Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Elder self-neglect and abuse and mortality risk in a community-dwelling population.

CONTEXT Both elder self-neglect and abuse have become increasingly prominent public health issues. The association of either elder self-neglect or abuse with mortality remains unclear. OBJECTIVE To examine the relationship of elder self-neglect or abuse reported to social services agencies with all-cause mortality among a community-dwelling elderly population. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS Prospective, population-based cohort study (conducted from 1993 to 2005) of residents living in a geographically defined community of 3 adjacent neighborhoods in Chicago, Illinois, who were participating in the Chicago Health and Aging Project (CHAP; a longitudinal, population-based, epidemiological study of residents aged > or = 65 years). A subset of these participants had suspected elder self-neglect or abuse reported to social services agencies. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Mortality ascertained during follow-up and by use of the National Death Index. Cox proportional hazard models were used to assess independent associations of self-neglect or elder abuse reporting with the risk of all-cause mortality using time-varying covariate analyses. RESULTS Of 9318 CHAP participants, 1544 participants were reported for elder self-neglect and 113 participants were reported for elder abuse from 1993 to 2005. All CHAP participants were followed up for a median of 6.9 years (interquartile range, 7.4 years), during which 4306 deaths occurred. In multivariable analyses, reported elder self-neglect was associated with a significantly increased risk of 1-year mortality (hazard ratio [HR], 5.82; 95% confidence interval [CI], 5.20-6.51). Mortality risk was lower but still elevated after 1 year (HR, 1.88; 95% CI, 1.67-2.14). Reported elder abuse also was associated with significantly increased risk of overall mortality (HR, 1.39; 95% CI, 1.07-1.84). Confirmed elder self-neglect or abuse also was associated with mortality. Increased mortality risks associated with either elder self-neglect or abuse were not restricted to those with the lowest levels of cognitive or physical function. CONCLUSION Both elder self-neglect and abuse reported to social services agencies were associated with increased risk of mortality.
Differentiation of Human Embryonic Stem Cells into Cells with Corneal Keratocyte Phenotype

Corneal transparency depends on a unique extracellular matrix secreted by stromal keratocytes, mesenchymal cells of neural crest lineage. Derivation of keratocytes from human embryonic stem (hES) cells could elucidate the keratocyte developmental pathway and open a potential for cell-based therapy for corneal blindness. This study seeks to identify conditions inducing differentiation of pluripotent hES cells to the keratocyte lineage. Neural differentiation of hES cell line WA01(H1) was induced by co-culture with mouse PA6 fibroblasts. After 6 days of co-culture, hES cells expressing cell-surface NGFR protein (CD271, p75NTR) were isolated by immunoaffinity adsorption, and cultured as a monolayer for one week. Keratocyte phenotype was induced by substratum-independent pellet culture in serum-free medium containing ascorbate. Gene expression, examined by quantitative RT-PCR, found hES cells co-cultured with PA6 cells for 6 days to upregulate expression of neural crest genes including NGFR, SNAI1, NTRK3, SOX9, and MSX1. Isolated NGFR-expressing cells were free of PA6 feeder cells. After expansion as a monolayer, mRNAs typifying adult stromal stem cells were detected, including BMI1, KIT, NES, NOTCH1, and SIX2. When these cells were cultured as substratum-free pellets keratocyte markers AQP1, B3GNT7, PTDGS, and ALDH3A1 were upregulated. mRNA for keratocan (KERA), a cornea-specific proteoglycan, was upregulated more than 10,000 fold. Culture medium from pellets contained high molecular weight keratocan modified with keratan sulfate, a unique molecular component of corneal stroma. These results show hES cells can be induced to differentiate into keratocytes in vitro. Pluripotent stem cells, therefore, may provide a renewable source of material for development of treatment of corneal stromal opacities.
The CLASS blazar survey: testing the blazar sequence

We discuss the properties of the sources in the CLASS blazar survey, which aims at the selection of low radio power (P 5 GHz < 10 25 W Hz -1 ) blazars. We use Very Large Array (VLA) data from available catalogues and from our own observations to constrain the radio core-dominance of the sample which, together with the flat radio spectral index, is a signature of the blazar activity. X-ray data from the ROSAT All Sky Survey were also collected in order to constrain the radio-to-X-ray luminosity ratio (α RX ) of the sources. The data analysis shows that more than 30 per cent of sources at low radio power (P 5 GHz < 10 25 W Hz -1 ) have an α RX steeper than that expected in the framework of the 'blazar sequence' recently put forward to unify the high- and low-power blazars. The possibility that this result is influenced by contaminating sources in the current sample is discussed. The conclusion is that, even if a number of non-blazars (typically CSO/GPS sources) are expected in the survey, it is unlikely that this constitutes the sole reason for the observed deviation. In particular, we show two examples for which the blazar nature is confirmed from VLBI data and for which the steep α RX (suggesting a synchrotron peak frequency below 10 15.5 Hz) and the low radio power (0.6-2 x 10 24 W Hz -1 ) put these sources outside the 'blazar sequence'. The results presented here show the importance of a correct and unbiased sampling of the low-power regime of the blazar population.
Evaluation of a level of response to alcohol-based structural equation model in adolescents.

OBJECTIVE A low level of response (LR) to alcohol relates to a family history of alcoholism and predicts future heavier drinking and alcohol-related problems. The current analyses evaluate how LR functions within the context of a Social Information Processing Model, using 238 subjects aged 13 to 19 years from the Collaborative Study on the Genetics of Alcoholism (COGA). METHOD A structural equation model (SEM) was used to evaluate the relationship among (1) a family history (FH) of alcoholism, (2) the LR to alcohol, (3) expectations as measured by the Alcohol Expectancy Questionnaire and (4) the recent pattern of drinking among parents in the home as predictors of the maximum recent quantity of drinking, the maximum number of drinks ever consumed in 24 hours and the number of alcohol problems in the teenage subjects. RESULTS When tested in the SEM, LR functioned as a mediator of the relationship between an FH of alcoholism and alcoholic outcome, and expectancy functioned as a partial mediator of the relationship between LR and outcome. Invariance testing revealed that the SEM performed similarly in light and heavy drinkers, the two sexes, and older versus young subjects. Both the measurement model and SEM had good characteristics of fit, and direct paths within the model explained 49% of the variance of outcome. CONCLUSIONS Consistent with results from the San Diego Prospective Study, when tested in the more heterogeneous COGA population, LR functioned as a mediator of the relationship between the FH and alcoholic outcome. In these adolescents, LR not only had a direct relationship to alcoholic outcome but, in contrast to prior results in adults, also appeared to operate through expectations of the effects of alcohol in predicting heavier drinking and a higher rate of alcohol-related problems among teenagers.
An empirical study on the relationship between consumption emotions and brand loyalty

Consumption emotions play a crucial role in consumers’ post-purchase behaviors. Evoked by potentially controllable factors related to marketers, consumption emotions fall into a two-by-two matrix: attribute-level emotions (ALE) and beyond attribute-level emotions (BALE) with positive or negative latencies. ALE is related to product, and BALE is related to marketing communication. The authors hypothesized a model of consumption emotions in relation to brand trust, brand affect, and brand loyalty in product consumption. The study tested the model by using a sample of 398 college students and applying structural equation modeling. The results supported most the hypotheses, suggesting indirect effects of the four major types of consumption emotions on brand loyalty via brand affect. Furthermore, the study revealed the direct effects of positive or negative emotions at the attribute level. The positive emotions on brand trust were induced by marketing communication, which in turn led to higher levels of brand loyalty. Nevertheless, the effect of negative emotions on brand trust was non-significant.
Scope-taking strategies and the order of clausal categories in German Sign Language

The scope order of clausal categories has been claimed to be universal. In this paper we adopt a universalist cartographic approach to clausal syntax. By discussing the categories of speech acts, evaluation, epistemic modality, scalarity, volition and deontic, as well as other kinds of modality, we illustrate a striking regularity in strategies of scope-taking in German Sign Language (DGS): the wider/higher the scope of a clausal operator, the more likely its expression will occur with a high body part by way of layering; namely, descending from the eyebrows to the lower face, tentatively to the shoulders, and finally switching to manual expressions. For intermediate operators a left-to-right concatenation strategy is employed, and low categories are expressed by way of a manual right-to-left concatenation strategy. Hence, we propose a highly regular natural mapping of the scope-order of clausal categories onto the body. This sort of mapping can also be observed in other sign languages and may turn out to be universal.
Internetbasierte Psychotherapie-Interventionen – Werden sich Patienten in Zukunft selbst therapieren?

Zusammenfassung Die Anzahl an Patienten, die sich wegen einer psychischen Erkrankung behandeln lassen, steigt stetig. Gleichzeitig besteht eine angespannte psychotherapeutische Versorgungssituation, die zu langen Wartezeiten führt. Interventionen aus dem Bereich “E-Mental-Health” könnten dabei eine effektive und rasche Abhilfe darstellen und erste Studien liefern Evidenz dafür, dass internetbasierte Interventionen Wirkung zeigen. Da viele deutschsprachige Programme noch unbekannt sind, wurde eine standardisierte Internetrecherche durchgeführt, die 19 internetbasierte Interventionen aus den Bereichen Angsterkrankungen, Depressionen sowie Stress und Burnout ergab. Diese unterscheiden sich hinsichtlich des Aufbaus, der Inhalte, der medialen Aufbereitung, der therapeutischen Einbindung, der Kosten und der Verfügbarkeit einer Demoversion. Dennoch bleiben im Bereich “E-Mental-Health” zuweilen konkrete Fragen ungeklärt, wie beispielsweise die Qualität von internetbasierten Interventionen, die Erfüllung der beruflichen Sorgfaltspflicht oder die Einhaltung des Datenschutzes.
From Mindless Masses to Small Groups: Conceptualizing Collective Behavior in Crowd Modeling

Computer simulations are increasingly used to monitor and predict behavior at large crowd events, such as mass gatherings, festivals and evacuations. We critically examine the crowd modeling literature and call for future simulations of crowd behavior to be based more closely on findings from current social psychological research. A systematic review was conducted on the crowd modeling literature (N = 140 articles) to identify the assumptions about crowd behavior that modelers use in their simulations. Articles were coded according to the way in which crowd structure was modeled. It was found that 2 broad types are used: mass approaches and small group approaches. However, neither the mass nor the small group approaches can accurately simulate the large collective behavior that has been found in extensive empirical research on crowd events. We argue that to model crowd behavior realistically, simulations must use methods which allow crowd members to identify with each other, as suggested by self-categorization theory.
ANXIETY AND ADJUSTMENT BEHAVIOUR OF HIGHER SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS – A GENDER WISE ANALYSIS

The main objective of the study is to find out the relationship between anxiety and adjustment behaviour of higher secondary school students. A self-made tool was used for assessing anxiety and adjustment behaviour of higher secondary school students. 982 higher secondary school students were taken as sample through simple random sampling method. Survey method was adopted for obtaining the data. The results showed that there is a significant relationship between anxiety and adjustment behaviour of higher secondary school students.
QoS issues in ad hoc wireless networks

Ad hoc wireless networks consist of mobile nodes interconnected by multihop communication paths. Unlike conventional wireless networks, ad hoc networks have no fixed network infrastructure or administrative support. The topology of the network changes dynamically as mobile nodes join or depart the network or radio links between nodes become unusable. This article addresses some of the quality of service issues for ad hoc networks which have started to receive increasing attention in the literature. The focus is on QoS routing. This is a complex and difficult issue because of the dynamic nature of the network topology and generally imprecise network state information. We present the basic concepts and discuss some of the results. The article concludes with some observations on the open areas for further investigation.
Technology Firms Shape Political Communication: The Work of Microsoft, Facebook, Twitter, and Google With Campaigns During the 2016 U.S. Presidential Cycle

This article offers the first analysis of the role that technology companies, specifically Facebook, Twitter, Microsoft, and Google, play in shaping the political communication of electoral campaigns in the United States. We offer an empirical analysis of the work technology firms do around electoral politics through interviews with staffers at these firms and digital and social media directors of 2016 U.S. presidential primary and general election campaigns, in addition to field observations at the 2016 Democratic National Convention. We find that technology firms are motivated to work in the political space for marketing, advertising revenue, and relationship-building in the service of lobbying efforts. To facilitate this, these firms have developed organizational structures and staffing patterns that accord with the partisan nature of American politics. Furthermore, Facebook, Twitter, and Google go beyond promoting their services and facilitating digital advertising buys, actively shaping campaign communication through their close collaboration with political staffers. We show how representatives at these firms serve as quasi-digital consultants to campaigns, shaping digital strategy, content, and execution. Given this, we argue that political communication scholars need to consider social media firms as more active agents in political processes than previously appreciated in the literature.
Live analysis of lagging chromosomes during anaphase and their effect on spindle elongation rate in fission yeast

The maintenance of genome integrity is crucially dependent on accurate segregation of chromosomes during mitosis and meiosis. Centromeres and their associated kinetochores are responsible for attaching chromosomes to the spindle and ensuring equitable distribution of chromosomes at anaphase (Rieder and Salmon, 1998; Dobie et al., 1999; Pidoux and Allshire, 2000a). The fidelity of chromosome segregation is further enhanced by the existence of the spindle checkpoint that monitors kinetochore-MT interactions and delays the metaphase-anaphase transition to allow time for bipolar attachment of all chromosomes to be achieved (Taylor, 1999; Gardner and Burke, 2000). The fission yeast, Schizosaccharomyces pombe , is an excellent genetically tractable model system for the study of chromosome biology. In particular, its centromeres resemble those of multicellular eukaryotes in many important respects. They are relatively large (40-100 kb) and are composed of unique central core regions flanked by large regions of repetitive sequence elements (Hahnenberger et al., 1991; Takahashi et al., 1992; Clarke et al., 1994; Allshire, 1995). They are h terochromatic, hypoacetylated, and transcriptionally silent (Allshire et al., 1994; Allshire et al., 1995; Ekwall et al., 1997; Pidoux and Allshire, 2000b). Genes placed within the centromere are transcriptionally silenced; the notion that this reflects the formation of a functional kinetochore complex is supported by the observation that mutation of kinetochore components alleviate transcriptional silencing (Allshire et al., 1995; Ekwall et al., 1995; Ekwall et al., 1999; Partridge et al., 2000; B. Mellone, A. L. Pidoux and R. C. Allshire, unpublished observations). Serial electron microscope (EM) reconstructions of fission yeast spindles indicate that each kinetochore interacts with multiple (2 to 4) microtubules (Ding et al., 1993). The fact that haploid fission yeast have only three chromosomes is advantageous for cytological studies of chromosome 4177 Journal of Cell Science 113, 4177-4191 (2000) Printed in Great Britain © The Company of Biologists Limited 2000 JCS1686
The MAX-CUT of sparse random graphs

A k-cut of a graph G = (V, E) is a partition of its vertex set into k parts; the size of the k-cut is the number of edges with endpoints in distinct parts. MAX-k-CUT is the optimization problem of finding a k-cut of maximal size and the case where k = 2 (often called MAX-CUT) has attracted a lot of attention from the research community. MAX-CUT---more generally, MAX-k-CUT--- is NP-hard and it appears in many applications under various disguises. In this paper, we consider the MAX-CUT problem on random connected graphs C(n, m) and on Erdos-Renyi random graphs G(n, m). More specifically, we consider the distance from bipartiteness of a graph G = (V,E), the minimum number of edge deletions needed to turn it into a bipartite graph. If we denote this distance DistBip(G), the size of the MAX-CUT of a graph G = (V, E) is clearly given by |E| -- DistBip(G). Fix e > 0. For random connected graphs, we prove that asymptotically almost surely (a.a.s) DistBip (C(n, m)) ~ m-n/4 whenever m = n + O(n1−e). For sparse random graphs G(n, m = n/2 + un2/3/2) we show that DistBip (G(n, m)) is a.a. s about (2m-n)3/6n2 + 1/12 log n − 1/4 log μ for any 1 << μ ≤ O(n1/3−e).
Accuracy threshold for postselected quantum computation

We prove an accuracy threshold theorem for fault-tolerant quantum computation based on error detection and postselection. Our proof provides a rigorous foundation for the scheme suggested by Knill, in which preparation circuits for ancilla states are protected by a concatenated error-detecting code and the preparation is aborted if an error is detected. The proof applies to independent stochastic noise but (in contrast to proofs of the quantum accuracy threshold theorem based on concatenated error-correcting codes) not to strongly-correlated adversarial noise. Our rigorously established lower bound on the accuracy threshold, 1.04 × 10-3, is well below Knill's numerical estimates.
Synergistic Interactions of the Antiretroviral Protease Inhibitors Saquinavir and Ritonavir with Chloroquine and Mefloquine against Plasmodium falciparum In Vitro

ABSTRACT The antimalarial activity of several antiretroviral protease inhibitor combinations was investigated. Data demonstrate that ritonavir and saquinavir behave synergistically with chloroquine and mefloquine. These data, and interactions with pepstatin-A, E-64, and bestatin, suggest that human immunodeficiency virus protease inhibitors do not target digestive-vacuole plasmepsins.
Algorithms for detecting and predicting influenza outbreaks: metanarrative review of prospective evaluations

Objectives Reliable monitoring of influenza seasons and pandemic outbreaks is essential for response planning, but compilations of reports on detection and prediction algorithm performance in influenza control practice are largely missing. The aim of this study is to perform a metanarrative review of prospective evaluations of influenza outbreak detection and prediction algorithms restricted settings where authentic surveillance data have been used. Design The study was performed as a metanarrative review. An electronic literature search was performed, papers selected and qualitative and semiquantitative content analyses were conducted. For data extraction and interpretations, researcher triangulation was used for quality assurance. Results Eight prospective evaluations were found that used authentic surveillance data: three studies evaluating detection and five studies evaluating prediction. The methodological perspectives and experiences from the evaluations were found to have been reported in narrative formats representing biodefence informatics and health policy research, respectively. The biodefence informatics narrative having an emphasis on verification of technically and mathematically sound algorithms constituted a large part of the reporting. Four evaluations were reported as health policy research narratives, thus formulated in a manner that allows the results to qualify as policy evidence. Conclusions Awareness of the narrative format in which results are reported is essential when interpreting algorithm evaluations from an infectious disease control practice perspective.
High Mutability of the Tumor Suppressor Genes RASSF1 and RBSP3 (CTDSPL) in Cancer

Background Many different genetic alterations are observed in cancer cells. Individual cancer genes display point mutations such as base changes, insertions and deletions that initiate and promote cancer growth and spread. Somatic hypermutation is a powerful mechanism for generation of different mutations. It was shown previously that somatic hypermutability of proto-oncogenes can induce development of lymphomas. Methodology/Principal Findings We found an exceptionally high incidence of single-base mutations in the tumor suppressor genes RASSF1 and RBSP3 (CTDSPL) both located in 3p21.3 regions, LUCA and AP20 respectively. These regions contain clusters of tumor suppressor genes involved in multiple cancer types such as lung, kidney, breast, cervical, head and neck, nasopharyngeal, prostate and other carcinomas. Altogether in 144 sequenced RASSF1A clones (exons 1–2), 129 mutations were detected (mutation frequency, MF = 0.23 per 100 bp) and in 98 clones of exons 3–5 we found 146 mutations (MF = 0.29). In 85 sequenced RBSP3 clones, 89 mutations were found (MF = 0.10). The mutations were not cytidine-specific, as would be expected from alterations generated by AID/APOBEC family enzymes, and appeared de novo during cell proliferation. They diminished the ability of corresponding transgenes to suppress cell and tumor growth implying a loss of function. These high levels of somatic mutations were found both in cancer biopsies and cancer cell lines. Conclusions/Significance This is the first report of high frequencies of somatic mutations in RASSF1 and RBSP3 in different cancers suggesting it may underlay the mutator phenotype of cancer. Somatic hypermutations in tumor suppressor genes involved in major human malignancies offer a novel insight in cancer development, progression and spread.