Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Requirements for multi-level systems pharmacology models to reach end-usage: the case of type 2 diabetes

We are currently in the middle of a major shift in biomedical research: unprecedented and rapidly growing amounts of data may be obtained today, from in vitro, in vivo and clinical studies, at molecular, physiological and clinical levels. To make use of these large-scale, multi-level datasets, corresponding multi-level mathematical models are needed, i.e. models that simultaneously capture multiple layers of the biological, physiological and disease-level organization (also referred to as quantitative systems pharmacology—QSP—models). However, today's multi-level models are not yet embedded in end-usage applications, neither in drug research and development nor in the clinic. Given the expectations and claims made historically, this seemingly slow adoption may seem surprising. Therefore, we herein consider a specific example—type 2 diabetes—and critically review the current status and identify key remaining steps for these models to become mainstream in the future. This overview reveals how, today, we may use models to ask scientific questions concerning, e.g., the cellular origin of insulin resistance, and how this translates to the whole-body level and short-term meal responses. However, before these multi-level models can become truly useful, they need to be linked with the capabilities of other important existing models, in order to make them ‘personalized’ (e.g. specific to certain patient phenotypes) and capable of describing long-term disease progression. To be useful in drug development, it is also critical that the developed models and their underlying data and assumptions are easily accessible. For clinical end-usage, in addition, model links to decision-support systems combined with the engagement of other disciplines are needed to create user-friendly and cost-efficient software packages.
The Ménière's Disease Index: An Objective Correlate of Ménière's Disease, Based on Audiometric and Electrocochleographic Data

Introduction: Diagnosis of Ménière's disease (MD) is made according to the diagnostic criteria proposed by the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery. Value of transtympanic electrocochleography (TT-ECoG) in diagnosis of endolymphatic hydrops remains controversial. The aim of our study is to determine which combination of audiometric and electrocochleographic measures correlates best with the clinical diagnosis of endolymphatic hydrops. Materials and Methods: Retrospective analysis of 109 consecutive patients undergoing TT-ECoG. All 131 tested ears were divided in categories: definite MD, probable MD, possible MD, and non-MD, according to the criteria of the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery. TT-ECoG was performed using clicks and tone burst stimuli. Audiometric and electrocochleographic data were collected and analyzed. Results: TT-ECoG with tone burst stimuli correctly identified 91% of the definite MD group and 71% of the non-MD group. Using binary logistic regression followed by discriminant analysis, we found a linear combination of 3 variables (air-conduction threshold at 125 and 8,000 Hz, and TT-ECoG summating potential amplitude at 4,000 Hz) that showed a good correlation with the clinical diagnosis of definite MD. This combination was able to identify 98% of the non-MD cases and 94% of the definite MD cases. The Ménière's Disease Index was created to scale the degree of MD from 0 (non-MD) to 10 (definite MD). Conclusion: The Ménière's Disease Index is an objective measure that correlates with the clinical degrees of MD. Future validation is still needed to confirm the added diagnostic and clinical value of this method.
If You Blog, Will They Follow? Using Online Media to Set the Agenda for Consumer Concerns on “Greenwashed” Environmental Claims

Agenda-setting theory is used to investigate if consumers' online opinions on “greenwashed” advertisements (misleading green advertisements) are influenced by the agenda set by online newspaper articles and environmental nongovernmental organization (NGO) blogs. Leximancer is initially used to obtain attributes and identify themes from four different online stakeholder discussions on greenwashing. Content analysis and cross-lagged correlations are further used to verify if blogs and news articles set the substantive attribute salience in the consumer discussions over a 12-month period (January–December 2009). We found two significant themes in the various stakeholder discussions on greenwashing: marketing communication credibility and impact on natural environment. Results also indicate a bidirectional agenda-setting relationship between consumers and other stakeholders from the same country.
Undergraduate students’ attitudes toward, and personality correlates in relation to, older adults

Attitudes toward older adults have been implicated as a variable likely to influence quality of life and care later in life. Given the trend toward an increase in the proportion of the population aged over 65 years in Canada, it is imperative to understand these attitudes. Prior researchers have indicated that personality traits are likely to influence individuals’ attitudes. Therefore, we examined attitudes toward older adults and the personality correlates associated with these attitudes. Participants ( N = 171 undergraduate students) completed the Kogan’s Attitude toward Old People Scale and the 16 Personality Factor Questionnaire. Overall positive attitudes toward older adults were observed. Evaluation of the data showed that positive attitudes were associated with elevated 16PF scores, specifically, for rule- consciousness, warmth, emotional stability, and tension, with women exhibiting particularly high levels of warmth. Additional findings related to exposure to older adults and perceptions of the older persons themselves are discussed.
Minimax Policies for Combinatorial Prediction Games

We address the online linear optimization problem when the actions of the forecaster are represented by binary vectors. Our goal is to understand the magnitude of the minimax regret for the worst possible set of actions. We study the problem under three different assumptions for the feedback: full information, and the partial information models of the so-called "semi-bandit", and "bandit" problems. We consider both L -, and L2-type of restrictions for the losses assigned by the adversary. We formulate a general strategy using Bregman projections on top of a potential-based gradient descent, which generalizes the ones studied in the series of papers Gyorgy et al. (2007), Dani et al. (2008), Abernethy et al. (2008), Cesa-Bianchi and Lugosi (2009), Helmbold and Warmuth (2009), Koolen et al. (2010), Uchiya et al. (2010), Kale et al. (2010) and Audibert and Bubeck (2010). We provide simple proofs that recover most of the previous results. We propose new upper bounds for the semi-bandit game. Moreover we derive lower bounds for all three feedback assumptions. With the only exception of the bandit game, the upper and lower bounds are tight, up to a constant factor. Finally, we answer a question asked by Koolen et al. (2010) by showing that the exponentially weighted average forecaster is suboptimal against L adversaries.
Life Without Work

Unemployment is a stark reality in today’s economic climate, and many Americans report a fear of loss or decrease in social status as a result of unexpected unemployment. Despite vocational psychology’s emphasis on work as a domain of life, very little exploration on how social class shifts impact workers has been conducted. One way to rectify the current gaps in the literature is to consider the integration of multiple theories that address different aspects of social class identity and the role of work in people’s lives. Intersectional approaches, the Social Class Worldview Model, and the Psychology Working perspectives are discussed in this article as applicable to life without work, particularly in relation to unemployment among underserved populations. Multidisciplinary literature is highlighted and integrated to inform the current understanding of these problems. Implications for psychologists and career counselors conducting research, practice, and public policy are discussed.
Extracellular space and ionic distribution in rat ventricle.

POLIMENI, PHILIP I. Extracellular space and ionic distribution in rat ventricle. Am. J. Physiol. 227(3) : 676-683. 1974. -Extracellular space (ECS) of rat ventricle was measured by two independent methods: in vivo tracer ([35S]sulfatej distribution in the nephrectomized animal and by morphometric analysis of histological preparations fixed in isosmotic glutaraldehyde-saline. ECS determined by tracer and histological procedures in the same tissue were not significantly different. The extracellular compartment comprises 19.0 =t 0.2 9; of myocardial volume. Ventricular water content is 3.32 & 0.02 g/g dry wt, of which 0.82 rt 0.01 g (25ci;) consists of extracellular water. Electrolyte contents were measured in 16 samples (mmol/kg dry ventricle) : Na, 164 rt 3; K, 367 =I= 3; Cl, 125 rt 2; Ca, 3.59 zt 0.08; Mg, 44.5 =I= 0.4. Cellular concentrations (mmol/kg cell water) were calculated on the assumption of a homogeneous distribution throughout ECS: [Na] i = 16; [K] i = 144; [Cl] i = 13; [Ca] i = 0.6; [Mg] i = 17. When [Na] in the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) is assumed to equal [Na],, as suggested in studies of skeletal muscle, then calculated [Na]i is slightly greater than the chemical activity of cellular Na recently measured directly in the heart with ion-selective microelectrodes. Calculated [Cl] i is compatible with nonpassive distribution of cardiac Cl, unless Cl is also assumed to enter the SR.
Pulque, a Traditional Mexican Alcoholic Fermented Beverage: Historical, Microbiological, and Technical Aspects

Pulque is a traditional Mexican alcoholic beverage produced from the fermentation of the fresh sap known as aguamiel (mead) extracted from several species of Agave (maguey) plants that grow in the Central Mexico plateau. Currently, pulque is produced, sold and consumed in popular districts of Mexico City and rural areas. The fermented product is a milky white, viscous, and slightly acidic liquid beverage with an alcohol content between 4 and 7° GL and history of consumption that dates back to pre-Hispanic times. In this contribution, we review the traditional pulque production process, including the microbiota involved in the biochemical changes that take place during aguamiel fermentation. We discuss the historical relevance and the benefits of pulque consumption, its chemical and nutritional properties, including the health benefits associated with diverse lactic acid bacteria with probiotic potential isolated from the beverage. Finally, we describe the actual status of pulque production as well as the social, scientific and technological challenges faced to preserve and improve the production of this ancestral beverage and Mexican cultural heritage.
Hierarchical Image Segmentation Using Correlation Clustering

In this paper, we apply efficient implementations of integer linear programming to the problem of image segmentation. The image is first grouped into superpixels and then local information is extracted for each pair of spatially adjacent superpixels. Given local scores on a map of several hundred superpixels, we use correlation clustering to find the global segmentation that is most consistent with the local evidence. We show that, although correlation clustering is known to be NP-hard, finding the exact global solution is still feasible by breaking the segmentation problem down into subproblems. Each such sub-problem can be viewed as an automatically detected image part. We can further accelerate the process by using the cutting-plane method, which provides a hierarchical structure of the segmentations. The efficiency and improved performance of the proposed method is compared to several state-of-the-art methods and demonstrated on several standard segmentation data sets.
Red Clump stars in the Boötes III stellar system

We report on the detection of a population of Red Clump (RC) stars probably associated with the recently discovered stellar system Bootes III. The RC is identified as a 3σ peak in the luminosity function (LF) of colour-selected stars extracted from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey data base. The peak is consistently detected in the g, r, i and z LFs at the expected luminosity of a typical RC at the distance of Bootes III. Moreover, the stars around the LF peak show a maximum of surface density nearly coincident with the reported centre of the system. Assuming that the detected feature is the genuine RC of Bootes III, we find that the system has the horizontal branch morphology typical of old and metal-poor dwarf spheroidals, it has an integrated magnitude MV≃−5.8 ± 0.5 and an ellipticity e∼ 0.5, quite typical of the recently identified new class of very faint dwarf galaxies.
Functional results of the double-stapled ileoanal reservoir.

BACKGROUND The preferred method for creation of an ileoanal reservoir is still controversial. We prospectively studied the functional and physiologic outcome of our patients who underwent a double-stapled ileoanal reservoir (DSIAR). STUDY DESIGN All consecutive patients who underwent restorative proctocolectomy with a DSIAR between 1988 and 1993 were evaluated. Functional results were assessed by questionnaires and anal manometry preoperatively and two, 12, and 24 months postoperatively. RESULTS One hundred forty patients (90 males and 50 females) with a mean age of 40.7 (range, 12 to 71) years were evaluated. Of these, 107 patients (77 percent) had ulcerative colitis, 21 (15 percent) had familial adenomatous polyposis, six (4 percent) had indeterminate colitis, and six (4 percent) had a post-operative diagnosis of Crohn's disease. One hundred twenty-four (95 percent) of the 131 patients with closed stomas were available for functional and manometric evaluation at a mean follow-up period of 24 months. A 32 percent decline in the mean resting pressure (from 71.3 +/- 4 to 48.2 +/- 3.4 mm Hg) occurred early after DSIAR (p < 0.001) with partial recovery by 24 months. The maximal internal sphincter resting pressure showed a 39 percent decline (from 90.8 +/- 4.9 to 55.3 +/- 5.7 mm Hg, p < 0.005) with recovery after 12 months. There were no significant changes in the length of the high-pressure zone or mean or maximal squeeze pressures. A mean of 5.4 (two to 13) bowel movements occurred during the day and a mean of 1.2 (zero to four) occurred at night. Perfect or almost perfect continence was reported during the day and night, respectively, by 95 and 92 percent of the patients. Overall perioperative complications occurred in 30 patients (21 percent) including septic complications in eight (6 percent), and pouchitis in eight (6 percent). There was one postoperative death (0.7 percent). CONCLUSIONS Double-stapled ileoanal reservoir is associated with good subjective functional and objective physiologic results and has acceptable rates of morbidity and mortality.
The early experience assumption: Past, present, and future

The assumption that “early experience is important” has attracted a considerable amount of research over the last half century. As a result, both our thinking about the role of early experience in personality development and the nature of that research have changed drastically. It has become apparent that there is no direct relationship between age and the impact which experience has on the individual, that young children are not necessarily more vulnerable even to quite severe adversities than older children, and that considerable variability exists in long-term outcome. Research has therefore had to take an evermore complex form, moving away from a mechanical association of early experience with outcome assessments to a much more dynamically oriented approach, in which account is also taken of inherent characteristics of the individual, the social context both before and after the experience, and the various turning points that the individual negotiates in traversing the developmental path to maturity. Prospective longitudinal studies are therefore essential to our understanding of the link between early experience and later adjustment, and these studies need to include not only accounts of the external experiences encountered but also assessments of the individual’s internal representations resulting from the encounters. It has also become apparent that some behaviour systems are more vulnerable than others and that a more thoughtful use of outcome measures is therefore necessary. Although the belief in the irreversibility of early experience as inevitable has been abandoned, the parameters defining the limits of reversibility have yet to be determined.
Music Educators’ Perceived Effectiveness of Inclusion

The purpose of this research project was to examine whether music teachers’ perceptions of effectiveness of inclusion, curriculum adaptations/modifications, or student achievement had altered from previous research findings 20 years before. A survey based on that used by Gfeller, Darrow, and Hedden was sent to music educators through the United States and returned by 1,194, with all 50 states represented. Results indicate more positive responses as compared with 20 years ago, with participants generally reporting that the students were successfully integrated, their music needs were being met, and they did not hinder the progress of students without disabilities. Additionally, teachers’ responses indicated they were comfortable adapting and/or modifying their regular curriculum to meet the needs of students with special needs and that these students were graded on the same standards of music achievement as the other students in their classes.
Evaluating New York State’s Sex Offender Management and Treatment Act

The current study evaluated New York State’s sex offender civil management screening process. Specifically, the study sought to (a) determine which variables contributed significantly to offenders being deemed high risk and receiving a psychiatric examination, and (b) assess the likely public safety impact of civil management by examining the recidivism rates of a historical sample of offenders matched to Sex Offender Management and Treatment Act–reviewed offenders on variables important to the civil management screening outcome. Results of the screening analysis indicated the civil management risk assessment process places the most emphasis on variables empirically established to be related to sexual recidivism risk, such as the offender’s Static-99 score and whether the offender had a male victim. Results of the public safety impact analysis indicated that the review process appears to be accurately identifying the highest risk offenders, thereby likely increasing public safety.
Unexplained False Negative Results in Noninvasive Prenatal Testing: Two Cases Involving Trisomies 13 and 18

Noninvasive prenatal testing (NIPT) validation studies show high sensitivity and specificity for detection of trisomies 13, 18, and 21. False negative cases have rarely been reported. We describe a false negative case of trisomy 13 and another of trisomy 18 in which NIPT was commercially marketed directly to the clinician. Both cases came to our attention because a fetal anatomy scan at 20 weeks of gestation revealed multiple anomalies. Karyotyping of cultured amniocytes showed nonmosaic trisomies 13 and 18, respectively. Cytogenetic investigation of cytotrophoblast cells from multiple placental biopsies showed a low proportion of nontrisomic cells in each case, but this was considered too small for explaining the false negative NIPT result. The discordant results also could not be explained by early gestational age, elevated maternal weight, a vanishing twin, or suboptimal storage or transport of samples. The root cause of the discrepancies could, therefore, not be identified. The couples involved experienced difficulties in accepting the unexpected and late-adverse outcome of their pregnancy. We recommend that all parties involved in caring for couples who choose NIPT should collaborate to clarify false negative results in order to unravel possible biological causes and to improve the process of patient care from initial counseling to communication of the result.
Health challenges in South African automotive companies: Wellness in the workplace

Orientation: In South Africa, workplace programmes in the automotive industry focus predominantly on occupational health and safety and HIV and AIDS. The implementation of focused workplace interventions might be hampered when companies are not convinced that the condition (i.e. HIV and AIDS) is the main negative health influencing factor responsible for increased production costs. Research purpose: The study investigated the health influencing conditions perceived to negatively impact company production costs and related interventions. Motivation for the study: Apart from HIV and AIDS, little information is available about the health challenges in the South African workplace and focused HIV and AIDS programmes might only partly respond to the key health challenges of workplaces. The inter-relatedness of various risky lifestyle factors linked to health conditions necessitates a comprehensive health promotion approach. Research approach, design and method: A cross-sectional survey was conducted amongst 74 companies selected through stratified random sampling. Non-parametric tests were conducted to investigate the health influencing factors perceived to impact production costs, the monitoring thereof, extent of containment and the implementation of interventions in terms of company size and ownership. Main findings: The health factors perceived to have a moderate to large impact were HIV and AIDS, smoking, alcohol use, stress, back and neck ache and tuberculosis, also reported to be better monitored and managed by medium and large organisations. Small organisations reported a smaller impact, fewer efforts and less success. HIV and AIDS programmes were more evident in large companies and those with wellness programmes (52%). Workplace programmes enabled better monitoring and managing of impacting health conditions. Smaller organisations were not convinced of the benefits of interventions in addressing health challenges. Practical/managerial implications: As the impacting health conditions seemed linked, comprehensive and integrated wellness programmes are required to address the health issues and ensure organisations’ competitiveness. Contribution: The results contribute to a better understanding of the perceived salient health influencing factors that impact on production costs. Data support the inter-relationships between the identified health concerns and call for more holistic wellness programmes.
Compression-Based Averaging of Selective Naive Bayes Classifiers

The naive Bayes classifier has proved to be very effective on many real data applications. Its performance usually benefits from an accurate estimation of univariate conditional probabilities and from variable selection. However, although variable selection is a desirable feature, it is prone to overfitting. In this paper, we introduce a Bayesian regularization technique to select the most probable subset of variables compliant with the naive Bayes assumption. We also study the limits of Bayesian model averaging in the case of the naive Bayes assumption and introduce a new weighting scheme based on the ability of the models to conditionally compress the class labels. The weighting scheme on the models reduces to a weighting scheme on the variables, and finally results in a naive Bayes classifier with "soft variable selection". Extensive experiments show that the compression-based averaged classifier outperforms the Bayesian model averaging scheme.