Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Development of a Patient-Specific Multi-Scale Model to Understand Atherosclerosis and Calcification Locations: Comparison with In vivo Data in an Aortic Dissection

Vascular calcification results in stiffening of the aorta and is associated with hypertension and atherosclerosis. Atherogenesis is a complex, multifactorial, and systemic process; the result of a number of factors, each operating simultaneously at several spatial and temporal scales. The ability to predict sites of atherogenesis would be of great use to clinicians in order to improve diagnostic and treatment planning. In this paper, we present a mathematical model as a tool to understand why atherosclerotic plaque and calcifications occur in specific locations. This model is then used to analyze vascular calcification and atherosclerotic areas in an aortic dissection patient using a mechanistic, multi-scale modeling approach, coupling patient-specific, fluid-structure interaction simulations with a model of endothelial mechanotransduction. A number of hemodynamic factors based on state-of-the-art literature are used as inputs to the endothelial permeability model, in order to investigate plaque and calcification distributions, which are compared with clinical imaging data. A significantly improved correlation between elevated hydraulic conductivity or volume flux and the presence of calcification and plaques was achieved by using a shear index comprising both mean and oscillatory shear components (HOLMES) and a non-Newtonian viscosity model as inputs, as compared to widely used hemodynamic indicators. The proposed approach shows promise as a predictive tool. The improvements obtained using the combined biomechanical/biochemical modeling approach highlight the benefits of mechanistic modeling as a powerful tool to understand complex phenomena and provides insight into the relative importance of key hemodynamic parameters.
The Fronts and Atlantic Storm-Track Experiment (FASTEX) : Scientific objectives and experimental design

The Fronts and Atlantic Storm-Track Experiment (FASTEX) will address the life cycle of cyclones evolving over the North Atlantic Ocean in January and February 1997. The objectives of FASTEX are to improve the forecasts of end-of-storm-track cyclogenesis (primarily in the eastern Atlantic but with applicability to the Pacific) in the range 24 to 72 h, to enable the testing of theoretical ideas on cyclone formation and development, and to document the vertical and the mesoscale structure of cloud systems in mature cyclones and their relation to the dynamics. The observing system includes ships that will remain in the vicinity of the main baroclinic zone in the central Atlantic Ocean, jet aircraft that will fly and drop sondes off the east coast of North America or over the central Atlantic Ocean, turboprop aircraft that will survey mature cyclones off Ireland with dropsondes, and airborne Doppler radars, including ASTRAIA/ELDORA. Radiosounding frequency around the North Atlantic basin will be increased, as .
Implicit and explicit memory performance in children with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder

The present investigation examined implicit and explicit memory in 20 children diagnosed with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (AD/HD) and 20 matched controls. Consistent with previous research, children with AD/HD performed more poorly than controls on an explicit test of long-term memory for pictures. New results were that (a) there was no deficit on an implicit memory test for equivalent material and that (b) the observed deficit in explicit memory operated over and above any effects of depression/anxiety. Another finding to emerge was that AD/HD children had greater difficulty than controls in identifying pictures of objects that were presented in an unusual form, either rotated or degraded. Overall, the pattern of results is interpreted in terms of deficient effortful/resource-intensive processes in AD/HD but intact automatic processes.
Self-adaptive surrogate-assisted covariance matrix adaptation evolution strategy

This paper presents a novel mechanism to adapt surrogate-assisted population-based algorithms. This mechanism is applied to ACM-ES, a recently proposed surrogate-assisted variant of CMA-ES. The resulting algorithm, s*ACM-ES, adjusts online the lifelength of the current surrogate model (the number of CMA-ES generations before learning a new surrogate) and the surrogate hyper-parameters. Both heuristics significantly improve the quality of the surrogate model, yielding a significant speed-up of s*ACM-ES compared to the ACM-ES and CMA-ES baselines. The empirical validation of s*ACM-ES on the BBOB-2012 noiseless testbed demonstrates the efficiency and the scalability w.r. t the problem dimension and the population size of the proposed approach, that reaches new best results on some of the benchmark problems.
Individualized Instruction, Student Achievement, and Dropout in an Urban Elementary Instrumental Music Program

In this study involving fifth- and sixth-grade students in an urban school system, both individual instruction within instrumental music classrooms and student subject variables were examined for their influence on an audiovisual music reading test, a performance sight-reading test, and attrition from the music program. When compared to group instruction, individualized instruction resulted in significantly superior scores on the performance test for students of higher than normal academic reading skills. No other instructional interactions or main effects were found. Of the subject variables used in the analyses, only the students' academic reading achievement and socioeconomic status were able to account consistently for unique and nontrivial proportions of variance in the three dependent variables. Scores on the two measures of achievement and dropout were not predictable by race or sex, and the students' grade level was either a nonsignificant or minor factor in the analysis. Differences in teachers also had virtually no effect on student achievement or attrition.
Visitor spending and economic impacts of heritage tourism: a case study of the Silos and Smokestacks National Heritage Area

Heritage is regarded as one of the most significant and fastest growing components of tourism. The development of heritage tourism as a generator of income besides the enhancement of community pride and identity has emerged as an objective of both heritage sites and tourism planning. The discretionary nature of expenditures in heritage tourist places makes it crucial to understand visitor spending pattern. This is key in demonstrating the economic contribution to the community for the tourism planners. This presentation is based on an intercept survey of travelers to the Silos and Smokestacks National Heritage Area (SSNHA), comprising 37 counties in Northeast Iowa. Visitor spending pattern is discussed among four categories of heritage sites in the SSNHA: farms, museums, parks and gardens, and businesses. IMPLAN Input–Output Model is utilized to generate the direct, indirect and induced economic impact in the area.
Irradiance-Adaptive PV Module Integrated Converter for High Efficiency and Power Quality in Standalone and DC Microgrid Applications

The strive for efficient and cost-effective photovoltaic (PV) systems motivated the power electronic design developed here. The work resulted in a dc–dc converter for module integration and distributed maximum power point tracking (MPPT) with a novel adaptive control scheme. The latter is essential for the combined features of high energy efficiency and high power quality over a wide range of operating conditions. The switching frequency is optimally modulated as a function of solar irradiance for power conversion efficiency maximization. With the rise of irradiance, the frequency is reduced to reach the conversion efficiency target. A search algorithm is developed to determine the optimal switching frequency step. Reducing the switching frequency may, however, compromise MPPT efficiency. Furthermore, it leads to increased ripple content. Therefore, to achieve a uniform high power quality under all conditions, interleaved converter cells are adaptively activated. The overall cost is kept low by selecting components that allow for implementing the functions at low cost. Simulation results show the high value of the module integrated converter for dc standalone and microgrid applications. A 400-W prototype was implemented at 0.14 Euro/W. Testing showed efficiencies above 95 %, taking into account all losses from power conversion, MPPT, and measurement and control circuitry.
What is meant by ‘support’ in Higher Education?: towards a model of academic and welfare support

This paper focuses on academic and welfare support for students in higher education, and specifically what makes that support effective. It draws on data from a research project which aimed to explore networks of support for disabled and non-disabled students. Part of the research focused on the nature and sources of support that were identified as important by students, as well as the kinds of support that were available within the higher education institution (HEI). What emerged as of particular interest was the question, 'What do we mean by support? ' Drawing mainly on the voices and experiences of the students, perceptions of support were explored and the effects of support on the students' experience of higher education were considered. Through a focus on more generic support structures as well as support which was specific to individual (disabled) students, the research aimed to understand 'support' and its importance from the student perspective.
Arterial stiffening with ageing is associated with transforming growth factor‐β1‐related changes in adventitial collagen: reversal by aerobic exercise

We tested the hypothesis that carotid artery stiffening with ageing is associated with transforming growth factor‐β1 (TGF‐β1)‐related increases in adventitial collagen and reductions in medial elastin, which would be reversed by voluntary aerobic exercise. Ex vivo carotid artery incremental stiffness was greater in old (29–32 months, n= 11) vs. young (4–7 months, n= 8) cage control B6D2F1 mice (8.84 ± 1.80 vs. 4.54 ± 1.18 AU, P < 0.05), and was associated with selective increases in collagen I and III and TGF‐β1 protein expression in the adventitia (P < 0.05), related to an increase in smooth muscle α‐actin (SMαA) (myofibroblast phenotype) (P < 0.05). In cultured adventitial fibroblasts, TGF‐β1 induced increases in superoxide and collagen I protein (P < 0.05), which were inhibited by Tempol, a superoxide dismutase. Medial elastin was reduced with ageing, accompanied by decreases in the pro‐synthetic elastin enzyme, lysyl oxidase, and increases in the elastin‐degrading enzyme, matrix metalloproteinase 2. Fibronectin was unchanged with ageing, but there was a small increase in calcification (P < 0.05). Increased incremental stiffness in old mice was completely reversed (3.98 ± 0.34 AU, n= 5) by 10–14 weeks of modest voluntary wheel running (1.13 ± 0.29 km day−1), whereas greater voluntary wheel running (10.62 ± 0.49 km day−1) had no effect on young mice. The amelioration of carotid artery stiffness by wheel running in old mice was associated with reductions in collagen I and III and TGF‐β1, partial reversal of the myofibroblast phenotype (reduced SMαA) and reduced calcification (all P < 0.05 vs. old controls), whereas elastin and its modulating enzymes were unaffected. Adventitial TGF‐β1‐related oxidative stress may play a key role in collagen deposition and large elastic artery stiffening with ageing and the efficacious effects of voluntary aerobic exercise.
Public Reactions to Unusual Names

Abstract A sample of lower income Blacks, lower income Whites, higher income Blacks, and higher income Whites in the United States were asked about children's first names, the reasons the names were selected, and the identity of the persons who named the children. The most frequent reason for naming children in all four groups was “I/we just liked it. ” The Whites were more likely than the Blacks to have named the child after a family member. Shoppers were then asked to rate the unusual names, along with a random sample of usual names, on six attributes: successful, moral, healthy, warm, cheerful, and gender appropriate. The shoppers were divided into eight groups in a two-income levels, two sexes, and two races design. The ratings were higher for usual names for all six attributes for all eight groups of raters. Although the unusual names had negative connotations for a wide variety of people in the community, name choices were usually the result of parents' current nonrational preferences.
Prior heavy exercise enhances performance during subsequent perimaximal exercise.

PURPOSE To test the hypothesis that prior heavy exercise increases the time to exhaustion during subsequent perimaximal exercise. METHODS Seven healthy males (mean +/- SD 27 +/- 3 yr; 78.4 +/- 0.7 kg) completed square-wave transitions from unloaded cycling to work rates equivalent to 100, 110, and 120% of the work rate at VO2peak (W-[VO2peak) after no prior exercise (control, C) and 10 min after a 6-min bout of heavy exercise at 50% Delta (HE; half-way between the gas exchange threshold (GET) and VO2peak), in a counterbalanced design. RESULTS Blood [lactate] was significantly elevated before the onset of the perimaximal exercise bouts after prior HE (approximately 2.5 vs approximately 1.1 mM; P < 0.05). Prior HE increased time to exhaustion at 100% (mean +/- SEM. C: 386 +/- 92 vs HE: 613 +/- 161 s), 110% (C: 218 +/- 26 vs HE: 284 +/- 47 s), and 120% (C: 139 +/- 18 vs HE: 180 +/- 29 s) of W-VO2peak, (all P < 0.01). VO2 was significantly higher at 1 min into exercise after prior HE at 110% W-VO2peak (C: 3.11 +/- 0.14 vs HE: 3.42 +/- 0.16 L x min(-1); P < 0.05), and at 1 min into exercise (C: 3.25 +/- 0.12 vs HE: 3.67 +/- 0.15; P < 0.01) and at exhaustion (C: 3.60 +/- 0.08 vs HE: 3.95 +/- 0.12 L x min(-1); P < 0.01) at 120% of W-VO2peak. CONCLUSIONS This study demonstrate that prior HE, which caused a significant elevation of blood [lactate], resulted in an increased time to exhaustion during subsequent perimaximal exercise presumably by enabling a greater aerobic contribution to the energy requirement of exercise.
Role of Muscle c-Jun NH2-Terminal Kinase 1 in Obesity-Induced Insulin Resistance

ABSTRACT Obesity caused by feeding of a high-fat diet (HFD) is associated with an increased activation of c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase 1 (JNK1). Activated JNK1 is implicated in the mechanism of obesity-induced insulin resistance and the development of metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes. Significantly, Jnk1−/− mice are protected against HFD-induced obesity and insulin resistance. Here we show that an ablation of the Jnk1 gene in skeletal muscle does not influence HFD-induced obesity. However, muscle-specific JNK1-deficient (MKO) mice exhibit improved insulin sensitivity compared with control wild-type (MWT) mice. Thus, insulin-stimulated AKT activation is suppressed in muscle, liver, and adipose tissue of HFD-fed MWT mice but is suppressed only in the liver and adipose tissue of MKO mice. These data demonstrate that JNK1 in muscle contributes to peripheral insulin resistance in response to diet-induced obesity.
An analysis of pilot symbol assisted modulation for Rayleigh fading channels (mobile radio)

The author presents pilot-symbol-assisted modulation (PSAM) on a solid analytical basis, a feature missing from previous work. Closed-form expressions are presented for the bit error rate (BER) in binary-phase-shift-keying (BPSK) and in quadrature-phase-shift-keying (QPSK), for a tight upper bound on the symbol error rate in 16 quadrature-amplitude-modulation (16-QAM), and for the optimized receiver coefficients. The error rates obtained are lower than for differential detection for any combination of signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and Doppler spread, and the performance is within 1 dB of a perfect reference system under slow-fading conditions and within 3 dB when the Doppler spread is 5% of the symbol rate. >
Student Identification of Academic Cheating Typology and the Link to Shoplifting Motivation

Employing and testing shoplifting-based constructs, we develop and validate a new multifaceted cheating behavior scale that allows educators to segment cheating behavior into what students perceive as trivial versus serious cheating. Results confirm that shoplifting-based scales perform well as predictors of cheating and also suggest that from their perspective, students do perceive two different types of cheating behavior: one serious and the other minor. For serious infractions (e.g., copying another's work) only economic factors play a part in the student's decision to engage in cheating behavior. However, for minor infractions (e.g., turning the same paper in for more than one class) economic factors, unattainable grades, and low perceived risk all play a role in the decision to cheat. Interestingly, contrary to anecdotal evidence, peer influence does not influence cheating.
Some chemical and physical properties of extracellular polysaccharides produced by Butyrivibrio fibrisolvens strains

Most strains of Butyrivibrio fibrisolvens are known to produce extracellular polysaccharides (EPs). However, the rheological and functional properties of these EPs have not been determined. Initially, 26 strains of Butyrivibrio were screened for EP yield and apparent viscosities of cell-free supernatants. Yields ranged from less than 1.0 to 16.3 mg per 100 mg of glucose added to the culture. Viscosities ranged from 0.71 to 5.44 mPa.s. Five strains (CF2d, CF3, CF3a, CE51, and H10b) were chosen for further screening. The apparent viscosity of the EP from each of these strains decreased by only 50 to 60% when the shear rate was increased from 20 to 1,000 s-1. Strain CE51 produced the EP having the highest solution viscosity. A detailed comparison of shear dependency of the EP from strain CF3 with xanthan gum showed that this EP was less shear sensitive than xanthan gum and, at a shear rate of 1,000 s-1, more viscous. EPs from strains CF3 and H10b were soluble over a wide range of pH (1 to 13) in 80% (vol/vol) ethanol-water or in 1% (wt/vol) salt solutions. The pH of 1% EP solutions was between 4.5 and 5.5. Addition of acid increased solution viscosities, whereas addition of base decreased viscosity. EPs from strains CF3, CE51, and H10b displayed qualitatively similar infrared spectra. Calcium and sodium were the most abundant minerals in the three EPs. The amounts of magnesium, calcium, and iron varied considerably among the EPs, but the potassium contents remained relatively constant.
Project Relationship Management and the Stakeholder Circle

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to summarise a successfully completed doctoral thesis. The main purpose of the paper is to provide a summary that indicates the scope of, and main issues raised by, the thesis so that readers that are undertaking research in this area may be aware of current cutting edge research that could be relevant to them. A second key aim of the paper is to place this in context with doctoral study and further research that could take place to extend knowledge in this area.Design/methodology/approach – Research reported in this paper was based upon action learning from a series of case studies where a project management tool for managing stakeholder relationships was tested and refined.Findings – The tool is useful in helping the project delivery team identify major influencing stakeholders and visualise their potential impact. This tool then helped the studied project delivery teams to develop stakeholder engagement strategies. While it was initially tested as a planning tool to b.
Social interaction is associated with changes in infants’ motor activity

Background In developmental research, infants are commonly assumed to be early stakeholders in interactions with their caregivers. The tools that infants can use to interact with others vary from visual contact to smiling or vocalizing, and also include motor activity. However, surprisingly few studies have explored how the nature and context of social interactions affect infants’ engagement in motor activity. Methods We investigated the kinematic properties of foot and face movements produced by 11 infants aged between 5 and 9 months during six contrasting dyadic episodes (i.e. passive presence of a stranger or the infant's mother, weak or intense interaction with the stranger/mother as she sings a nursery play song). Results The infants’ face and foot motor activity was significantly reduced during the interactive episodes, compared with the episodes without any interaction, in both the mother and stranger conditions. Furthermore, the level of their motor activity was significantly lower in the stranger condition than in the mother one for some parameters. Conclusion These results are in line with those reported by previous studies and confirm the relevance of using motor activity to delineate the early forms of interactive episodes in infants.
Meta-analytical comparison of voxel-based morphometry studies in obsessive-compulsive disorder vs other anxiety disorders.

CONTEXT Whether obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is adequately classified as an anxiety disorder is a matter of considerable debate. OBJECTIVES To quantitatively compare structural brain changes in OCD and other anxiety disorders using novel voxel-based meta-analytical methods and to generate an online database to facilitate replication and further analyses by other researchers. DATA SOURCES The PubMed, ScienceDirect, and Scopus databases were searched between 2001 (the date of the first voxel-based morphometry study in any anxiety disorder) and 2009. All voxel-based morphometry studies comparing patients with any anxiety disorder and healthy controls were retrieved. Manual searches were also conducted. Authors were contacted soliciting additional data. STUDY SELECTION Thirty-seven data sets were identified, of which 26 (including 639 patients with anxiety disorders and 737 healthy controls) met inclusion criteria. DATA EXTRACTION Coordinates were extracted from clusters of significant gray matter difference between patients and controls. Demographic, clinical, and methodological variables were extracted from each study or obtained from the authors. DATA SYNTHESIS Patients with anxiety disorders (including OCD) showed decreased bilateral gray matter volumes in the dorsomedial frontal/anterior cingulate gyri. Individuals with OCD had increased bilateral gray matter volumes (vs healthy controls and vs individuals with other anxiety disorders) in the lenticular/caudate nuclei, while patients with other anxiety disorders (mainly panic and posttraumatic stress disorders) had decreased gray matter volumes in the left lenticular nucleus. The findings remained largely unchanged in quartile and jackknife sensitivity analyses. Controlling for potential confounders such as age or antidepressant medication had little impact on the results. CONCLUSIONS The meta-analysis consistently revealed common as well as distinct neural substrates in OCD and other anxiety disorders. These results have implications for the current debate surrounding the classification of OCD in the DSM-V.