Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Transactional effects among maternal depression, neighborhood deprivation, and child conduct problems from early childhood through adolescence: A tale of two low-income samples

Abstract The current study sought to advance our understanding of transactional processes among maternal depression, neighborhood deprivation, and child conduct problems (CP) using two samples of low-income families assessed repeatedly from early childhood to early adolescence. After accounting for initial levels of negative parenting, independent and reciprocal effects between maternal depressive symptoms and child CP were evident across both samples, beginning in early childhood and continuing through middle childhood and adolescence. In addition, neighborhood effects were consistently found in both samples after children reached age 5, with earlier neighborhood effects on child CP and maternal depression found in the one exclusively urban sample of families with male children. The results confirm prior research on the independent contribution of maternal depression and child CP to the maintenance of both problem behaviors. The findings also have implications for designing preventative and clinical interventions to address child CP for families living in high-risk neighborhoods.
Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma: diagnostic performance of diffusion-weighted MR imaging for the prediction of treatment response.

PURPOSE To determine the diagnostic performance of diffusion-weighted (DW) imaging for the prediction of treatment failure in primary head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). MATERIALS AND METHODS The study was approved by the local institutional ethics committee and conducted with informed written consent in patients with primary HNSCC treated with radiation therapy and chemotherapy. DW imaging of the primary tumor was performed before treatment in 37 patients and was repeated within 2 weeks of treatment in 30 patients. Histograms of apparent diffusion coefficients (ADCs) were analyzed, and mean ADC, kurtosis, skewness, and their respective percentage change were correlated for local failure and local control at 2 years by using the Student t test. Univariate and multivariate analyses of the ADC parameters, T stage, and tumor volume were performed by using logistic regression for prediction of local failure. RESULTS Local failure occurred in 16 of 37 (43%) patients and local control occurred in 21 of 37 (57%) patients. Pretreatment ADC parameters showed no correlation with local failure. There was significant intratreatment increase in mean ADC and a decrease in skewness and kurtosis (P < .001, P < .001, P = .024, respectively) for the whole group of patients when compared with those before treatment. During treatment, primary tumors showed a significantly lower increase in percentage change of mean ADC, higher skewness, and higher kurtosis for local failure than for local control (P = .016, .015, and .040, respectively). These ADC parameters also were significant for predicting local failure with use of univariate but not multivariate analysis. CONCLUSION Early intratreatment DW imaging has the potential to allow prediction of treatment response at the primary site in patients with HNSCC.
THE INDEX OF COMPOSITION OF THE ITERATES OF THE EULER FUNCTION

The index of composition of an integer n ≥ 2 is defined as λ(n) = (log n)/(log γ(n)), where γ(n) stands for the largest square-free divisor of n. Let φ stand for the Euler totient function. We show that the index of composition of the k-fold iterate of φ(n) is 1 on a set of density 1 and that an analogous result holds if n runs over the set of shifted primes.
Effects of kinesio taping in a physical therapist with acute low back pain due to patient handling: A case report

ObjectivesThe paper describes the case of a physical therapist with acute Low Back Pain (LBP) due to patient handling and the efficacy of Kinesio Taping (KT) around the trunk in the treatment of this occupational LBP. Materials andMethodsKT was applied around the trunk for 3 days, for an average of 10 h/day. Kinesio tape was applied with 130–140% stretch to the rectus abdominis, internal oblique, erector spinae, and latissimus dorsi muscles, which are activated in the process of lifting.ResultsFollowing the KT application, the ‘Visual Analog Scale’ and ‘Oswestry Disability Questionnaire scores’ gradually decreased and active trunk range of motion limited by the LBP increased progressively. The physical therapist no longer complained of LBP and was able to handle patients without any pain.ConclusionsHence, continuous application of KT around the trunk may be a supplementary treatment method for acute LBP in physical therapists and enable continuous patient handling without any loss of work time due to occupational LBP. In addition, KT may also be applicable for the prevention and treatment of occupational LBP in other professions involving lifting heavy objects.
Quantifying the risk of respiratory infection in healthcare workers performing high-risk procedures

SUMMARY This study determined the risk of respiratory infection associated with high-risk procedures (HRPs) performed by healthcare workers (HCWs) in high-risk settings. We prospectively studied 481 hospital HCWs in China, documented risk factors for infection, including performing HRPs, measured new infections, and analysed whether HRPs predicted infection. Infection outcomes were clinical respiratory infection (CRI), laboratory-confirmed viral or bacterial infection, and an influenza infection. About 12% (56/481) of the study participants performed at least one HRP, the most common being airway suctioning (7·7%, 37/481). HCWs who performed a HRP were at significantly higher risk of developing CRI and laboratory-confirmed infection [adjusted relative risk 2·9, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1·42–5·87 and 2·9, 95% CI 1·37–6·22, respectively]. Performing a HRP resulted in a threefold increase in the risk of respiratory infections. This is the first time the risk has been prospectively quantified in HCWs, providing data to inform occupational health and safety policies.
Adverse Effect of Nano-Silicon Dioxide on Lung Function of Rats with or without Ovalbumin Immunization

Background The great advances of nanomaterials have brought out broad important applications, but their possible nanotoxicity and risks have not been fully understood. It is confirmed that exposure of environmental particulate matter (PM), especially ultrafine PM, are responsible for many lung function impairment and exacerbation of pre-existing lung diseases. However, the adverse effect of nanoparticles on allergic asthma is seldom investigated and the mechanism remains undefined. For the first time, this work investigates the relationship between allergic asthma and nanosized silicon dioxide (nano-SiO2). Methodology/Principal Findings Ovalbumin (OVA)-treated and saline-treated control rats were daily intratracheally administered 0.1 ml of 0, 40 and 80 µg/ml nano-SiO2 solutions, respectively for 30 days. Increased nano-SiO2 exposure results in adverse changes on inspiratory and expiratory resistance (Ri and Re), but shows insignificant effect on rat lung dynamic compliance (Cldyn). Lung histological observation reveals obvious airway remodeling in 80 µg/ml nano-SiO2-introduced saline and OVA groups, but the latter is worse. Additionally, increased nano-SiO2 exposure also leads to more severe inflammation. With increasing nano-SiO2 exposure, IL-4 in lung homogenate increases and IFN-γ shows a reverse but insignificant change. Moreover, at a same nano-SiO2 exposure concentration, OVA-treated rats exhibit higher (significant) IL-4 and lower (not significant) IFN-γ compared with the saline-treated rats. The percentages of eosinophil display an unexpected result, in which higher exposure results lower eosinophil percentages. Conclusions/Significance This was a preliminary study which for the first time involved the effect of nano-SiO2 to OVA induced rat asthma model. The results suggested that intratracheal administration of nano-SiO2 could lead to the airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR) and the airway remolding with or without OVA immunization. This occurrence may be due to the Th1/Th2 cytokine imbalance accelerated by the nano-SiO2 through increasing the tissue IL-4 production.
Observer-Based Distributed Fault Detection and Isolation for Heterogeneous Discrete-Time Multi-Agent Systems With Disturbances

The problem of distributed fault detection and isolation is investigated for heterogeneous discrete-time multi-agent systems with disturbances. A full-order observer is designed at a special agent to monitor its neighbour agents using local information. Via the technology of linear matrix inequalities, the sufficient conditions are given to ensure the estimation-error residual is robust to the disturbances. By utilizing the full-order observer, detection of the fault occurring at a single agent can be handled. At last, numerical simulations are employed to verify the effectiveness of the theoretically analyzed results.
PEP-SiteFinder: a tool for the blind identification of peptide binding sites on protein surfaces

Peptide–protein interactions are important to many processes of life, particularly for signal transmission or regulatory mechanisms. When no information is known about the interaction between a protein and a peptide, it is of interest to propose candidate sites of interaction at the protein surface, to assist the design of biological experiments to probe the interaction, or to serve as a starting point for more focused in silico approaches. PEP-SiteFinder is a tool that will, given the structure of a protein and the sequence of a peptide, identify protein residues predicted to be at peptide–protein interface. PEP-SiteFinder relies on the 3D de novo generation of peptide conformations given its sequence. These conformations then undergo a fast blind rigid docking on the complete protein surface, and we have found, as the result of a benchmark over 41 complexes, that the best poses overlap to some extent the experimental patch of interaction for close to 90% complexes. In addition, PEP-SiteFinder also returns a propensity index we have found informative about the confidence of the prediction. The PEP-SiteFinder web server is available at http://bioserv.rpbs. univ-paris-diderot.fr/PEP-SiteFinder.
Bas-Relief Generation Using Adaptive Histogram Equalization

An algorithm is presented to automatically generate bas-reliefs based on adaptive histogram equalization (AHE), starting from an input height field. A mesh model may alternatively be provided, in which case a height field is first created via orthogonal or perspective projection. The height field is regularly gridded and treated as an image, enabling a modified AHE method to be used to generate a bas-relief with a user-chosen height range. We modify the original image-contrast-enhancement AHE method to use gradient weights also to enhance the shape features of the bas-relief. To effectively compress the height field, we limit the height-dependent scaling factors used to compute relative height variations in the output from height variations in the input; this prevents any height differences from having too great effect. Results of AHE over different neighborhood sizes are averaged to preserve information at different scales in the resulting bas-relief. Compared to previous approaches, the proposed algorithm is simple and yet largely preserves original shape features. Experiments show that our results are, in general, comparable to and in some cases better than the best previously published methods.
Navigation with IMU/GPS/digital compass with unscented Kalman filter

Autonomous vehicle navigation with standard IMU and differential GPS has been widely used for aviation and military applications. Our research interesting is focused on using some low-cost off-the-shelf sensors, such as strap-down IMU, inexpensive single GPS receiver. In this paper, we present an autonomous vehicle navigation method by integrating the measurements of IMU, GPS, and digital compass. Two steps are adopted to overcome the low precision of the sensors. The first is to establish sophisticated dynamics models which consider Earth self rotation, measurement bias, and system noise. The second is to use a sigma Kalman filter for the system state estimation, which has higher accuracy compared with the extended Kalman filter. The method was evaluated by experimenting on a land vehicle equipped with IMU, GPS, and digital compass.
Patterns of Physical Activity Among Overweight and Obese Adults

Introduction Little is known about patterns of physical activity in overweight and obese adults, although they are at high risk for chronic disease and can benefit from physical activity. We describe patterns of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and MVPA in bouts of 10 minutes or longer in overweight and obese adults. Methods Overweight and obese participants (n = 1,648) who were screened for the multicenter Weight Loss Maintenance Trial wore RT3 accelerometers for at least 3 weekdays and 1 weekend day. We determined minutes spent in moderate physical activity, vigorous physical activity, and MVPA overall, by weekday vs weekend, and by time of day. We also measured bouts of at least 10 minutes of sustained MVPA. Results Participants were active for an average of 15.8 minutes per day. Among those who engaged in bouts of MVPA, the average bout was 33.3 minutes long. Participants who were younger than 50 years, male, non-African American, or overweight were more active than were those who were older than 50, female, African American, or obese. Participants were more active on weekends than on weekdays and in the morning than in the afternoon or evening. Only 2% of participants were active for 60 or more minutes per day. Conclusion We found differences in physical activity patterns by demographic characteristics, day, and time of day. Weekend mornings may be an opportune time to promote additional physical activity.
Recombinant Human Erythropoietin Suppresses Endothelial Cell Apoptosis and Reduces the Ratio of Bax to Bcl-2 Proteins in the Aortas of Apolipoprotein E–Deficient Mice

Recent clinical trials have raised concern that therapy with recombinant human erythropoietin (EPO) may increase cardiovascular disease risk, event rate, and mortality. Endothelial cell apoptosis has been implicated in both atherogenesis and in the destabilization and rupture of atheromatous plaques. In the current study, we observed that EPO and the EPO-mimetic peptide EMP-1 markedly suppressed lipopolysaccharide-induced apoptosis in endothelial cell monolayers. Therapeutic concentrations of EPO upregulated Bcl-2 expression and concurrently diminished expression of Bax, resulting in a net decrease in the ratio of Bax to Bcl-2 protein concentrations. In vivo studies demonstrated that EPO receptor is abundantly expressed in murine aorta and that EPO treatment for 10 weeks markedly decreased the ratio of Bax to Bcl-2 protein in the aortas of apolipoprotein E-deficient mice fed a high-fat diet. To our knowledge, these data are the first to reveal a modulation of regulators of the apoptotic pathway in murine aorta by chronic EPO treatment. These observations imply that long-term administration of EPO may have the potential to affect plaque stability.
MLlib: Machine Learning in Apache Spark

Apache Spark is a popular open-source platform for large-scale data processing that is well-suited for iterative machine learning tasks. In this paper we present MLlib, Spark's open-source distributed machine learning library. MLlib provides efficient functionality for a wide range of learning settings and includes several underlying statistical, optimization, and linear algebra primitives. Shipped with Spark, MLlib supports several languages and provides a high-level API that leverages Spark's rich ecosystem to simplify the development of end-to-end machine learning pipelines. MLlib has experienced a rapid growth due to its vibrant open-source community of over 140 contributors, and includes extensive documentation to support further growth and to let users quickly get up to speed.
Consent gained from patients after breast surgery for the use of surplus tissue in research: an exploration

Objectives: (1) To investigate the quality of consent gained for the use in research of tissue that is surplus after surgery. (2) To compare the use of two consent forms: a simple locally introduced form and a more complex centrally instigated form. (3) To discuss the attitudes of patients towards the use of their surplus tissue in research. Design: Data were collected through interviews and analysed with a combination of quantitative and qualitative analytical techniques. Participants and setting: Patients of the breast care unit at a teaching hospital were interviewed at home or in a quiet room at the hospital. Results: 57 people were interviewed out of 81 approached, between October 2003 and March 2004. Most participants had a poor level of knowledge about the consent they had given, but reported being happy about having given it. The patients who had signed the locally introduced form had considerably more knowledge than those who had signed the centrally instigated form (z = −2.56; p<0.05). Participants considered being well informed to be less important than believing that their opinions were valued and respected. Conclusions: The findings suggest that traditional models of informed consent are not universally applicable and, in this case, seem to overstate what people wish to know. The simple consent form achieved a better quality of informed consent and provided a better model of practice than the complex form, and it seemed that a focused approach to consent seeking is more effective and acceptable than more complex approaches.
Age- and gender-related differences in teicoplanin levels in paediatric patients.

OBJECTIVES Teicoplanin is a glycopeptide antibiotic active against Gram-positive bacteria, including methicillin-resistant staphylococci. While teicoplanin trough levels (TTLs) >10 mg/L are commonly considered appropriate, levels >20 mg/L are aimed for in the treatment of severe infections. Due to toxicity, it is recommended to avoid levels >60 mg/L. PATIENTS AND METHODS In our institution, the initial dosing schedule of teicoplanin (10-15 mg/kg every 12 h for three loading doses and every 24 h thereafter) is adapted according to TTLs analysed by a fluorescence polarization immunoassay on treatment days 2 to 4. Teicoplanin peak levels (TPLs) are analysed in selected cases 30 min after the end of infusion. In a retrospective analysis we evaluated 1357 TTLs and 333 TPLs from 410 treatment episodes from 2005 to 2011. RESULTS Initial TTLs were <10 mg/L in 14.1% and <20 mg/L in 72.6% of episodes. Toddlers had significantly lower TTLs, with a 2-fold and 2.5-fold increased risk of having levels <10 mg/L (24.6%) and <20 mg/L (82.6%), respectively. For the entire cohort, follow-up TTLs were less likely to be <10 mg/L and more likely to be >20 mg/L when compared with initial TTLs (P < 0.001, each). Adolescent girls had significantly higher initial TPLs (P = 0.001) and significantly higher follow-up TTLs (P = 0.016) than adolescent boys. In parallel, adolescent girls had initial TPLs >60 mg/L significantly more frequently (P = 0.012) and follow-up TTLs <10 mg/L significantly less frequently (P = 0.005). CONCLUSIONS More tailored dosing regimens with higher loading doses, especially for toddlers, should be considered. While further pharmacokinetic data in paediatric patients are pending, therapeutic drug monitoring is mandatory.
High redshift X-ray galaxy clusters. II. The L X T relationship revisited

Aims. In this paper we re-visit the observational relation between X-ray luminosity and temperature for high-z galaxy clusters and compare it with the local LX–T and with theoretical models. Methods. To these ends we use a sample of 17 clusters extracted from the Chandra archive supplemented with additional clusters from the literature, either observed by Chandra or XMM–Newton, to form a final sample of 39 high redshift (0.25 < z < 1.3) objects. Different statistical approaches are adopted to analyze the LX–T relation. Results. The slope of the LX–T relation of high redshift clusters is steeper than expected from the self-similar model predictions and steeper, even though still compatible within the errors, than the local LX–T slope. The distant cluster LX–T relation shows a significant evolution with respect to the local Universe: high-z clusters are more luminous than the local ones by a factor ≈ 2a t any given temperature. The evolution with redshift of the LX–T relation cannot be described by a single power law nor by the evolution predicted by the self-similar model. Conclusions. We find a strong evolution, similar or stronger than the self-similar model, from z = 0t oz ≤ 0. 3f ollowed by a much weaker, if any, evolution at higher redshifts. The weaker evolution is compatible with non-gravitational models of structure formation. According to us a statistically significant sample of nearby clusters (z < 0.25) should be observed with the current available X-ray telescopes to completely exclude observational effects due to different generation detectors and to understand this novel result.
The Cognitive Foundations of Personality Traits

1. Traits: The Embattled Concept. - 2. Toward a Solution. - 3. The Trait and Its Constituents. - 4. Trait Dynamics. - 5. Characteristics of the Trait Pattern. - 6. A Methodological Interlude. - 7. The Answers: A Summary of Contributions. - 8. Traits and Human Behavior. - 9. Studies on Traits. - 10. Assessment of Personality Traits. - 11. Identifying Personality Traits. - 12. Characterizing Trait Scales and Factors. - 13. Meaning-Based Validation of Personality Traits. - Postscript. - Appendixes. - Appendix A. The Meaning Variables: List and Code. - Appendix B. Summary of Manifestations of Meaning Variables. - Appendix C. General Instructions for Coding the Meaning Questionnaire. - References.
A Workbook to Promote Forgiveness for Ingroup Congregational Offenses

A WORKBOOK TO PROMOTE FORGIVENESS FOR INGROUP CONGREGATIONAL OFFENSES By Chelsea L. Greer, M.S., M.A. A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at Virginia Commonwealth University. Virginia Commonwealth University, 2013 Major Director: Everett L. Worthington, Jr., Professor, Department of Psychology Since research on forgiveness has flourished over the past three decades, multiple interventions have been developed to aid individuals in this arduous process. Two interventions in particular have been most-widely studied with diverse groups: Enright’s process model (Enright & Fitzgibbons, 2000) and Worthington’s REACH Forgiveness model (2006). Thus far, these forgiveness interventions have been led by trained professionals in an in-person group. Inperson interventions pose issues of cost and attendance. In the current study, I adapted Worthington’s Christian-adapted REACH Forgiveness intervention into a self-directed workbook for Christians who have experienced an offense within a religious community. Participants (N = 52) voluntarily completed the workbook for partial course credit, taking an average of 6.66 hours of time, and assessments at three time points. I found a significant treatment condition x time interaction, Wilks’ λ = . 31, F(6,31) = 11.57, p < . 001, partial η2 = . 69, which indicates that the effect of time depended upon the treatment condition to which participants were assigned. In addition, the current study produced a larger effect size comparable to benchmarks of previous in-person REACH Forgiveness interventions (d = 1.63), and fell within the upper limit of the standard of change. The current findings encourage further analysis of this self-directed intervention which is cost-effective, easily disseminated, and found effective in this initial study.