Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Randomized controlled trial of standard versus high‐dose intravenous omeprazole after endoscopic therapy in high‐risk patients with acute peptic ulcer bleeding

Rebleeding from peptic ulcers is a major contributor to death. This study compared standard (40‐mg intravenous infusion of omeprazole once daily for 3 days) and high‐dose (80‐mg bolus of omeprazole followed by 8‐mg/h infusion for 72 h) in reducing the rebleeding rate (primary endpoint), need for surgery, duration of hospital stay and mortality in patients with peptic ulcer bleeding after successful endoscopic therapy.
Synergy of Streptogramin Antibiotics Occurs Independently of Their Effects on Translation

ABSTRACT Streptogramin antibiotics are divided into types A and B, which in combination can act synergistically. We compared the molecular interactions of the streptogramin combinations Synercid (type A, dalfopristin; type B, quinupristin) and NXL 103 (type A, flopristin; type B, linopristin) with the Escherichia coli 70S ribosome by X-ray crystallography. We further analyzed the activity of the streptogramin components individually and in combination. The streptogramin A and B components in Synercid and NXL 103 exhibit synergistic antimicrobial activity against certain pathogenic bacteria. However, in transcription-coupled translation assays, only combinations that include dalfopristin, the streptogramin A component of Synercid, show synergy. Notably, the diethylaminoethylsulfonyl group in dalfopristin reduces its activity but is the basis for synergy in transcription-coupled translation assays before its rapid hydrolysis from the depsipeptide core. Replacement of the diethylaminoethylsulfonyl group in dalfopristin by a nonhydrolyzable group may therefore be beneficial for synergy. The absence of general streptogramin synergy in transcription-coupled translation assays suggests that the synergistic antimicrobial activity of streptogramins can occur independently of the effects of streptogramin on translation.
Development of shared vision: Lessons from a science education community collaborative

This is a qualitative case study of a collaboration among multiple stakeholders in science education who came together in order to create environmental field trips and the surrounding classroom curriculum. The collaboration involves 4 major facets of science education: formal education at the elementary and university levels, informal education, and educational research. The data were collected by means of observation, semi-structured interviews, and written document review. This study examines how shared vision developed within the collaboration, the roles the participants played in its evolution, and how this process benefited both the collaboration and each individual collaborator. Several factors significantly affected the progress towards a shared vision and a successful collaboration including time, communication, understanding others' perspectives, dedication and ownership, as well as the collaborative environment. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 44: 681–705, 2007
Ordered Passions: Commitment and Hierarchy in the Organizational Ideas of the Jesuit Founders

This article explores hierarchy, commitment, order and cognate ideas in the context of one of the most successful religious enterprises of all, the Society of Jesus. It concentrates on its management style and its distinctive understanding of the religious life, in which obedience occupies a pre-eminent place. Hierarchy and obedience were however by no means intended as a substitute for commitment, prudence or operational autonomy on the part of those subject to it. These unfamiliar ways of understanding motivation and organization suggest insights into the way in which contemporary organizations have sought to institute quasi-virtues such as ethics, care and compassion, in order to regulate and control behaviour and performance.
Diversity and organizational innovation: The role of employee involvement

This study examined the interactive effects of workplace diversity and employee involvement on organizational innovation. Using a sample of 182 large Canadian organizations, we found a three-way interaction between level of employee involvement, variation in involvement, and racioethnic diversity on innovation. In organizations with high levels of employee involvement, high variation in involvement was associated with higher involvement levels among racioethnic minorities, resulting in a stronger association between diversity and innovation. Furthermore, the association between White employee involvement and innovation was significantly more positive under the condition of high involvement among racioethnic minority group members. Thus, ensuring high levels of involvement among members of historically marginalized racioethnic groups enhances the innovation effects of employee empowerment systems. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
A survey for large‐separation lensed FIRST quasars

Little is known about the statistics of gravitationally lensed quasars at large (7–30 arcsec) image separations, which probe masses on the scale of galaxy clusters. We have carried out a survey for gravitationally lensed objects, among sources in the FIRST 20-cm radio survey that have unresolved optical counterparts in the digitizations of the Palomar Observatory Sky Survey. From the statistics of ongoing surveys that search for quasars among FIRST sources, we estimate that there are about 9100 quasars in this source sample, making this one of the largest lensing surveys to date. Using broad-band imaging, we have isolated all objects with double radio components separated by 5–30 arcsec that have unresolved optical counterparts with similar BVI colours. Our criteria for similar colours conservatively allow for observational error and for colour variations due to time delays between lensed images. Spectroscopy of these candidates shows that none of the pairs are lensed quasars. This sets an upper limit (95 per cent confidence) on the lensing fraction in this survey of 3.3×10−4, assuming 9100 quasars. Although the source redshift distribution is poorly known, a rough calculation of the expected lensing frequency and the detection efficiencies and biases suggests that simple theoretical expectations are of the same order of magnitude as our observational upper limit. Our procedure is novel in that our exhaustive search for lensed objects does not require prior identification of the quasars in the sample as such. Characterization of the FIRST-selected quasar population will enable use of our result to constrain quantitatively the mass properties of clusters.
Embedding Android devices in automation systems

The paper presents a novel architecture based on frequent utilization of PDAs and mobile phones as human machine interface (HMI) in controlling various systems. There are two main considerations discussed. One is with regards to real-time constraints in the context of industrial process control. The second is the possibility of transferring some tasks from the process controller towards the Android device (tablet or smart phone). Therefore, after analyzing the current implementations together with their limitations, we designed an evaluation framework. The main goal of the new structure will be to analyze the limitations of balancing processing load between process controller and Android device's resources. The structure is comprised of a cheap Android tablet connected to an embedded module via an USB cable. The embedded module has as his core a state-of-art ARM Cortex M4F processor for industrial applications. The proposed solution provides the advantages derived from both components. The implementation required driver development, considerations which are also presented briefly.
Reputational Status of Organizations in Technical Systems

An important, but relatively neglected, aspect of social stratification in modern societies is the reputational status associated with complex organizations in interdependent organizational fields. In this study, social factors influencing the reputational status of research organizations in large-scale, cognitively diverse, multisectoral "technical systems" are examined. Data are drawn from interviews with personnel from a national U.S. sample of 50 organizations engaged in research on nuclear-waste management and 47 organizations involved in photovoltaics research. The reputational status of each organization was assessed by knowledgeable respondents from other organizations in each system. A model is presented that characterizes reputational status as a function of organizational performance, organizational structure, and network position. Support is obtained for the model by the use of both subjective and objective indicators, including evidence of the mediating effects of network position. Further results obtained from a blockmodel analysis indicate that ties to specific blocks are a more important determinant of reputational status than block membership.
Assessing the International Spreading Risk Associated with the 2014 West African Ebola Outbreak

Background: The 2014 West African Ebola Outbreak is so far the largest and deadliest recorded in history. The affected countries, Sierra Leone, Guinea, Liberia, and Nigeria, have been struggling to contain and to mitigate the outbreak. The ongoing rise in confirmed and suspected cases, 2615 as of 20 August 2014, is considered to increase the risk of international dissemination, especially because the epidemic is now affecting cities with major commercial airports. Method: We use the Global Epidemic and Mobility Model to generate stochastic, individual based simulations of epidemic spread worldwide, yielding, among other measures, the incidence and seeding events at a daily resolution for 3,362 subpopulations in 220 countries. The mobility model integrates daily airline passenger traffic worldwide and the disease model includes the community, hospital, and burial transmission dynamic. We use a multimodel inference approach calibrated on data from 6 July to the date of 9 August 2014. The estimates obtained were used to generate a 3-month ensemble forecast that provides quantitative estimates of the local transmission of Ebola virus disease in West Africa and the probability of international spread if the containment measures are not successful at curtailing the outbreak. Results: We model the short-term growth rate of the disease in the affected West African countries and estimate the basic reproductive number to be in the range 1.5 − 2.0 (interval at the 1/10 relative likelihood). We simulated the international spreading of the outbreak and provide the estimate for the probability of Ebola virus disease case importation in countries across the world. Results indicate that the short-term (3 and 6 weeks) probability of international spread outside the African region is small, but not negligible. The extension of the outbreak is more likely occurring in African countries, increasing the risk of international dissemination on a longer time scale.
Analysis of a model for the dynamics of riots

This paper is concerned with modeling the dynamics of social outbursts of activity, such as protests or rioting activity. In this sequel to our work in \cite{Berestycki2014}, written in collaboration with J-P. Nadal, we model the effect of restriction of information and explore the effects that it has on the existence of {\it upheaval waves}. The systems involve the coupling of an explicit variable representing the intensity of rioting activity and an underlying (implicit) field of social tension. We prove the existence of global solutions to the Cauchy problem in $\mathbb{R}^d$ as well as the existence of {\it traveling wave solutions} under certain parameter regimes. We furthermore explore the effects of heterogeneities in the environment with the help of numerical simulations, which leads to pulsating waves in certain cases. We analyze the effects of periodic domains as well as the {\it barrier} problem with the help of numerical simulations and discuss many open problems.
Mechanisms of tissue uptake and retention of paclitaxel-coated balloons: impact on neointimal proliferation and healing

Background The efficacy of paclitaxel-coated balloons (PCB) for restenosis prevention has been demonstrated in humans. However, the mechanism of action for sustained drug retention and biological efficacy following single-time drug delivery is still unknown. Methods and results The pharmacokinetic profile and differences in drug concentration (vessel surface vs arterial wall) of two different paclitaxel coating formulations (3 µg/mm2) displaying opposite solubility characteristics (CC=crystalline vs AC=amorphous) were tested in vivo and compared with paclitaxel-eluting stents (PES). Also, the biological effect of both PCB formulations on vascular healing was tested in the porcine coronary injury model. One hour following balloon inflation, both formulations achieved similar arterial paclitaxel levels (CC=310 vs AC=245 ng/mg; p=NS). At 24 h, the CC maintained similar tissue concentrations, whereas the AC tissue levels declined by 99% (p<0.01). At this time point, arterial levels were 20-fold (CC) and 5-fold (AC) times higher compared to the PES group (p<0.05). At 28 days, arterial levels retained were 9.2% (CC) and 0.04% (AC, p<0.01) of the baseline levels. Paclitaxel concentration on the vessel surface was higher in the CC at 1 (CC=36.7% vs AC=13.1%, p<0.05) and 7 days (CC=38.4% vs AC=11%, p<0.05). In addition, the CC induced higher levels of neointimal inhibition, fibrin deposition and delayed healing compared with the AC group. Conclusions The presence of paclitaxel deposits on the vessel surface driving diffusion into the arterial tissue in a time-dependent fashion supports the mechanism of action of PCB. This specific pharmacokinetic behaviour influences the patterns of neointimal formation and healing.
Motor Training-Induced Neuroplasticity

The present lab-review presents and discusses our previous and current research into motor training-induced neuroplasticity by classifying our work on the basis of two broad aspects: (1) the applied study design (i.e., cross-sectional vs. longitudinal) and (2) the complexity of the motor task subjected to training (i.e., elementary finger movements vs. highly complex physical activity). Together with others we demonstrate that training-induced anatomic and functional changes are evident for a wide range of motor tasks and for several age cohorts. Finally, we discuss our findings from a lifespan perspective and embed them in the context of research investigating the beneficial effect of motor training-induced neuroplasticity on brain aging.
A House Is Not a Home: A Qualitative Assessment of the Life Experiences of Alcoholic Homeless Women

An estimated 17% of the homeless population in the United States are women. In this qualitative study, interviews were conducted with 7 chronically homeless, alcoholic women selected from a related study, to gain deeper insights regarding their perceptions of housing. Interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed. To ensure reliability, several investigators worked to create categories from which patterns of themes emerged. A consistent pattern of having experienced inadequate home life from an early age emerged. Policies of reestablishing the traditional home for homeless and alcoholic women must consider the life experiences of the women along with their immediate need for shelter.
Learning combinatorial transcriptional dynamics from gene expression data

MOTIVATION mRNA transcriptional dynamics is governed by a complex network of transcription factor (TF) proteins. Experimental and theoretical analysis of this process is hindered by the fact that measurements of TF activity in vivo is very challenging. Current models that jointly infer TF activities and model parameters rely on either of the two main simplifying assumptions: either the dynamics is simplified (e.g. assuming quasi-steady state) or the interactions between TFs are ignored, resulting in models accounting for a single TF. RESULTS We present a novel approach to reverse engineer the dynamics of multiple TFs jointly regulating the expression of a set of genes. The model relies on a continuous time, differential equation description of transcriptional dynamics where TFs are treated as latent on/off variables and are modelled using a switching stochastic process (telegraph process). The model can not only incorporate both activation and repression, but allows any non-trivial interaction between TFs, including AND and OR gates. By using a factorization assumption within a variational Bayesian treatment we formulate a framework that can reconstruct both the activity profiles of the TFs and the type of regulation from time series gene expression data. We demonstrate the identifiability of the model on a simple but non-trivial synthetic example, and then use it to formulate non-trivial predictions about transcriptional control during yeast metabolism. AVAILABILITY http://homepages.inf. ed.ac. uk/gsanguin/ CONTACT g.sanguinetti@ed.ac. uk SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Re-envisioning Teacher Preparation: Lessons from China

Stereotypes of the 'Chinese learner' have been extensively investigated, leading to the conclusion that knowledge about the social, cultural and pedagogic origins of Chinese students' dispositions to learning should be incorporated into programs preparing teachers for China service. In this paper it is suggested that teacher education initiatives of this type should redress sociological blindness about the particularity of local pedagogic contexts. A case study of the production of 'obedient' students in the Chinese school system during the 1990s is presented, illustrating sociological tools that enable analysis of the origin of students' dispositions to learning in particular conditions. The recommendation is that such tools be incorporated into teacher education for domestic, as well as international contexts, given the critical insight that is required if teachers are to provide equitably for all students in conditions of increasing cultural diversification and re-traditionalisation of education.
Collaborative modelling for active involvement of stakeholders in urban flood risk management

Abstract. This paper presents an approach to enhance the role of local stakeholders in dealing with urban floods. The concept is based on the DIANE-CM project (Decentralised Integrated Analysis and Enhancement of Awareness through Collaborative Modelling and Management of Flood Risk) of the 2nd ERANET CRUE funding initiative. The main objective of the project was to develop and test an advanced methodology for enhancing the resilience of local communities to flooding. Through collaborative modelling, a social learning process was initiated that enhances the social capacity of the stakeholders due to the interaction process. The other aim of the project was to better understand how data from hazard and vulnerability analyses and improved maps, as well as from the near real-time flood prediction, can be used to initiate a public dialogue (i.e. collaborative mapping and planning activities) in order to carry out more informed and shared decision-making processes and to enhance flood risk awareness. The concept of collaborative modelling was applied in two case studies: (1) the Cranbrook catchment in the UK, with focus on pluvial flooding; and (2) the Alster catchment in Germany, with focus on fluvial flooding. As a result of the interactive and social learning process, supported by sociotechnical instruments, an understanding of flood risk was developed amongst the stakeholders and alternatives for flood risk management for the respective case study area were jointly developed and ranked as a basis for further planning and management.
Relationships between Secondary School Beginning Teachers’ Perceptions of Self-efficacy and Professional Commitment in Ethiopia

The main purpose of the present study was to investigate the secondary school beginning teachers’ perceptions of self-efficacy and professional commitment, and explore differences between the perceptions of teachers in the variables of concern. This study employed a descriptive correlational design. Respondents were 381 secondary school beginning teachers. They responded to a 3-part questionnaire—demographic variables, the Teachers Sense of Efficacy Scale (Tschannen-Moran & Woolfolk Hoy, 2001), and Professional Commitment Scale (Allen, Meyer, & Smith, 1993). Results showed that beginning teachers in Ethiopia claim high levels of self-efficacy—efficacy in student engagement, instructional strategies, classroom management, and overall efficacy and affective professional commitment; while their perceptions of normative and continuance professional commitment tended to be neutral. Especially female beginning teachers in Ethiopia tended to have lower levels of self-efficacy and affective professional commitment than their male counterparts. Further, results showed weak to moderate significant positive relationships between self-efficacy and affective professional commitment (r = 0.14 to 0.22). Implications and recommendations for school practices and future research are discussed.
You want to measure coping but your protocol’ too long: Consider the brief cope

Studies of coping in applied settings often confront the need to minimize time demands on participants. The problem of participant response burden is exacerbated further by the fact that these studies typically are designed to test multiple hypotheses with the same sample, a strategy that entails the use of many time-consuming measures. Such research would benefit from a brief measure of coping assessing several responses known to be relevant to effective and ineffective coping. This article presents such a brief form of a previously published measure called the COPE inventory (Carver, Scheier, & Wcintraub, 1989), which has proven to be useful in health-related research. The Brief COPE omits two scales of the full COPE, reduces others to two items per scale, and adds one scale. Psychometric properties of the Brief COPE arc reported, derived from a sample of adults participating in a study of the process of recovery after Hurricane Andrew.