Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Do High Standards, Sensitivity to Failure, and Lack of Perseverance Interact to Predict All-or-Nothing Behaviour?

Why do some people tend to begin new goals or activities with a high level of commitment and determination, only to drop substantially in their involvement within a short time? The purpose of the present research was to identify stable individual differences that influence the tendency to manifest this pattern of behaviour (i.e., starting strong then dropping off), which is subsequently termed all-or-nothing behaviour. In Study 1, participants completed questionnaire items that were expected to tap all-ornothing behaviour. Common factor analysis was performed to examine the factor structure of the data, and revealed three independent constructs that were labelled high standards, sensitivity to failure, and lack of perseverance. The purpose of Study 2 was to assess the temporal stability of these constructs. Participants completed measures of the constructs at two times separated by 20 weeks. High correlations between scores at Time 1 and Time 2 revealed that the constructs are stable over time. The purpose of Study 3 was to examine the distinctiveness of the target constructs from existing individual difference measures, and to examine their association with theoretically similar and dissimilar constructs. Participants completed measures of the target constructs along with several other individual differences, and correlations among the measures were computed. Moderate to high correlations were found between the target constructs and theoretically related constructs, but they were not were not so high such that they appeared to represent the same underlying dimension. Further, relatively low correlations were found between the target constructs and theoretically unrelated constructs. The purpose of Studies 4 and 5 was to investigate the influence of the target constructs on all-
It's the prices, stupid: why the United States is so different from other countries.

This paper uses the latest data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) to compare the health systems of the thirty member countries in 2000. Total health spending--the distribution of public and private health spending in the OECD countries--is presented and discussed. U.S. public spending as a percentage of GDP (5.8 percent) is virtually identical to public spending in the United Kingdom, Italy, and Japan (5.9 percent each) and not much smaller than in Canada (6.5 percent). The paper also compares pharmaceutical spending, health system capacity, and use of medical services. The data show that the United States spends more on health care than any other country. However, on most measures of health services use, the United States is below the OECD median. These facts suggest that the difference in spending is caused mostly by higher prices for health care goods and services in the United States.
Does spontaneous respiration alter pulmonary artery input impedance?

The aim of this study was to determine whether spontaneous respiration influences pulmonary artery input impedance, a question that has received little attention in the literature. Impedance values were assessed during three different phases of the respiratory cycle, namely inspiration, expiration and postexpiration (i.e. the null respiratory flow period between expiration and the next inspiration) in five anaesthetized spontaneously breathing dogs. Firstly, impedance values during postexpiration were taken as the reference baseline, and compared with values obtained during inspiration and expiration. Then, differences between values in inspiration and in expiration were tested, taking impedance during inspiration as the baseline. Differences with respect to postexpiration were found for three parameters of input impedance: input resistance, characteristic impedance, and the frequency at the first zero-crossing of the impedance phase from negative to positive values (f(cross)). Input resistance was significantly lower in inspiration (85% of the baseline), characteristic impedance was significantly greater in inspiration and in expiration (112 and 119% respectively), and f(cross) was significantly lower in expiration (89%). By contrast, only input resistance differed significantly when inspiration was compared to expiration. Therefore, spontaneous respiration was shown to influence input impedance significantly. The observed changes in characteristic impedance and f(cross) might be explained by a stiffening of the pulmonary artery wall, due to neural and/or mechanical factors, during inspiration and expiration.
Malaria Diagnosis across the International Centers of Excellence for Malaria Research: Platforms, Performance, and Standardization

Diagnosis is “the act of identifying a disease, illness, or problem by examining someone or something. ” When an individual with acute fever presents for clinical attention, accurate diagnosis leading to specific, prompt treatment often saves lives. As applied to malaria, not only individual patient diagnosis is important but also assessing population-level malaria prevalence using appropriate diagnostic methods is essential for public health purposes. Similarly, identifying (diagnosing) fake antimalarial medications prevents the use of counterfeit drugs that can have disastrous effects. Therefore, accurate diagnosis in broad areas related to malaria is fundamental to improving health-care delivery, informing funding agencies of current malaria situations, and aiding in the prioritization of regional and national control efforts. The International Centers of Excellence for Malaria Research (ICEMR), supported by the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has collaborated on global efforts to improve malaria diagnostics by working to harmonize and systematize procedures across different regions where endemicity and financial resources vary. In this article, the different diagnostic methods used across each ICEMR are reviewed and challenges are discussed.
In vitro predictors of therapeutic response in melanoma patients receiving tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes and interleukin-2.

PURPOSE To correlate in vitro characteristics of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL) with clinical response to TIL immunotherapy in patients with metastatic melanoma. PATIENTS AND METHODS Forty-one melanoma patients undergoing 43 separate treatment courses with TIL and interleukin-2 (IL-2) from December 1990 through November 1992 were studied prospectively. Multiple patient and treatment characteristics were evaluated for response correlates. In addition, TIL were assayed within 7 days of infusion for characteristics such as doubling time, cell-surface phenotype, autologous tumor lysis in 4-hour chromium-51 release assays, and cytokine secretion following autologous tumor stimulation. RESULTS Nine patients experienced complete or partial tumor regressions. Clinical parameters such as age, sex, sites of disease, performance status, and prior therapies were similar in responders and nonresponders. Treatment variables such as the cumulative IL-2 dose and concomitant administration of cyclophosphamide or interferon (IFN)-alpha were not predictive of response, although responders received 33% more TIL. However, statistically significant differences in favor of clinical response were noted for extranodal source of TIL (v lymph node), shorter culture duration (mean, 38 v 47 days), shorter TIL doubling time (2.6 v 3.7 days), greater autologous tumor lysis by TIL (30% v 15%; effector-to-target [E:T], 40:1), and secretion of granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) by TIL following autologous tumor stimulation (six of nine responders v eight of 32 nonresponders). CONCLUSION The associations of TIL lysis of autologous tumor and younger TIL age with clinical response observed in this study are supportive of previous reports, and these findings will be useful in designing future clinical trials. The new observation correlating GM-CSF secretion by TIL with clinical response is interesting and needs further substantiation.
Adequate Vitamin D Intake but Low Serum Levels in Pediatric Asthma Patients: A Pilot Study, Alberta Children's Hospital

Background. We assessed vitamin D intakes and serum 25(OH) vitamin D levels in pediatric asthma patients on moderate-to-high dose inhaled steroids and compared them to published findings of healthy children in our city. Methods. Parents and/or patients were interviewed to estimate the children's vitamin D intakes from foods and supplements (using an adapted validated food frequency questionnaire) and asthma duration and management. Vitamin D status: serum 25-hyroxy vitamin D (25(OH)D) was obtained from the medical records. Results. Vitamin D intakes from food and supplements of the asthma patients (n = 20, 742 ± 185 IU/day) were significantly higher compared to healthy Canadian children (n = 1442, 229 ± 121 IU/day). Despite higher vitamin D intakes, the children had nonsignificantly lower serum 25(OH) vitamin D levels compared to the comparison group. Serum 25(OH)D levels increased by 3.6 nmol/L with each 100 IU of vitamin D intake (95% Confidence interval = 2.0–4.0, R 2 = 0.931, and p = 0.001). Conclusion. Since adequate vitamin D status in asthma patients is necessary to support bone mineral accretion, it is important to achieve adequate vitamin D status by checking serum 25(OH)D status and supplement accordingly.
Fetal Risk of Anesthesia and Surgery during Pregnancy

In an attempt to define the risk to the fetus associated with anesthesia and surgery during pregnancy, a study was performed using health insurance data from the province of Manitoba (1971 to 1978). Each of the 2,565 women undergoing incidental surgery during pregnancy (Group A) was paired with a pregnant female not undergoing surgery (Group B) by maternal age and area of residence. Both groups were linked to a separately maintained provincial congenital- anomalies registry to ascertain the frequency of anomalies. There was no signficant difference in the rate of congenital anomalies between the two groups, implying no strong teratogenic effect. However, there was an increased risk of spontaneous abortion in those undergoing surgery with general anesthesia in the first or second trimester, most notably after gynecologic procedures (estimated risk ratio = 2.00), but also following procedures anatomically remote from the conceptus (estimated risk ratio = 1.54). While it is concluded that surgery with general anesthesia is associated with a higher incidence of abortion, it is conjectural at present which factor(s) account for the observed increase in fetal risk.
Selective and divided visual attention: Age‐related changes in regional cerebral blood flow measured by H215O PET

Regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) was measured using H215O and positron emission tomography (PET) to test the hypothesis that age‐related changes in the pattern of rCBF activation would be greater under divided attention conditions than under selective attention conditions. Subjects were 24 right‐handed men: 12 young adults (age 21–28 years), and 12 older adults (age 60–77 years). Measurement of rCBF was obtained during performance of three visual search task conditions, each of which involved viewing a series of nine‐letter displays and making a two‐choice button press response to each display. Analyses of subjects' mean reaction time and error rate confirmed that older adults' search performance was disproportionately impaired when it was necessary to divide attention among the display positions. The rCBF data indicated that attending selectively to a target letter in a known (central) location was not associated with cortical activation for either age group. The requirement to divide attention among the display positions led to rCBF activation in occipitotemporal, occipitoparietal, and prefrontal cortical regions. In the divided‐attention condition, rCBF activation in the occipitotemporal pathway was relatively greater for young adults; activation in prefrontal regions was relatively greater for older adults. These differences in rCBF activation were related to search reaction time and suggest that, when attention was divided, young adults' performance relied primarily on letter identification processes, whereas older adults required the recruitment of additional forms of task control. Hum. Brain Mapping 5:389–409, 1997. © 1997 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Downregulation of connexin 43 gene expression in rat heart during inflammation. The role of tumour necrosis factor.

Gap junctions form channels that mediate the communication between adjacent cells. Alterations in gap junction function and/or expression are believed to contribute to cardiac dysfunction such as those observed in septic patients. The expression of connexin 43 (Cx43), the subunit component of the most abundant cardiac gap junction, was analysed in rat heart during inflammation induced by the administration of bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Cx43 mRNA levels were found to be dramatically (>50%) and rapidly (2 h) reduced in the heart after injection of LPS (1 mg/kg). To investigate the possible mechanism of the decrease in Cx43 expression during inflammation, the promoter region of this gene was cloned. The basal Cx43 promoter activity was observed within 224-134 bp of the transcriptional initiation site after transfection into a rat myoblast cell-line (H9c2). The Cx43 promoter activity was found to be reduced by incubation of the transfected cells with serum obtained from LPS-treated rats. Moreover, Cx43 promoter activity was also decreased upon incubation with tumour necrosis factor alpha. These results suggest that Cx43 expression in the heart can be modulated by circulating cytokines. These observations may have important implications in the depression of heart function observed in septic patients.
Monoclonal immunoglobulin A derived from peritoneal B cells is encoded by both germ line and somatically mutated VH genes and is reactive with commensal bacteria

We transferred peritoneal cells from BALB/c mice into C.B17 scid/scid mice. Six to eight months after injection, only cells with the B1 phenotype were retained in the spleens and peritoneal cavities of these mice. The lamina propria of the intestine contained many peritoneal, donor-derived, immunoglobulin A (IgA)-producing cells. The mesenteric lymph nodes of these mice were found to be a major site of proliferation and generation of IgA plasmablasts. We established eight IgA-producing hybridomas from the mesenteric lymph nodes of such mice, and all the hybridomas reacted with different but partially overlapping fecal bacterial populations. Cloning and sequencing of the VH genes of these hybridomas showed that two hybridomas utilized germ line-encoded VH genes while the VH genes of the six hybridomas showed somatic mutations, some of which are indicative of an antigen-driven selection process.
Reporting of quality indicators and improvement in hospital performance: the P.Re.Val.E. Regional Outcome Evaluation Program.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate whether reporting of hospital performance was associated with a change in quality indicators in Italian hospitals. DATA SOURCES/STUDY SETTING Nationwide Hospital Information System for 2006-2009. STUDY DESIGN We performed a pre-post evaluation in Lazio (before and after disclosure of the Regional Outcome Evaluation Program P.Re.Val.E.) and a comparative evaluation versus Italian regions without comparable programs. We analyzed risk-adjusted proportions of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), hip fractures operated on within 48 hours, and cesarean deliveries. DATA COLLECTION/EXTRACTION METHODS Using standardized ICD-9-CM coding algorithms, we selected 381,053 acute myocardial infarction patients, 250,712 hip fractures, and 1,736,970 women who had given birth. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS In Lazio PCI within 48 hours changed from 22.49 to 29.43 percent following reporting of the P.Re. Val.E results (relative increase, 31 percent; p < .001). In the other regions this proportion increased from 22.48 to 27.09 percent during the same time period (relative increase, 21 percent; p < .001). Hip fractures operated on within 48 hours increased from 11.73 to 15.78 percent (relative increase, 34 percent; p < .001) in Lazio, and not in other regions (29.36 to 28.57 percent). Cesarean deliveries did not decrease in Lazio (34.57-35.30 percent), and only slightly decreased in the other regions (30.49-28.11 percent). CONCLUSIONS Reporting of performance data may have a positive but limited impact on quality improvement. The evaluation of quality indicators remains paramount for public accountability.
Comparative study of the underlay and overlay techniques of myringoplasty in large and subtotal perforations of the tympanic membrane

Myringoplasty is an established procedure. However, the quest is on to improve the results further by studying the different influencing factors, that could possibly affect the outcome. In the present randomized prospective study of one year’s duration, 60 patients having dry, large and subtotal perforations of the tympanic membrane were subjected to myringoplasty, 30 by the overlay technique and 30 by the underlay technique keeping all other influencing factors constant. The graft take-up rate was found to be the same (93.3 per cent) in both techniques but the underlay technique was judged to be better because of its technical ease, better assessment of ossicular chain integrity and mobility, less time consumption (55 minutes vs 90 minutes), earlier healing of graft (four to six weeks vs six to eight weeks), hearing gain in more patients (92.8 per cent vs 57.1 per cent) and fewer minor complications (6.6 per cent vs 33.3 per cent).
SLICT: Secure Localized Information Centric Things

While the potential advantages of geographic forwarding in wireless sensor networks (WSN) have been demonstrated for a while now, research in applying Information Centric Networking (ICN) has only gained momentum in the last few years. In this paper, we bridge these two worlds by proposing an ICN-compliant and secure implementation of geographic forwarding for ICN. We implement as a proof of concept the Greedy Perimeter Stateless Routing (GPSR) algorithm and compare its performance to that of vanilla ICN forwarding. We also evaluate the cost of security in 802.15. 4 networks in terms of energy, memory and CPU footprint. We show that in sparse but large networks, GPSR outperforms vanilla ICN forwarding in both memory footprint and CPU consumption. However, GPSR is more energy intensive because of the cost of communications.
İlköğretim Matematik Öğretmenliğini Kazanan Öğrencilerin Öğrenme Stilleri ve Matematik Başarisi Arasindaki İlişki The Relationship Between Learning Styles And Mathematics Achievement Students' Acquiring Primary Mathematics Teacher Education

The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between learning styles and mathematics achievement of the students studying primary mathematics education. For this reason, the learning style inventory is applied to 155 students who have been enrolled in Primary Mathematics Teacher Education at the Faculty of Education in Cumhuriyet University. Furthermore, the mathematics scores of these students in 2004 University Exam (OSS) are taken into consideration. As a result of the analysis of the data, it has been found out that there is a significant difference between achievements of type three learners and type four learners. It has been determined that this difference is in favor of the type three learners. Key Words: Learning styles, mathematics achievement
Minority Carrier Lifetime Estimation by Photoconductance Decay for Silicon Wafers Immersed in HF

The measurement of minority carrier bulk lifetimes of Si wafers immersed in HF is known to have an immersion time dependence, which is specially strong for high lifetime wafers and can vary significantly for different surface treatments performed previously. These complications can make the lifetime measurement become difficult to interpret and inaccurate. Therefore, a method for extracting the bulk lifetime from the measured curves of lifetime versus immersion time is suggested. A model of the reaction between Si and HF is considered, consisting in a first-order reaction between Si and HF for polished wafers and two first-order reactions for textured wafers. Experiments on polished and textured p-type Si wafers were conducted with the photoconductance decay technique to test the model proposed and to show that it is more adequate to estimate the bulk lifetime by using the reactions models than to report it as the lifetime measured at a particular immersion time, which is the usual procedure.
Detecting Driver Drowsiness Based on Sensors: A Review

In recent years, driver drowsiness has been one of the major causes of road accidents and can lead to severe physical injuries, deaths and significant economic losses. Statistics indicate the need of a reliable driver drowsiness detection system which could alert the driver before a mishap happens. Researchers have attempted to determine driver drowsiness using the following measures: (1) vehicle-based measures; (2) behavioral measures and (3) physiological measures. A detailed review on these measures will provide insight on the present systems, issues associated with them and the enhancements that need to be done to make a robust system. In this paper, we review these three measures as to the sensors used and discuss the advantages and limitations of each. The various ways through which drowsiness has been experimentally manipulated is also discussed. We conclude that by designing a hybrid drowsiness detection system that combines non-intusive physiological measures with other measures one would accurately determine the drowsiness level of a driver. A number of road accidents might then be avoided if an alert is sent to a driver that is deemed drowsy.
A Conceptual Framework of Displaced Elderly Syrian Refugees in Lebanon: Challenges and Opportunities.

In the context of ongoing armed conflicts, efforts to provide humanitarian care are often not sustainable or effective in the long run. Additionally, there is a significant gap between interventions that are theoretically feasible and those that are actually implemented in practice. Building on these foundations and challenged by the limited publications on Syrian refugees, especially the elder population, we explore the understudied connection between the day to day elder refugee experience on one hand and the lack of building resources from within on the other. We take the example of Lebanon, where as many as 4000 Syrian refugees crossed into its territory daily and which now has the highest number of refugees per capita in the world. Lebanon has limited resources and funding and is strained under this socioeconomic burden. Due to this harsh reality, refugees' simplest needs are largely unmet and they are easy targets for retaliation by local civilians competing for basic resources. Needless to say, elderly refugees suffer most from these inequities and their status is particularly vulnerable. Within this context, and based on ongoing fieldwork, we offer a conceptual framework which calls for effective and sustainable interventions nurturing resilience in elderly refugees and ultimately aiming to help decrease tensions between the host communities and refugees.