Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Cochlear implantation for a child with cochlear nerve deficiency: Parental perspectives explored through narrative

Abstract Objective: The objective of this study was to explore, from the parents’ perspectives, decision-making regarding a cochlear implant (CI) for their child when a favourable outcome is less likely because of abnormal neurophysiology. Design: The primary research method of this single case study was qualitative interviewing drawing on a narrative approach to elicit the parents’ perspectives about their experiences over time. Each parent was interviewed separately, but thematic analyses were undertaken both within and across interviews in order to identify overlaps and differences. Study sample: Participants included the parents of a five-year old child with severe-profound hearing loss, cochlear nerve deficiency, and bilateral common cavities who had received a CI at the age of 18 months. Results: Four themes were identified across the four narrative stages that emerged from the parents’ accounts of their experiences regarding their daughter's CI. Themes included hope and despair, questioning professionals’ motivations, does deafness need a cure, and bringing the child into the family. Although these themes emerged from both parents’ accounts, each parent expressed different perspectives and insights within them. Conclusions: Findings highlight the central place of parental needs and perspectives in decision-making regarding a CI, particularly in the context of uncertain outcomes.
Emergence of metallo-β-lactamase IMP-14 and VIM-2 in Pseudomonas aeruginosa clinical isolates from a tertiary-level hospital in Thailand

SUMMARY Seventy-five clinical isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa collected in a tertiary teaching hospital in Thailand were investigated for susceptibility to antimicrobials including imipenem. Metallo-β-lactamase (MBL) enzymes were detected by E-test MBL assay and PCR; class 1 integron genes were also detected by PCR. Strains positive for blaIMP and blaVIM genes were further characterized by DNA sequencing and examined for clonality by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis. High rates of resistance to anti-pseudomonal agents were found. MBL enzymes were found in 13 (17·3%) strains and 24 (32%) carried class 1 integron genes. Twelve of the latter strains harboured the blaIMP-14 gene and one strain the blaVIM-2 gene. All of the IMP-14 strains were identical or closely related suggesting clonal dissemination of these genes.
Lived Experiences of Indian International Students: Migration, Acculturation, and Resilience.

iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENT. vii LIST OF TABLES . xii CHAPTER I: THE PROBLEM . 1 Background . 5 Statement of the Problem . 7 Purpose of the Study . 9 Research Questions . 9 Theoretical Framework for the Study . 10 Hermeneutic Phenomenology . 10 The Bio-Ecological Model of Human Development . 12 Resilience in the Context of Migration . 13 Rationale for the Study . 14 Significance of the Study . 15 Delimitations of the Study . 16 Definitions of Terms . 18 Summary . 18 CHAPTER II: REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE . 19 Immigration: A Life Changing Experience . 19 Migration and International Students . 20 Impact of Globalization on International Students . 22
Pharmacokinetics of Aztreonam in Healthy Subjects and Patients with Cystic Fibrosis and Evaluation of Dose-Exposure Relationships Using Monte Carlo Simulation

ABSTRACT Aztreonam (AZM) is a monobactam antibiotic with a high level of activity against gram-negative micro-organisms, including Pseudomonas aeruginosa. We evaluated AZM pharmacokinetics and pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic relationships in patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) and healthy subjects. Pharmacokinetic data in eight CF patients and healthy subjects that were matched for age, gender, weight, and height were obtained and analyzed by using the nonparametric adaptive grid algorithm. Probabilities of target attainment using percentages of time of unbound concentration above the MIC (fT>MIC) were obtained by using a Monte Carlo simulation. AZM total body clearance was significantly higher in CF patients (100.1 ± 17.1 versus 76.2 ± 7.4 ml/min in healthy subjects; P < 0.01). The pharmacokinetic parameter estimates for terminal half-life (1.54 ± 0.17 h [mean ± the standard deviation]) and volume of distribution (0.20 ± 0.02 liters/kg in patients with CF patients were not different from those in healthy subjects. Monte Carlo simulations with a target of a fT>MIC of 50 to 60% at a dose of 1,000 mg every 8 h indicated a clinical breakpoint of 4 mg/liter and 1 to 2 mg/liter for healthy subjects and CF patients, respectively. This study using matched controls showed that AZM total body clearance and not the volume of distribution is higher in CF patients as a result of increased renal clearance. Pharmacokinetic parameter estimates in healthy subjects resulted in a clinical susceptibility breakpoint of ≤4 mg/liter for a dose of 1,000 mg every 8 h. Patients suspected of having high clearance rates, such as CF patients, should be monitored closely, with dosing regimens adjusted accordingly.
The nature of adolescence

1. Introduction. 2. Physical Development. 3. Thinking and Reasoning. 4. The Self and Identity. 5. The Family. 6. Health. 7. Sexual Development. 8. Adolescence and Education. 9. Friends and the Peer Group. 10. Anti-Social Behaviour. 11. Risk, Resilience and Coping in Adolescence.
Learning to Generate Chairs, Tables and Cars with Convolutional Networks

We train generative ‘up-convolutional’ neural networks which are able to generate images of objects given object style, viewpoint, and color. We train the networks on rendered 3D models of chairs, tables, and cars. Our experiments show that the networks do not merely learn all images by heart, but rather find a meaningful representation of 3D models allowing them to assess the similarity of different models, interpolate between given views to generate the missing ones, extrapolate views, and invent new objects not present in the training set by recombining training instances, or even two different object classes. Moreover, we show that such generative networks can be used to find correspondences between different objects from the dataset, outperforming existing approaches on this task.
Incidence, risk factors and outcome of acute kidney injury in critically ill children – a developing country perspective

Background: Acute kidney injury (AKI) is common in critically ill children and is associated with poor outcome. Objective: To study the incidence, risk factors and outcome of AKI in children admitted to paediatric intensive care unit (PICU) of a developing country. Materials and Methods: This prospective observational study was conducted in a tertiary care PICU over one-year period. Critically ill children aged from 2 months to 18 years were included. RIFLE criteria based on GFR, and urine output was used for categorisation. Results: Of 380 children, 53 children (14%) had AKI (met any of the RIFLE criteria). The most common diagnoses underlying AKI were acute lower respiratory tract infection, CNS illness and severe dehydration. Subjects with AKI had a higher PRISM score (>10) at admission, longer duration of stay and high mortality. Significant risk factors for AKI following multivariate analysis were: age 1–5, PRISM score (>10) at admission, shock, infection, thrombocytopenia, hypo-albuminaemia and multi-organ dysfunction. Twenty-six of 53 subjects fulfilled the maximum RIFLE criteria within 72 h after admission and the mean (SD) time to first RIFLE attend was 1.6 (1.2) day. Subjects with AKI (RIFLE criteria) had 4.5 times higher mortality than those without AKI (36 vs 8%, P< etc). Conclusion: A high incidence of AKI was noted in the PICU that was associated with high mortality. The RIFLE criterion is an effective tool which can be used not only for predicting the outcomes, but may help in the early identification of patients at risk for AKI.
A visual method for robot proxemics measurements

Human interaction knows many non-verbal aspects. The use of space, among others, is guided by social rules. Not conforming to these rules may cause discomfort or even mis- communication. If robots are to interact with people, they must follow similar rules. The current work tries to identify factors that influence human preferred interaction distance in conversation-like interaction. For the measurement of interaction distances an accurate and objective visual method is presented. In this method, the researcher does influence the results by disturbing the interaction. It is found that subjects choose interaction distances com- parable to those in human interaction. Variations are mostly explained by subject age and, depending on age, by gender or robot appearance. This is the first time, to our knowledge, that a clear age and gender effect is found in human-robot interaction-distance.
Clinicians' journey of becoming mindfulness practitioners

Introduction: Growing interest in the use of mindfulness-based interventions and increasing empirical evidence for its effectiveness suggest that more clinicians may become interested in mindfulness. Although there are studies on clients, as yet, there are no published studies exploring trajectories and experiences of clinicians developing as mindfulness practitioners. Objectives: This study aimed to explore mental health professionals’ experiences of becoming mindfulness practitioners in order to enrich our understanding of what facilitates and hinders development in this area. Design: Since this was a new area of investigation, an exploratory qualitative study was used to gain information. A method focused on generating rich accounts of participants’ experiences, seemed most suitable methodology. Methods: Six clinicians with previous experience of mindfulness meditation were interviewed. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (Smith, Flowers & Larkin 2009) was used to examine the transcripts and generate superordinate themes. Results: Clinicians reported several benefits from the development of mindfulness practice in both, personal and professional lives. Main supportive factors in the development and maintenance of mindfulness practice were presence of like-minded others, certain flexibility towards mindfulness use and expected gains, and integration of mindfulness into one’s personal and professional life. Conclusions: Experiences of mindfulness reported by clinicians were congruent with those found in clinical and non-clinical populations, in previous studies using both qualitative and quantitative methodologies. Findings were consistent with the framework described by Kristeller (2004). Additional research is needed to further investigate the developmental trajectories of mindfulness practitioners.
The Locally Finite Part of the Dual Coalgebra of Quantized Irreducible Flag Manifolds

For quantized irreducible flag manifolds the locally finite part of the dual coalgebra is shown to coincide with a natural quotient coalgebra U¯ of Uq g. On the way the coradical filtration of U¯ is determined. A graded version of the duality between U¯ and the quantized coordinate ring is established. This leads to a natural construction of several examples of quantized vector spaces.
Positive Carotenoid Balance Correlates with Greater Reproductive Performance in a Wild Bird

Background Carotenoids can confer somatic and reproductive benefits, but most evidence is from captive animal experimentation or single time-point sampling. Another perhaps more informative means by which to assess physiological contributions to animal performance is by tracking an individual's ability to increase or sustain carotenoids or other health-related molecules over time, as these are likely to be temporally variable. Methodology/Principal Findings In a field study of North American barn swallows (Hirundo rustica erythrogaster), we analyzed within-individual changes in carotenoid concentrations by repeatedly sampling the carotenoid profiles of individuals over the course of the breeding season. Our results demonstrate that carotenoid concentrations of individuals are temporally dynamic and that season-long balance of these molecules, rather than single time-point samples, predict reproductive performance. This was true even when controlling for two important variables associated with reproductive outcomes: (1) timing of breeding and (2) sexually selected plumage coloration, which is itself positively correlated with and concomitantly changes with circulating carotenoid concentrations. Conclusions/Significance While reproduction itself is purported to impose health stress on organisms, these data suggest that free-ranging, high-quality individuals can mitigate such costs, by one or several genetic, environmental (diet), or physiological mechanisms. Moreover, the temporal variations in both health-linked physiological measures and morphological traits we uncover here merit further examination in other species, especially when goals include the estimation of signal information content or the costs of trait expression.
Leakage power reduction techniques of 45 nm static random access memory (SRAM) cells

As the technology scales down to 90 nm and below, static random access memory (SRAM) standby leakage power is becoming one of the most critical concerns for low power applications. In this article, we review three major leakage current components of SRAM cells and also discuss some of the leakage current reduction techniques including body biasing, source biasing, dynamic VDD, negative word line, and bit line floating schemes. All of them are achieved by controlling different terminal voltages of the SRAM cell in standby mode. On the other hand, performance loss occurs simultaneously with leakage saving. To validate the effectiveness of low power techniques, the leakage current, static noise margin, and read current of SRAM cells, based on the UMC 45 nm complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor (CMOS) process with leakage current reduction techniques has been simulated. The results indicate that by using the dynamic VDD and source biasing schemes, greater leakage suppressing capability, although with a higher performance loss, can be obtained. Therefore, the SRAM cell optimization scheme must consider the trade-off between power consumption and speed performance.
Catalysis of electron transfer during activation of O2 by the flavoprotein glucose oxidase

Two prototropic forms of glucose oxidase undergo aerobic oxidation reactions that convert FADH− to FAD and form H2O2 as a product. Limiting rate constants of kcat/KM(O2) = (5.7 ± 1.8) × 102 M−1⋅s−1 and kcat/KM(O2) = (1.5 ± 0.3) × 106 M−1⋅s−1 are observed at high and low pH, respectively. Reactions exhibit oxygen-18 kinetic isotope effects but no solvent kinetic isotope effects, consistent with mechanisms of rate-limiting electron transfer from flavin to O2. Site-directed mutagenesis studies reveal that the pH dependence of the rates is caused by protonation of a highly conserved histidine in the active site. Temperature studies (283–323 K) indicate that protonation of His-516 results in a reduction of the activation energy barrier by 6.0 kcal⋅mol−1 (0.26 eV). Within the context of Marcus theory, catalysis of electron transfer is attributed to a 19-kcal⋅mol−1 (0.82 eV) decrease in the reorganization energy and a much smaller 2.2-kcal⋅mol−1 (0.095 eV) enhancement of the reaction driving force. An explanation is advanced that is based on changes in outer-sphere reorganization as a function of pH. The active site is optimized at low pH, but not at high pH or in the H516A mutant where rates resemble the uncatalyzed reaction in solution.
On over-the-cell channel routing with cell orientations consideration

Existing over-the-cell channel routers assume that the orientations of the cells are fixed. In practice, it is quite common that each cell can be horizontally flipped. This pin rearrangement flexibility should be used by over-the-cell routers to further reduce channel routing area. Given a placement of cells in multiple rows with pin terminals at the top and bottom edges of the cells and each cell can be flipped. The objective is to select an orientation for each cell and a set of net segments to be routed over the cells such that the final routing area is minimized. In this paper, we assume the HCVD cell model, i.e., power/ground buses run through the middle of each cell row horizontally and one layer is available for over-the-cell routing. For this model, it suffices to focus on over-the-cell routing for each individual cell row. We present a branch-and-bound optimal algorithm to maximize the total weight of the net segments to be routed in both upper and Lower over-the-cell regions. With minor modifications, our algorithm is applicable to simultaneously consider pin assignment and over-the-cell routing. The proposed algorithm has been implemented and tested on a set of industrial examples. Reduction in total channel densities of up to 37% was obtained using a reasonable amount of CPU time. >
Porcine Hypothalamic Aromatase Cytochrome P450: Isoform Characterization, Sex-Dependent Activity, Regional Expression, and Regulation by Enzyme Inhibition in Neonatal Boars1

Abstract Domestic pigs have three CYP19 genes encoding functional paralogues of the enzyme aromatase cytochrome P450 (P450arom) that are expressed in the gonads, placenta, and preimplantation blastocyst. All catalyze estrogen synthesis, but the gonadal-type enzyme is unique in also synthesizing a nonaromatizable biopotent testosterone metabolite, 1OH-testosterone (1OH-T). P450arom is expressed in the vertebrate brain, is higher in males than females, but has not been investigated in pigs, to our knowledge. Therefore, these studies defined which of the porcine CYP19 genes was expressed, and at what level, in adult male and female hypothalamus. Regional expression was examined in mature boars, and regulation of P450arom expression in neonatal boars was investigated by inhibition of P450arom with letrozole, which is known to reprogram testicular expression. Pig hypothalami expressed the gonadal form of P450arom (redesignated the “gonadal/hypothalamic” porcine CYP19 gene and paralogue) based on functional analysis confirmed by cloning and sequencing transcripts. Hypothalamic tissue synthesized 1OH-T and was sensitive to the selective P450arom inhibitor etomidate. Levels were 4-fold higher in male than female hypothalami, with expression in the medial preoptic area and lateral borders of the ventromedial hypothalamus of boars. In vivo, letrozole-treated neonates had increased aromatase activity in hypothalami but decreased activity in testes. Therefore, although the same CYP19 gene is expressed in both tissues, expression is regulated differently in the hypothalamus than testis. These investigations, the first such studies in pig brain to our knowledge, demonstrate unusual aspects of P450arom expression and regulation in the hypothalamus, offering promise of gaining better insight into roles of P450arom in reproductive function.
Thickness of the pre- and post-contact lens tear film measured in vivo by interferometry.

PURPOSE To evaluate an interferometric method for measuring the thickness of the pre- (PLTF) and postlens tear film (POLTF) in subjects wearing hydrogel contact lenses. The precision and accuracy of measuring postlens tear thickness is compared with a previous method based on optical pachymetry and mechanical measurement of contact lens thickness. METHODS Reflectance spectra (562-1030 nm) from the front of an eye wearing a contact lens were measured at normal incidence. Interference between reflections from four surfaces--the front of the tear film, the front and back of the contact lens, and the front of the cornea--can give rise to as many as six oscillations in the reflectance spectra, three from simple layers (layer A: PLTF; B, POLTF; C, contact lens) and three from composite layers, (layer D, A+C; layer E, C+B; layer F, A+C+B). The thickness of any layer is derived from the frequency of the oscillations. The principle of the method was tested with a rigid contact lens, which was designed to give distinct thicknesses for all six layers. Twenty spectra were then recorded from each of 12 subjects wearing hydrogel contact lenses. RESULTS The PLTF thickness averaged 2.31 microm. There was good agreement between a direct estimate from layer A and an indirect estimate: layer D minus layer C. For POLTF, an indirect estimate--layer F minus layer D--averaged 2.34 microm and was more satisfactory than the direct estimate from layer B. There was no correlation between PLTF and POLTF thickness, showing that these are independent measurements, despite the similarity of their means. CONCLUSIONS Prelens tear thickness was in reasonable agreement with prior measurements. Postlens tear thickness was much less than the 11 to 12 microm found by the pachymetric method. It is argued that the current method avoids some of the systematic errors of the pachymetric method and also has much higher precision.
A web-enabled video indexing system

Video parsing and indexing is an important early stage of content-based video analysis. In this paper, we present a new web-enabled video indexing system that integrates Synchronized Multimedia Integration Language (SMIL) standard. New algorithms are proposed for video temporal segmentation. Sharp transition detection is achieved by an enhanced histogram-based method that is robust to illumination changes. For gradual transition detection, new features are introduced for dissolve detection. The proposed dissolve detector is based on a combined analysis of mean-variance-skewness of intensity. Compared with existing variance-based approaches, the introduced new features improve the discrimination ability on shot boundaries. We also describe methods for eliminating false positives. Experimental results show that the proposed algorithms can effectively detect shot boundaries. Detected scenes and other cinematic attributes are structured and organized by integrating HTML and SMIL. For each video file, the system generates a table-of-contents indexing file. The user-friendly interface provides web-based interaction, browsing and previewing of video content
Variation in Protein Intake Induces Variation in Spider Silk Expression

Background It is energetically expensive to synthesize certain amino acids. The proteins (spidroins) of spider major ampullate (MA) silk, MaSp1 and MaSp2, differ in amino acid composition. Glutamine and proline are prevalent in MaSp2 and are expensive to synthesize. Since most orb web spiders express high proline silk they might preferentially attain the amino acids needed for silk from food and shift toward expressing more MaSp1 in their MA silk when starved. Methodology/Principal Findings We fed three spiders; Argiope aetherea, Cyrtophora moluccensis and Leucauge blanda, high protein, low protein or no protein solutions. A. aetherea and L. blanda MA silks are high in proline, while C. moluccesnsis MA silks are low in proline. After 10 days of feeding we determined the amino acid compositions and mechanical properties of each species' MA silk and compared them between species and treatments with pre-treatment samples, accounting for ancestry. We found that the proline and glutamine of A. aetherea and L. blanda silks were affected by protein intake; significantly decreasing under the low and no protein intake treatments. Glutmaine composition in C. moluccensis silk was likewise affected by protein intake. However, the composition of proline in their MA silk was not significantly affected by protein intake. Conclusions Our results suggest that protein limitation induces a shift toward different silk proteins with lower glutamine and/or proline content. Contradictions to the MaSp model lie in the findings that C. moluccensis MA silks did not experience a significant reduction in proline and A. aetherea did not experience a significant reduction in serine on low/no protein. The mechanical properties of the silks could not be explained by a MaSp1 expressional shift. Factors other than MaSp expression, such as the expression of spidroin-like orthologues, may impact on silk amino acid composition and spinning and glandular processes may impact mechanics.