Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A comparison of manual and mechanical ventilation during pediatric transport.

OBJECTIVE To compare the amount of variability in ventilation during intrahospital transport of intubated pediatric patients ventilated either manually or with a transport ventilator. DESIGN Prospective, randomized study. SETTING Tertiary, multidisciplinary, pediatric intensive care unit. PATIENTS Forty-nine pediatric postoperative heart patients who required transport while still intubated. INTERVENTIONS Patients were randomized to receive either manual ventilation during transport or ventilation by a portable mechanical ventilator. Baseline ventilatory and hemodynamic parameters were recorded before and during transport. Before and after arterial blood gases were also obtained. All other aspects of care were identical. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS There was a statistically significant greater amount of variation in ventilation during transport with manual technique as opposed to the mechanical ventilator. A Student's t-test on pre- to post-blood gas differences showed a significantly lower PetCO2 (p = .02) in the manually ventilated patients when compared with the mechanically ventilated patients. Values for PCO2 were higher, but only marginally significant (p = .08). Repeated measures analysis of variance using these same pre- and post blood gas values confirmed the significant decrease in PetCO2 (p = .05). Minute to minute variation in PetCO2 during transport was greater and the mean values significantly lower in the manually ventilated group (p < .05). Hemodynamic data were remarkably stable when examined both before and after transport and on a minute to minute basis during transport. CONCLUSIONS Manual ventilation during intrahospital transport results in greater fluctuation of ventilatory parameters from an established baseline than does use of a transport ventilator. No clinically significant changes in status occurred during the brief period of transport studied.
Wind Energy Potential of Gaza Using Small Wind Turbines: A Feasibility Study

In this paper, we conduct a feasibility study of the wind energy potential in Gaza, which suffers from a severe shortage of energy supplies. Our calculated energy harvested from the wind is based on data for a typical meteorological year, which are fed into a small wind turbine of 5 kW power rating installable on the roof of residential buildings. The expected annual energy output at a height of 10 m amounts to 2695 kWh, but it can be increased by 35–125% at higher altitudes between 20 m and 70 m. The results also depict the great potential of wind energy to complement other renewable resources such as solar energy: the harvested energy of a wind system constitutes to up to 84% of the annual output of an equivalent power rating photovoltaic system and even outperforms the solar energy in the winter months. We also show that one wind turbine and one comparable photovoltaic system together could provide enough energy for 3.7 households. Hence, a combination of wind and solar energy could stabilize the decentralized energy production in Gaza. This is very important in a region where people seek to reach energy self-sufficient buildings due to the severe electricity shortage in the local grid.
Changes Over Time in Absolute and Relative Socioeconomic Differences in Smoking: A Comparison of Cohort Studies From Britain, Finland, and Japan.

INTRODUCTION Socioeconomic differences in smoking over time and across national contexts are poorly understood. We assessed the magnitude of relative and absolute social class differences in smoking in cohorts from Britain, Finland, and Japan over 5-7 years. METHODS The British Whitehall II study (n = 4350), Finnish Helsinki Health Study (n = 6328), and Japanese Civil Servants Study (n = 1993) all included employed men and women aged 35-68 at baseline in 1997-2002. Follow-up was in 2003-2007 (mean follow-up 5.1, 6.5, and 3.6 years, respectively). Occupational social class (managers, professionals and clerical employees) was measured at baseline. Current smoking and covariates (age, marital status, body mass index, and self-rated health) were measured at baseline and follow-up. We assessed relative social class differences using the Relative Index of Inequality and absolute differences using the Slope Index of Inequality. RESULTS Social class differences in smoking were found in Britain and Finland, but not in Japan. Age-adjusted relative differences at baseline ranged from Relative Index of Inequality 3.08 (95% confidence interval 1.99-4.78) among Finnish men to 2.32 (1.24-4.32) among British women, with differences at follow-up greater by 8%-58%. Absolute differences remained stable and varied from Slope Index of Inequality 0.27 (0.15-0.40) among Finnish men to 0.10 (0.03-0.16) among British women. Further adjustment for covariates had modest effects on inequality indices. CONCLUSIONS Large social class differences in smoking persisted among British and Finnish men and women, with widening tendencies in relative differences over time. No differences could be confirmed among Japanese men or women. IMPLICATIONS Changes over time in social class differences in smoking are poorly understood across countries. Our study focused on employees from Britain, Finland and Japan, and found relative and absolute and class differences among British and Finnish men and women. Key covariates had modest effects on the differences. Relative differences tended to widen over the 4- to 7-year follow-up, whereas absolute differences remained stable. In contrast, class differences in smoking among Japanese men or women were not found. Britain and Finland are at the late stage of the smoking epidemic model, whereas Japan may not follow the same model.
Defining the Cause of Death in Hospitalised Patients with Acute Kidney Injury

Background The high mortality rates that follow the onset of acute kidney injury (AKI) are well recognised. However, the mode of death in patients with AKI remains relatively under-studied, particularly in general hospitalised populations who represent the majority of those affected. We sought to describe the primary cause of death in a large group of prospectively identified patients with AKI. Methods All patients sustaining AKI at our centre between 1st October 2010 and 31st October 2011 were identified by real-time, hospital-wide, electronic AKI reporting based on the Acute Kidney Injury Network (AKIN) diagnostic criteria. Using this system we are able to generate a prospective database of all AKI cases that includes demographic, outcome and hospital coding data. For those patients that died during hospital admission, cause of death was derived from the Medical Certificate of Cause of Death. Results During the study period there were 3,930 patients who sustained AKI; 62.0% had AKI stage 1, 20.6% had stage 2 and 17.4% stage 3. In-hospital mortality rate was 21.9% (859 patients). Cause of death could be identified in 93.4% of cases. There were three main disease categories accounting for three quarters of all mortality; sepsis (41.1%), cardiovascular disease (19.2%) and malignancy (12.9%). The major diagnosis leading to sepsis was pneumonia, whilst cardiovascular death was largely a result of heart failure and ischaemic heart disease. AKI was the primary cause of death in only 3% of cases. Conclusions Mortality associated with AKI remains high, although cause of death is usually concurrent illness. Specific strategies to improve outcomes may therefore need to target not just the management of AKI but also the most relevant co-existing conditions.
The Spectral Analysis and Threshold Limits of Quasi-Supercontinuum Self-Assembled Quantum Dot Interband Lasers

This paper presents a theoretical model to explain the quasi-supercontinuum interband emission from InGaAs/GaAs self-assembled semiconductor quantum dot lasers by accounting for both inhomogeneous and homogeneous optical gain broadening. The experimental and theoretical agreement of a room temperature (293 K) broadband laser emission confirms the presence of multiple-state lasing actions in highly inhomogeneous dot ensembles. The corresponding full-width half-maximum of the photoluminescence is 76 meV as opposed to those wideband lasing coverage at only low temperature (~60 K) from typical quantum dot lasers. A newly proposed change of homogeneous broadening with injection that occurs only in highly inhomogeneous quantum dot system is critical to account for the continuous wideband lasing but not the conventional ideas of carrier dynamics in semiconductor lasers. In addition, the analysis of threshold conditions reveals that broadband lasing only occurs when the energy spacing between quantized energy states is comparable to the inhomogeneous broadening of quantum-dot nanostructures. The study is important in providing a picture of this novel device and realization of broad lasing coverage for diverse applications, especially in the research field of short-pulse generation and ultra-fast phenomena in semiconductor quantum-dot laser.
Life Without Huntingtin

Abstract : Huntington disease (HD) is a neurodegenerative disorder associated with polyglutamine expansion in a recently identified protein, huntingtin. Huntingtin is widely expressed and plays a crucial role in development, because gene‐targeted HD‐/‐ mouse embryos die early in embryogenesis. To analyze the function of normal huntingtin, we have generated HD‐/‐ embryonic stem (ES) cells and used an in vitro model of ES cell differentiation to analyze their ability to develop into neuronal cells. Expression analysis of wild‐type ES cells revealed that huntingtin is expressed at all stages during ES cell differentiation with high expression in neurons. Expression levels increased with the maturation of differentiating neurons, demonstrating that expression of huntingtin is developmentally regulated in cell culture and resembles the pattern of expression observed in differentiating neurons in the mouse brain. It is interesting that HD‐/‐ ES cells could differentiate into mature postmitotic neurons that expressed functional voltage‐ and neurotransmittergated ion channels. Moreover, both excitatory and inhibitory spontaneous postsynaptic currents were observed, indicating the establishment of functional synapses in the absence of huntingtin. These results demonstrate that huntingtin is not required for the generation of functional neurons with features characteristic of postmitotic neurons in the developing mouse brain.
The timing of maternal depressive symptoms and child cognitive development: a longitudinal study.

BACKGROUND Maternal depression is known to be associated with impairments in child cognitive development, although the effect of timing of exposure to maternal depression is unclear. METHODS Data collected for the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children, a longitudinal study beginning in pregnancy, included self-report measures of maternal depression the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale, completed on 6 occasions up to 3 years of age, and IQ of the index child (WISC) measured at aged 8 years. We used these data to assign women to 8 groups according to whether depression occurred in the antenatal, postnatal, preschool period, any combination of these times, or not at all. We compared a model comprising all patterns of depression (saturated model) with models nested within this to test whether there is a relationship between depression and child cognitive development and, if so, whether there is a sensitive period. We then investigated the relationship with child IQ for each model, following adjustment for confounders. RESULTS Six thousand seven hundred and thirty-five of 13,615 children from singleton births (49.5%, of eligible core sample) attended a research clinic at 8 years and completed a WISC with a score ≥ 70. A total of 5,029 mothers of these children had completed mood assessments over the 3 time periods. In unadjusted analyses, all three sensitive period models were as good as the saturated model, as was an accumulation model. Of the sensitive period models, only that for antenatal exposure was a consistently better fit than the accumulation model. After multiple imputation for missing data (to n = 6,735), there was no effect of postnatal depression on child IQ independent of depression at other times [-0.19 IQ points, 95% confidence interval (CI) -1.5 to 1.1 points]. There was an effect of antenatal depression (-3.19 IQ points, 95% CI: -4.33 to -2.06) which attenuated following adjustment (-0.64 IQ points, 95% CI: -1.68 to 0.40). CONCLUSIONS The postnatal period is not a sensitive one for the effect of maternal depression on child cognitive development.
Subversion and Utilization of the Host Cell Cyclic Adenosine 5′-Monophosphate/Protein Kinase A Pathway by Brucella During Macrophage Infection1

Brucella spp. are intramacrophage pathogens that induce chronic infections in a wide range of mammals, including domestic animals and humans. Therefore, the macrophage response to infection has important consequences for both the survival of phagocytosed bacteria and the further development of host immunity. However, very little is known about the macrophage cell signaling pathways initiated upon infection and the virulence strategy that Brucella use to counteract these responses and secure their survival. In a previous study, we have shown that macrophages activated by SR141716A, a ligand of the cannabinoid receptor CB1, acquired the capacity to control Brucella and observed that the CB1 receptor-triggering engages the microbicidal activity of phagocytes. To analyze the perturbation of cell signaling pathway during macrophage infection by Brucella, we hypothesized that SR141716A provides cell signaling that interferes with the bacterial message leading to inhibition of macrophage functions. As CB1 receptor belongs to the family of G protein-linked receptors, we explored the cAMP signaling pathway. In this study, we show that the CB1 ligand inhibited the bacteria-induced cell signaling. Taking advantage of this result, we then demonstrated that Brucella infection elicited a rapid activation of the cAMP/protein kinase A pathway. This activation resulted in a prolonged phosphorylation of the transcription factor CREB. We finally demonstrate that the activation of the cAMP/protein kinase A pathway is crucial for the survival and establishment of Brucella within macrophages. For the first time in phagocytes, we thus characterized a primordial virulence strategy of Brucella involving the host signaling pathway, a novel point of immune intervention of this virulent pathogen.
Social capital on mobile SNS addiction: A perspective from online and offline channel integrations

– Social capital has been identified as a valuable resource that can lead to various positive outcomes of social activities in both online and offline communities. The purpose of this paper is to argue that social capital can also be an important ingredient in the development of adverse outcomes, such as technology addiction. , – Based on social capital theory and prior research related to perceived integration, a research model that reflects the effects of online and offline social capitals as well as perceived integration on mobile social networking service (SNS) addiction was developed and empirically examined based on data collected from 458 mobile SNS users in China. , – The structural equation modeling analysis shows that online social interaction ties and online social supports positively affect mobile SNS addiction, whereas offline social supports and online social identification negatively affect mobile SNS addiction. In addition, perceived integration between online and offline channels by using mobile SNS positively influences online social interaction ties, offline social interaction ties, and mobile SNS addiction. , – From the practical perspective, the results of the study offer interesting implications for managing mobile SNS addiction. The study found that online social interaction ties and online social support positively influence mobile SNS addiction, whereas offline social support negatively influence mobile SNS addiction. , – The mobile SNS users should invest more time to participate in offline social activities and maintain good social relationships with their family, colleagues, and friends in the real world. , – The present study has both theoretical and practical implications. From a theoretical perspective, unlike many previous studies tend to regard social capital as the predictor of positive outcomes of users’ social activities, the study contributes to the extant information systems literature by exploring the potential negative consequences of social capital on users’ social lives. The results of the study indicate that social capital is a significant predictor of mobile SNS addiction.
The predictive relationship between specific teacher characteristics and the perceived sense of teacher self-efficacy of non-native English speaking teachers of English as a Foreign Language in rural Thailand

3 Dedication 4 Acknowledgments 5 List of Tables 10 List of Figures 11 List of Abbreviations 12 CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION 14 Teacher Self-Efficacy: A Powerful Construct Necessitating Further Research 16 Background and Conceptual Framework 19 Problem Statement 24 Purpose Statement 26 Research Question and Hypotheses 27 Identification of Key Variables 32 Definitions 41 Research Summary 42 CHAPTER TWO: REVIEW OF LITERATURE 43 Theoretical Framework: Social Cognitive Theory 43 Reciprocal Determinism 44 Human Agency 45 Self-efficacy 46 The Evolution of General Teacher Self-efficacy Research 49
Computing Complex Visual Features with Retinal Spike Times

Neurons in sensory systems can represent information not only by their firing rate, but also by the precise timing of individual spikes. For example, certain retinal ganglion cells, first identified in the salamander, encode the spatial structure of a new image by their first-spike latencies. Here we explore how this temporal code can be used by downstream neural circuits for computing complex features of the image that are not available from the signals of individual ganglion cells. To this end, we feed the experimentally observed spike trains from a population of retinal ganglion cells to an integrate-and-fire model of post-synaptic integration. The synaptic weights of this integration are tuned according to the recently introduced tempotron learning rule. We find that this model neuron can perform complex visual detection tasks in a single synaptic stage that would require multiple stages for neurons operating instead on neural spike counts. Furthermore, the model computes rapidly, using only a single spike per afferent, and can signal its decision in turn by just a single spike. Extending these analyses to large ensembles of simulated retinal signals, we show that the model can detect the orientation of a visual pattern independent of its phase, an operation thought to be one of the primitives in early visual processing. We analyze how these computations work and compare the performance of this model to other schemes for reading out spike-timing information. These results demonstrate that the retina formats spatial information into temporal spike sequences in a way that favors computation in the time domain. Moreover, complex image analysis can be achieved already by a simple integrate-and-fire model neuron, emphasizing the power and plausibility of rapid neural computing with spike times.
A Musical Robot that Synchronizes with a Coplayer Using Non-Verbal Cues

Music has long been used to strengthen bonds between humans. In our research, we develop musical coplayer robots with the hope that music may improve human–robot symbiosis as well. In this paper, we underline the importance of non-verbal, visual communication for ensemble synchronization at the start, during and end of a piece. We propose three cues for interplayer communication, and present a thereminplaying, singing robot that can detect them and adapt its play to a human flutist. Experiments with two naive flutists suggest that the system can recognize naturally occurring flutist gestures without requiring specialized user training. In addition, we show how the use of audio-visual aggregation can allow a robot to adapt to tempo changes quickly.
A Multigroup, Longitudinal Study of Truant Youths, Marijuana Use, Depression, and STD-Associated Sexual Risk Behavior

ABSTRACT Truant youths are likely to engage in a number of problem behaviors, including sexual risky behaviors. Previous research involving non-truant youths has found sexual risk behaviors to be related to marijuana use and depression, with differential effects for male and female youths. Using data collected in a National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)-funded, prospective intervention project, results are reported of a male-female, multi-group, longitudinal analysis of the relationships among truant youth baseline sexual risk behavior, marijuana use, and depression, and their sexual risk behavior over four follow-up time points. Results indicated support for the longitudinal model, with female truants having higher depression scores, and showing stronger relationships between baseline depression and future engagement in sexual risk behavior, than male truants. Findings suggest that incorporating strategies to reduce depression and marijuana use may decrease youth sexual risk behavior.
Modeling creativity in social networks

Studies on creativity, largely recognized as a precursor to innovation, have rapidly multiplied in the recent past. In particular, the impact of social network parameters on creativity has received increased attention. As an individual's social network regulates access to diverse ideas and perspectives, it has been observed to play a pivotal role in influencing creativity. In this paper, we propose a model which encapsulates the relationship between creativity and several social network parameters. We show that our model is consistent with the results of empirical studies in this domain. We also suggest how organizations could use our model to modify their network structure so as to boost creativity.
Religiosity and social trust: evidence from Canada

Abstract Using the latest wave of the Canadian Ethnic Diversity Survey, I investigate whether religious identity and religious intensity associate with the degree to which people trust others, controlling for a wide range of characteristics. The analysis shows that Canadian Roman Catholics are appreciably less trusting than mainline Protestants, and religious nones are situated in between these two groups. With regard to religious intensity, I find that higher commitment negatively correlates with trust in unknown others for Roman Catholics. The reverse is true for Protestants. Results also show stark cross-denominational variations within Protestantism, as two highly committed denominations of Mennonite and Pentecostal are found to be the most and the least trusting religious groups in Canada. No non-Christian religious minority is found statistically significantly less trusting than Canadian Roman Catholics. Considering particularized trust in one’s neighbours and co-workers yields comparable conclusions.