks of therapy, conventionally treated wounds were still covered with necrotic tissue over 33% of their surface, whereas after only 4 weeks of therapy maggot-treated wounds were completely debrided (P = 0.001). Maggot therapy was also associated with hastened growth of granulation tissue and greater wound healing rates. CONCLUSIONS Maggot therapy was more effective and efficient in debriding nonhealing foot and leg ulcers in male diabetic veterans than was continued conventional care.
Game Design Techniques for Software Engineering Management Education

Software engineering is an area with a wide range of concepts and knowledge. To this diversity of topics, you may need to apply different teaching and learning techniques to be effective. One such technique is the use of serious games, but the design of such games tends to be complex, currently lacking a map of game design standards that comply with the Software Engineering education requirements. This paper presents the process to identify the game design patterns that can be effective for teaching software engineering, specifically the software project management topic. The process begins by identifying the relationship between game design patterns and teaching and learning functions based on literature review. Then the work follows establishing a relationship between teaching and learning functions and software project management education through questionnaires made to software engineering teachers. Finally, it sets up the relationship between game design patterns and software project management education through an empirical study conducted with master students. These results can be used as a basis for designing and developing serious games for teaching software project management.
Linking protection and promotion in poor households : social pension scheme and poverty reduction in urban Bangladesh : do cash-based social assistance measures promote more investments towards poverty exit?

Social Protection, and in particular social assistance, has emerged as a key area of international development policy. Recognition of the important role of social protection policies is aligned to a growing consensus on their role in reducing poverty and vulnerability and in preventing people from falling into poverty and facilitating exit from poverty. In the late 1990s, the World Bank (WB) developed the Social Risk Management (SRM) framework as a new conceptual framework for analysing social protection in developing countries. In the SRM, risk taking, the proactive management of risk at household level, was argued to be essential in enabling poor households to invest and grasp opportunities for economic development and poverty reduction. This research examines and conceptualizes the why and the how of investment by households in poverty. The research also examines the extent to which access to social assistance interventions may play a positive or negative role in the process. The thesis argues that the SRM oversimplifies and underestimates a variety of factors and processes that play a role in the household? s investment behaviour in three dimensions of their life, namely savings, education and health. In the research, household decision making is conceptualised as a two stage process of ? constructing? investment preferences (what they are willing to do), and of ? realizing? or ? revealing? household choices (what they actually do). The empirical findings indicate that access to social assistance did not appear to have a role in constructing investment preferences. However, it had limited role under certain circumstances in favouring the realization of households? investment preferences. The research suggests that the SRM fails to encapsulate the complexity of household investment decisions, crucial to exiting poverty. Building on some of the concepts emerged in the research, I develop a ? behavioural? variation of the ? risk taking /poverty exit? component of the SRM in an attempt to improve the explanatory capacity of this framework.The research utilises the grounded theory framework (GT), adapted to a low income country context, and investigates the role of social assistance in household behaviour through an extensive field work in Bangladesh with urban households targeted by the Old Age Allowance Scheme (OAA), one of the largest social assistance schemes in Bangladesh.
New space-time metaphors foster new mental representations of time

Can learning new linguistic metaphors foster new nonlinguistic representations? We describe a set of studies in which we trained English-speaking participants to talk about time using vertical spatial metaphors that are novel to English. One group learned a mapping that placed earlier events above and the other a mapping that placed earlier events below. After mastering the new metaphors, participants were tested in a non-linguistic space-time implicit association task – the Orly task. This task has been used previously to document cross-linguistic differences in representations of time (Boroditsky et. al 2010; Fuhrman et al 2011). Some participants completed temporal judgments in the Orly task without any other secondary task, while others did so under either verbal or visual interference. Finally, we report data from a serendipitous sample of Chinese-English bilinguals on the same task.
Aerosol quantification with the Aerodyne Aerosol Mass Spectrometer: Detection limits and ionizer background effects

Abstract. Systematic laboratory experiments were performed to investigate quantification of various species with two versions of the Aerodyne Aerosol Mass Spectrometer, a Quadrupole Aerosol Mass Spectrometer (Q-AMS) and a compact Time-of-Flight Aerosol Mass Spectrometer (c-ToF-AMS). Here we present a new method to continuously determine the detection limits of the AMS analyzers during regular measurements, yielding detection limit (DL) information under various measurement conditions. Minimum detection limits range from 0.03 μg m−3 (nitrate, sulfate, and chloride) up to 0.5 μg m−3 (organics) for the Q-AMS. Those of the c-ToF-AMS are found between 0.003 μg m−3 (nitrate, sulfate) and 0.03 μg m−3 (ammonium, organics). The DL values found for the c-ToF-AMS were ~10 times lower than those of the Q-AMS, mainly due to differences in ion duty cycle. Effects causing an increase of the detection limits include long-term instrument contamination, measurement of high aerosol mass concentrations and short-term instrument history. The self-cleaning processes which reduce the instrument background after measurement of large aerosol concentrations as well as the influences of increased instrument background on mass concentration measurements are discussed. Finally, improvement of detection limits by extension of averaging time intervals, selected or reduced ion monitoring, and variation of particle-to-background measurement ratio are investigated.
Linking X-ray AGN with dark matter halos: a model compatible with AGN luminosity function and large-scale clustering properties

Aims. Our goal is to nd a minimalistic model that describes the luminosity function and large-scale clustering bias of X-ray-selected AGN in the general framework of the concordance CDM model. Methods. We assume that a simple population-averaged scaling relation between the AGN X-ray luminosity LX and the host dark matter halo mass Mh exists. With such a relation, the AGN X-ray luminosity function can be computed from the halo mass function. Using the concordance CDM halo mass function for the latter, we obtain the Mh LX relation required to match the redshift-dependent AGN X-ray luminosity function known from X-ray observations. Results. We nd that with a simple power-law-scaling Mh/ L ( z) X , our model can successfully reproduce the observed Xray luminosity function. Furthermore, we automatically obtain predictions for the large-scale AGN clustering amplitudes and their dependence on the luminosity and redshift, which seem to be compatible with AGN clustering measurements. Our model also includes the redshift-dependent AGN duty cycle, which peaks at the redshift z’ 1, and its peak value is consistent with unity, suggesting that on average there is no more than one AGN per dark matter halo. For a typical X-ray-selected AGN at z 1, our best-t Mh LX scaling implies low Eddington ratio LX=LEdd 10 4 10 3 (2{10 keV band, no bolometric correction applied) and correspondingly high mass-growth e-folding times, suggesting that typical X-ray AGN are dominantly fueled via relatively inecient ‘hot-halo’ accretion mode.
Organizational commitment: do workplace practices matter?

Using nationally-representative linked employer-employee data for Britain this paper considers whether employers are able to influence the organizational commitment (OC) of their employees through the practices they deploy. We examine the association between OC and two broad groups of HRM practices emphasised in two different strands of the literature, namely “High-Performance Workplace Practices” (HPWPs) and practices associated with “Perceived Organizational Support” (POS). We consider their associations with mean workplace-level OC and individual employees’ OC. Although employers may be able to engender greater OC on the part of their employees, the practices that do so are not those emphasized in the HPWP literature, with the exception of consultation and the involvement of employees in decision-taking. POS practices fare a little better but, again, the findings are far from unequivocal. Furthermore, those practices that are ‘effective’ in engendering higher OC such as tolerance of absence, recruiting on ‘values’ and allowing employees to make decisions, tend to have a fairly low incidence in British workplaces. There is, however, one finding which chimes with the ideas underpinning the HPWP literature, namely that there are returns to the use of practices in combination. Analyses of both mean workplace-level OC and individual employee OC find an independent positive association between OC and the deployment of multiple practices in combination. This evidence is consistent with practices having synergies, as emphasised in some of the HPWP literature.
The Effect of Customer-Centric Green Supply Chain Management on Operational Performance and Customer Satisfaction

This study explores the links of implementing customer-centric green supply chain management (GSCM) with its antecedent factors (i.e. customer pressure) and performance outcomes (i.e. operational performance and customer satisfaction). Data for this study were obtained through a survey of 126 automobile manufacturers in China. Results suggest that customer pressure has a positive effect on the implementation of customer-centric GSCM, which, in turn, leads to multiple operational performance improvements (i.e. flexibility, delivery, quality and cost). While production flexibility and cost appear to have no significant impact on customer satisfaction, product quality and delivery are significantly and positively associated with customer satisfaction. On the practical front, this paper provides guidelines for managers in implementing customer-centric GSCM to respond to customer pressures and improve firm performance, and for policy-makers to encourage partner-focused GSCM efforts in environmental policy. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment
Gender-Specific Metabolomic Profiling of Obesity in Leptin-Deficient ob/ob Mice by 1H NMR Spectroscopy

Despite the numerous metabolic studies on obesity, gender bias in obesity has rarely been investigated. Here, we report the metabolomic analysis of obesity by using leptin-deficient ob/ob mice based on the gender. Metabolomic analyses of urine and serum from ob/ob mice compared with those from C57BL/6J lean mice, based on the 1H NMR spectroscopy in combination with multivariate statistical analysis, revealed clear metabolic differences between obese and lean mice. We also identified 48 urine and 22 serum metabolites that were statistically significantly altered in obese mice compared to lean controls. These metabolites are involved in amino acid metabolism (leucine, alanine, ariginine, lysine, and methionine), tricarbocylic acid cycle and glucose metabolism (pyruvate, citrate, glycolate, acetoacetate, and acetone), lipid metabolism (cholesterol and carnitine), creatine metabolism (creatine and creatinine), and gut-microbiome-derived metabolism (choline, TMAO, hippurate, p-cresol, isobutyrate, 2-hydroxyisobutyrate, methylamine, and trigonelline). Notably, our metabolomic studies showed distinct gender variations. The obese male mice metabolism was specifically associated with insulin signaling, whereas the obese female mice metabolism was associated with lipid metabolism. Taken together, our study identifies the biomarker signature for obesity in ob/ob mice and provides biochemical insights into the metabolic alteration in obesity based on gender.
Learning to Endure Long-Term Musculoskeletal Pain in Daily Life at Home: A Qualitative Interview Study of the Older Adult's Experience

Background: Worldwide, there is an increasing number of older adults, the majority of whom remain living at home. Not infrequently they live with long-term pain, especially musculoskeletal pain, which is associated with increased disability (physical, psychological, social) and a negative impact on quality of life. A deeper understanding of how older adults experience living with this type of pain is needed in order to improve well-being and quality of life. The study focused on the actual experience by living with this global, prevailing and disabling type of pain. The aim was to describe commonalities in how older adults endure long-term musculoskeletal pain in their daily life at home. Methods: This inductive, descriptive study included qualitative semi-structured face-to-face interviews with 19 participants (66 to 88 years) in their homes. Qualitative content analysis by Graneheim and Lundman was used to identify themes crossing participants’ experiences of enduring long-term pain in their daily life. Interviews were audiorecorded and transcribed verbatim. Results: All participants felt forced into “learning to live with pain” (main theme), in order to endure their pain. In time, they learned that: taking the pain as it comes, one day at a time; balancing the pain with activity, thoughts and emotions; self-talking; trying to be less of a burden to family and others; and capturing, enjoying and valuing moments of pleasure (sub-themes) helped them endure the pain. Conclusions: This experience was dominated by learning. The approaches generated to learn to endure pain in daily living by these participants should be discussed with older adults in similar situations for further additions, refinements and validation. Nurses can help to ease the older adult’s suffering by tailoring individualized and holistic care focused on guiding the older adult in learning to live with pain and preserving and promoting health and well-being with a maximum of care and a minimum of intrusion.
Kwame Nkrumah: The Father of African Nationalism

The first African statesman to achieve world recognition was Kwame Nkrumah (1909-1972), who became president of the new Republic of Ghana in 1960. He campaigned ceaselessly for African solidarity and for the liberation of southern Africa from white settler rule. His greatest achievement was to win the right of black peoples in Africa to have a vote and to determine their own destiny. He turned a dream of liberation into a political reality. He was the leader of Ghana who urged Africa to shed the colonial yoke and who inspired black people everywhere to seek their freedom. This revised edition of Birmingham's fine and accessible biography chronicles the public accomplishments of this extraordinary leader, who faced some of the century's most challenging political struggles over colonial transition. African nationalism, and pan-Africanism. It also relates some of the personal trials of a complex individual. As a student in America in the late 1930s, Nkrumah, shy, disorganized, but ambitious and persistent, earned four degrees in ten years. For political training he then went to England. Nkrumah found writing difficult throughout his lifetime, but once back in his African homeland, with its oral heritage, Nkrumah blossomed as a charming conversationalist, a speechmaker, and eventually a visionary and inspiring leader. Nkrumah's crusades were controversial, however, and in the 1960s he gradually lost his heroic stature both among his own people and among his fellow leaders. He lived his last years in exile. This remarkable life story, which touches on many of the issues facing modern Africa, will open a window of understanding for the general leader as well as for graduate and undergraduate classes. In this new edition, Birmingham also examines Nkrumah's exile and provides insight into the image of Nkrumah that has emerged in the light of research recently published.
The brain near the edge

When viewed at a certain coarse grain, the brain seems a relatively small dynamical system composed by a few dozen interacting areas, performing a number of stereotypical behaviors. It is known that, even relatively small dynamical systems can reliably generate robust and flexible behavior if they are located near a second order phase transition, because of the abundance of metastable states at the critical point. The approach pursued here assumes that some of the most fundamental properties of the functioning brain are possible because it is spontaneously located at the border of such instability. In this notes we review the motivation, the arguments and recent results as well as the implications of this view of the functioning brain.
Principal motion components for gesture recognition using a single-example

This paper introduces principal motion components (PMC), a new method for one-shot gesture recognition. In the considered scenario a single training-video is available for each gesture to be recognized, which limits the application of traditional techniques (e.g., HMMs). In PMC, a 2D map of motion energy is obtained per each pair of consecutive frames in a video. Motion maps associated to a video are processed to obtain a PCA model, which is used for recognition under a reconstruction-error approach. The main benefits of the proposed approach are its simplicity, easiness of implementation, competitive performance and efficiency. We report experimental results in one-shot gesture recognition using the ChaLearn Gesture Dataset; a benchmark comprising more than 50,000 gestures, recorded as both RGB and depth video with a Kinect camera. Results obtained with PMC are competitive with alternative methods proposed for the same data set.
The Blood-Brain Barrier in Cortical Multiple Sclerosis Lesions

The blood-brain barrier (BBB) is composed mainly of specialized endothelial cells characterized by the presence of intercellular tight junctions. Additionally, perivascular cells, astrocytes, and surrounding basement membranes determine BBB integrity. BBB disruption is an early phenomenon in the formation of new white matter multiple sclerosis (MS) lesions; however, knowledge of the extent of BBB changes in gray matter MS lesions is lacking. Here, we studied several markers for BBB integrity in well-characterized brain tissue of patients with MS. Plasma protein leakage was enhanced in white matter lesions compared with that in normal-appearing white matter, whereas plasma protein leakage was absent in gray matter lesions. White matter lesions showed irregular basement membranes and parenchymal depositions of collagen type IV, whereas purely gray matter lesions lacked basement membrane alterations. Similarly, we observed no evidence for astrogliosis and tight junction changes in cortical MS lesions. Although BBB dysfunction is a common feature of white matter MS lesions, cortical MS lesions lack markers for BBB disruption or astrogliosis. Our data may indicate that BBB breakdown is not a critical event in the formation of gray matter MS lesions.
A Comparison of Spatio-Temporal Disease Mapping Approaches Including an Application to Ischaemic Heart Disease in New South Wales, Australia

The field of spatio-temporal modelling has witnessed a recent surge as a result of developments in computational power and increased data collection. These developments allow analysts to model the evolution of health outcomes in both space and time simultaneously. This paper models the trends in ischaemic heart disease (IHD) in New South Wales, Australia over an eight-year period between 2006 and 2013. A number of spatio-temporal models are considered, and we propose a novel method for determining the goodness-of-fit for these models by outlining a spatio-temporal extension of the Moran’s I statistic. We identify an overall decrease in the rates of IHD, but note that the extent of this health improvement varies across the state. In particular, we identified a number of remote areas in the north and west of the state where the risk stayed constant or even increased slightly.
Evaluation of Ad Hoc Routing Strategies to Maximize Path Lifetimes

An important parameter to evaluate the performance of ad hoc routing algorithms is their average route lifetimes. Numerous route breaks require frequent route reestablishments. This certainly limits the performance of routing algorithms and their ability to support QoS applications. The analysis of path lifetimes of different ad hoc routing strategies is a first step towards reasonable optimization of routing algorithms. Our evaluation implies that ad hoc routes with more than five hops are unsuitable for end-to-end data communication as they tend to break prematurely. Further analysis illustrate that multi-path algorithms outperform strategies relying only on the shortest path by at least 50%. Additionally, non-disjoint multi path systems, show better results than their disjoint counterparts do. Their greater flexibility in terms of path selection allows improvements in most variable environments.