Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Atrial Fibrillation Is Associated With Increased Mortality in Patients Undergoing Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement: Insights From the Placement of Aortic Transcatheter Valve (PARTNER) Trial

Background—This study sought to evaluate the impact of atrial fibrillation (AF) on clinical outcomes in patients undergoing transcatheter aortic valve replacement. Methods and Results—Data were evaluated in 1879 patients with baseline and discharge ECGs who underwent transcatheter aortic valve replacement in the Placement of AoRTic TraNscathetER Valve (PARTNER) trial. A total of 1262 patients manifested sinus rhythm (SR) at baseline/SR at discharge, 113 SR baseline/AF discharge, and 470 AF baseline/AF discharge. Patients who converted from SR to AF by discharge had the highest rates of all-cause mortality at 30 days (P<0.0001 across all groups; 14.2% SR/AF versus 2.6% SR/SR; adjusted hazard ratio [HR]=3.41; P=0.0002) and over 2-fold difference at 1 year (P<0.0001 across all groups; 35.7% SR/AF versus 15.8% SR/SR; adjusted HR=2.14; P<0.0001). The presence of AF on baseline or discharge ECG was a predictor of 1-year mortality (adjusted HR=2.14 for SR/AF group and HR=1.88 for AF/AF groups; P<0.0001 for both groups versus SR/SR). For patients discharged in AF, those with lower ventricular response (ie, <90 bpm) experienced less 1-year all-cause mortality (HR=0.74; P=0.04). Conclusions—After transcatheter aortic valve replacement, the presence of AF at discharge, and particularly, the conversion to AF by discharge and higher ventricular response are associated with increased mortality. These data underscore the deleterious impact of AF, as well as the need for targeted interventions to improve clinical outcomes, in patients undergoing transcatheter aortic valve replacement. Clinical Trial Registration—URL: http://www.clinicaltrials. gov. Unique identifier: NCT00530894.
Optimal PID controller design for AVR system using particle swarm optimization algorithm

A proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controller is a generic feedback controller widely used in industrial control systems, process control, motor drive, and instrumentation. Despite the popularity, the tuning aspect of PID coefficients is a challenge for researchers and plant operators. In this paper Particle Swarm Optimization Algorithm is used to design the optimum PID controller parameters for a high order automatic voltage regulator (AVR). The proposed approach with new defined time-domain cost function, has a very easy implementation, stable convergence characteristic and ability of fast tuning of optimum PID controller parameters that requires fewer number of iterations. In order to evaluate the performance of the PSO-PID controller, the results are compared with the genetic algorithm (GA). The comparison shows the PSO-PID algorithm has more efficiency and robustness in improving the step response of an AVR system.
Pharmacological and toxicological properties of Nigella sativa

The seeds of Nigella sativa Linn. (Ranunculaceae), commonly known as black seed or black cumin, are used in folk (herbal) medicine all over the world for the treatment and prevention of a number of diseases and conditions that include asthma, diarrhoea and dyslipidaemia. This article reviews the main reports of the pharmacological and toxicological properties of N. sativa and its constituents.
“How negative becomes less negative”: : Understanding the effects of comment valence and response sidedness in social media

This study explores the influence of the public's negative comments regarding a corporate social responsibility (CSR) campaign in social media and how to best respond to them. It examined the interaction effects of comment valence and the company's response sidedness on the public's attitudes as mediated by the perceived negativity and perceived altruism. Results revealed that 2-sided CSR responses are more effective than 1-sided responses in enhancing altruistic motives for CSR, reducing perceived negativity in the public's comments, and eliciting favorable attitudes, especially when comments were negative. The effects of message sidedness disappeared when the public's comments were positive. Results also showed that perceived altruism and negativity mediate the effects of message strategies on the public's attitudes toward the company.
The Relationship of Microalbuminuria with Metabolic Syndrome

Background/Aims: Microalbuminuria and the metabolic syndrome are risk factors for cardiovascular disease. The aim of this study is to examine the prevalence of microalbuminuira and to document the relationship of microalbuminuria with the metabolic syndrome in a large population of Korean subjects. Methods: We examined the cross-sectional association of microalbuminuria with the components of the metabolic syndrome and with other cardiovascular risk factors in 6,588 Korean adults who took part in a health examination program. Results: The prevalence of microalbuminuria was 4.2% in the non-metabolic syndrome group (n = 5,902), and 14.4% in the metabolic syndrome group (n = 686). The odds ratio of microalbuminuria in the adults with the metabolic syndrome compared with those adults without the metabolic syndrome was 1.53 (1.13–2.07 95% CI). In the multiple logistic regression analysis, as compared with the subjects without an elevated blood pressure, a low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol level, a high triglyceride level, a high plasma glucose level and a large waist circumference, the odds ratios for microalbuminuria with these components, after adjustment was made for the body mass index, the high-sensitivity C-reactive protein level and the homeostasis model assessment, were 2.17 (95% CI 1.71–2.76), 2.84 (95% CI 1.55–5.21), 1.30 (95% CI 1.03–1.65) and 2.68 (95% CI 2.04–3.51), respectively. The corresponding multivariate-adjusted odds ratios of microalbuminuria for the participants with 1, 2, 3, and 4 and 5 components of metabolic syndrome were 1.79 (95% CI 1.24–2.59), 2.35 (95% CI 1.58–3.51), 3.23 (95% CI 2.07–5.25), and 4.22 (95% CI 2.13–8.35), respectively. Conclusion: There was a significantly graded relationship between the number of metabolic syndrome components and the corresponding prevalence of microalbuminuria. These findings suggest microalbuminuria is strongly related with the components of the metabolic syndrome.
Motivational and cognitive determinants of control during conflict processing

Previous studies suggest that both reward anticipation and expected or experienced conflicts activate cognitive control. The present study investigated how these factors interact during conflict processing. In two experiments, participants performed a variant of the Stroop task, receiving performance-dependent monetary rewards in some blocks. In addition, we manipulated the level of conflict-triggered reactive and expectancy-driven proactive control: In Experiment 1, we compared the Stroop effect after previously congruent and incongruent trials to examine the conflict adaptation effect (reactive control). We found that the level of motivation did not interact with conflict adaptation. In Experiment 2, we varied the proportion of congruent and incongruent trials to manipulate conflict expectancy (proactive control). The data suggest the effects of motivation to be less pronounced under conditions of high conflict expectancy. We conclude that the interaction of motivation with cognitive determinants of control depends on whether these activate proactive or reactive control processes.
Host genetic diversity enables Ebola hemorrhagic fever pathogenesis and resistance

Existing mouse models of lethal Ebola virus infection do not reproduce hallmark symptoms of Ebola hemorrhagic fever, neither delayed blood coagulation and disseminated intravascular coagulation nor death from shock, thus restricting pathogenesis studies to nonhuman primates. Here we show that mice from the Collaborative Cross panel of recombinant inbred mice exhibit distinct disease phenotypes after mouse-adapted Ebola virus infection. Phenotypes range from complete resistance to lethal disease to severe hemorrhagic fever characterized by prolonged coagulation times and 100% mortality. Inflammatory signaling was associated with vascular permeability and endothelial activation, and resistance to lethal infection arose by induction of lymphocyte differentiation and cellular adhesion, probably mediated by the susceptibility allele Tek. These data indicate that genetic background determines susceptibility to Ebola hemorrhagic fever. Intercrossed mice infected with Ebola virus show a spectrum of pathology from prolonged coagulation to total resistance. Variety of Ebola symptoms in mice Apart from monkeys, there are no animal models available that show the same symptoms of Ebola virus infection as those of humans. Rasmussen et al. tested the effects of Ebola virus in mice with defined genetic backgrounds in a series of pains-taking experiments performed under stringent biosafety conditions. Resistance and susceptibility to Ebola virus was associated with distinct genetic profiles in inflammation, blood coagulation, and vascular function. This panel of mice could prove valuable for preliminary screens of candidate therapeutics and vaccines. Science, this issue p. 987
Copy Number Changes on the X Chromosome in Women with and without Highly Skewed X-Chromosome Inactivation

Aim: To test the hypothesis that microdeletions or microduplications below the resolution of a standard karyotype may be a significant cause of highly skewed X-inactivation (HSXI) in women without a cytogenetically detected X-chromosome anomaly. Methods: Cases were women with HSXI, defined as ≥85% of cells in a blood sample with the same active allele at the HUMARA locus. The skewing in controls ranged from 50 to <75%. We performed an SNP microarray analysis using the Affymetrix 6.0 platform for 45 cases and 45 controls. Results: Cases and controls did not differ in the frequency of X-chromosome copy number changes ≥100 kb or in the frequency of copy number changes that contained genes. However, one woman with HSXI >90% in blood and left and right buccal smears had a 5.5-Mb deletion in Xp22.2p22. 1. This deletion could affect the viability of male conceptions and may have led to the dysmorphology found in female carriers. Conclusion: HSXI in a blood sample is rarely due to X-chromosome copy number changes detectable by microarray.
Placebo and nocebo effects are defined by opposite opioid and dopaminergic responses.

CONTEXT Placebo and nocebo effects, the therapeutic and adverse effects, respectively, of inert substances or sham procedures, represent serious confounds in the evaluation of therapeutic interventions. They are also an example of cognitive processes, particularly expectations, capable of influencing physiology. OBJECTIVE To examine the contribution of 2 different neurotransmitters, the endogenous opioid and the dopaminergic (DA) systems, to the development of placebo and nocebo effects. DESIGN AND SETTING Using a within-subject design, subjects twice underwent a 20-minute standardized pain challenge, in the absence and presence of a placebo with expected analgesic properties. Studies were conducted in a university hospital setting. PARTICIPANTS Twenty healthy men and women aged 20 to 30 years recruited by advertisement. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Activation of DA and opioid neurotransmission by a pain stressor with and without placebo (changes in the binding potential of carbon 11 [11C]-labeled raclopride and [11C] carfentanil with positron emission tomography) and ratings of pain, affective state, and anticipation and perception of analgesia. RESULTS Placebo-induced activation of opioid neurotransmission was detected in the anterior cingulate, orbitofrontal and insular cortices, nucleus accumbens, amygdala, and periaqueductal gray matter. Dopaminergic activation was observed in the ventral basal ganglia, including the nucleus accumbens. Regional DA and opioid activity were associated with the anticipated and subjectively perceived effectiveness of the placebo and reductions in continuous pain ratings. High placebo responses were associated with greater DA and opioid activity in the nucleus accumbens. Nocebo responses were associated with a deactivation of DA and opioid release. Nucleus accumbens DA release accounted for 25% of the variance in placebo analgesic effects. CONCLUSIONS Placebo and nocebo effects are associated with opposite responses of DA and endogenous opioid neurotransmission in a distributed network of regions. The brain areas involved in these phenomena form part of the circuit typically implicated in reward responses and motivated behavior.
Depression, Anxiety and Stress Levels among Individuals with Siblings and Individuals without Siblings

The mental health wellbeing of single children has assumed relevance in the face of increasing single child families' world over. This study was done on engineering college students using DASS questionnaire. The Depression, Anxiety and Stress level were assessed among single and non-single individuals. It is a 42-item questionnaire, divided into subscales of 2-5 items with comparable content to measure the negative emotional states. The Depression scale assesses dysphoria, hopelessness, devaluation of life, self-deprecation, and lack of interest/involvement, anhedonia, and inertia. The Anxiety scale assesses autonomic arousal, skeletal muscle effects, situational anxiety, and subjective experience of anxious affect. The Mean ± SD of Depression, Anxiety and Stress level for singles and non-singles were ; Depression-14.9 ± 9.2 (Normal: 0-9), Anxiety-13.3 ± 7.3 (Normal: 0-7), Stress-18.8 ± 7.5 (Normal: 0-14) and 16.9 ± 8.5, 15.4 ± 6.8, 22.1 ± 5.9 respectively, showing that non-single individuals have more of these negative emotional states, even though percentage wise Anxiety and Stress levels were more commonly seen in single individuals and Depression showed no difference. Thus this study we highlighted that single individuals were not having more negative emotional states when compared to non-single individuals.
Bilingualism and cognitive development : three perspectives

The problem of researching the relation between bilingualism and cognitive development at once raises two thorny definitional issues. What do we mean by bi-lingualism, and what is it that develops in cognitive development? Much of the confusion in this area can be attributed to the lack of theoretical specificity in defining the intersection point of these component concepts. Our primary emphasis in this chapter is on the definition of bilingualism, with a secondary emphasis on cognitive development. The reason for the asymmetry is to be consistent with the traditional assumption that bilingualism is the independent treatment variable and Cognitive growth is the dependent outcome variable, even though, as we shall see, very few studies actually address the cause-effect issue. The major goal of this chapter is to demonstrate the great range of social and theoretical contexts in which the question has historically been asked and to argue for the importance of integrating the many disciplinary levels and perspectives that bear on the problem. The concept of bilingualism has been used in various ways by scholars and lay persons alike. It has been viewed as an individual-level mental concept-a characteristic of individuals who possess or who use two linguistic systems. It has also been viewed as a social psychological concept, still a characteristic of individuals, but of individuals who organize the social world in terms of the different groups and social situations associated with the two languages in which they interact. Bilingualism has also been used as a societal construct to describe the interactions between social groups and societal institutions, as well as among groups, in which the group and institutional boundaries correspond to linguistic boundaries. These different starting points for the definition of bilingualism have resulted in discrepancies in the kinds of statements that have been made about bilingualism and its relation with cognitive development. When bilingualism is defined in the first way, as tl characteristic of an individual who possesses two linguistic systems-we call it cognitive bilingualism-one tends toward statements about the packaging problem of fitting two linguistic SyS-terns in the mind of an individual. It is a cognitive puzzle on the relation between language and thought and how these systems are represented neurologically and conceptually. Variables of obvious importance in cognitive bilingualism are the extent to which the individual has mastery of the two languages and the cognitive functions in which the languages are engaged. Bilingualism defined in …
Experiences of service user involvement and their influence on identity

Identity can be considered to be socially constructed and developed through narratives about ourselves and our experiences. Having socially valued roles may thus facilitate a positive identity. This study aimed to explore how the experiences of service user involvement (SUI) in health and social care services (specifically, being involved in staff recruitment) influenced the narrative identities of people with learning disabilities. Interviews were conducted with seven people with learning disabilities who had been service user representatives on NHS interview panels. These were analysed using thematic narrative analysis as a framework. All described positive narrative identities, but the degree to which SUI featured in the construction of narrative identities varied. Whilst some found the experience transformative, for others it was not an important part of their narratives. The findings suggest that such experiences formed just one of many narratives that participants drew from to construct their narrative identity.
The evaluation of topical administration of Bellis perennis fraction on circular excision wound healing in Wistar albino rats

Context: Bellis perennis L. (Asteraceae) has been used traditionally in the treatment of bruises, broken bones, and wounds by European people. Objective: To investigate the wound healing activity of B. perennis flowers in Wistar albino rats. Materials and methods: Dried B. perennis flowers were extracted with ethanol, then fractioned with n-butanol and an oinment was prepared. Twelve male adult Wistar rats were used. Six wounds were created for each animal by using circular excision wound model. The first two wounds were treated topically with HOTBp (hydrophilic ointment treatment containing n-butanol fraction). The second two wounds were control group and not treated with anything. The third two wounds were treated only with HOT (hydrophilic ointment treatment without n-butanol fraction). Treatments were applied once a day and lasted for 30 days. Wound samples were excised on days 5th, 10th and 30th. The percentage of wound healing was calculated by Walker’s formula after measurement of the wound area and the tissue samples were examined histopathologically. Results: The percentages of wound closure (HOTBp: 100%; HOT: 85% and control: 87%) and histopathological observations showed that there were statistically significant differences between HOTBp, HOT and control groups (p < 0.05) at 30th day. Discussion and conclusion: Topically administered ointment prepared from the n-butanol fraction of B. perennis flowers has a wound healing potential without scar formation in circular excision wound model in rats. Thus, traditional usage of wound healing activity of B. perennis was scientifically verified for the first time.
Adapting to a Changing Environment: the Brownian Restless Bandits

In the multi-armed bandit (MAB) problem there are k distributions associated with the rewards of playing each of k strategies (slot machine arms). The reward distributions are initially unknown to the player. The player iteratively plays one strategy per round, observes the associated reward, and decides on the strategy for the next iteration. The goal is to maximize the reward by balancing exploitation: the use of acquired information, with exploration: learning new information. We introduce and study a dynamic MAB problem in which the reward functions stochastically and gradually change in time. Specifically, the expected reward of each arm follows a Brownian motion, a discrete random walk, or similar processes. In this setting a player has to continuously keep exploring in order to adapt to the changing environment. Our formulation is (roughly) a special case of the notoriously intractable restless MAB problem. Our goal here is to characterize the cost of learning and adapting to the changing environment, in terms of the stochastic rate of the change. We consider an infinite time horizon, and strive to minimize the average cost per step which we define with respect to a hypothetical algorithm that at every step plays the arm with the maximum expected reward at this step. A related line of work on the adversarial MAB problem used a significantly weaker benchmark, the best time-invariant policy. The dynamic MAB problem models a variety of practical online, game-againstnature type optimization settings. While building on prior work, algorithms and steady-state analysis for the dynamic setting require a novel approach based on different stochastic tools. ∗Microsoft Research, Mountain View CA. E-mail: slivkins at microsoft.com. Parts of this work has been completed while A. Slivkins was a postdoc at Brown University. †Computer Science Department, Brown University, Providence RI. E-mail: eli at cs.brown. edu. Supported in part by NSF awards CCR-0121154 and DMI-0600384, and ONR Award N000140610607.
Automatic Relocalization and Loop Closing for Real-Time Monocular SLAM

Monocular SLAM has the potential to turn inexpensive cameras into powerful pose sensors for applications such as robotics and augmented reality. We present a relocalization module for such systems which solves some of the problems encountered by previous monocular SLAM systems-tracking failure, map merging, and loop closure detection. This module extends recent advances in keypoint recognition to determine the camera pose relative to the landmarks within a single frame time of 33 ms. We first show how this module can be used to improve the robustness of these systems. Blur, sudden motion, and occlusion can all cause tracking to fail, leading to a corrupted map. Using the relocalization module, the system can automatically detect and recover from tracking failure while preserving map integrity. Extensive tests show that the system can then reliably generate maps for long sequences even in the presence of frequent tracking failure. We then show that the relocalization module can be used to recognize overlap in maps, i.e., when the camera has returned to a previously mapped area. Having established an overlap, we determine the relative pose of the maps using trajectory alignment so that independent maps can be merged and loop closure events can be recognized. The system combining all of these abilities is able to map larger environments and for significantly longer periods than previous systems.