Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Predicting mobile social network acceptance based on mobile value and social influence

Purpose – Building upon studies of value theory and social psychology literature, the purpose of this paper is to empirically test a research model that incorporates antecedents of value (mobile convenience, service compatibility, security risk, and cognitive effort) and mobile value (utilitarian and hedonic value), and social influence (social norms and number of peers) to examine factors affecting user intention toward mobile social networking sites (SNSs). Design/methodology/approach – The proposed model was empirically evaluated using survey data collected from 318 users on their perceptions of mobile SNSs. A structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to assess the relationships of the research model. Findings – The results revealed that mobile convenience, service compatibility, security risk, and cognitive effort have a significant and indirect impact on the user acceptance of mobile SNSs through their respective paths on hedonic value and utility value. Practical implications – Mobile SNSs practit.
Tightwads and Spendthrifts

Consumers often behave differently than they would ideally like to behave. We propose that an anticipatory pain of paying drives "tightwads" to spend less than they would ideally like to spend. "Spendthrifts," by contrast, experience too little pain of paying and typically spend more than they would ideally like to spend. This article introduces and validates the "spendthrift-tightwad" scale, a measure of individual differences in the pain of paying. Spending differences between tightwads and spendthrifts are greatest in situations that amplify the pain of paying and smallest in situations that diminish the pain of paying. (c) 2007 by JOURNAL OF CONSUMER RESEARCH, Inc.
Initiatives to enhance the quality and efficiency of statin and PPI prescribing in the UK: impact and implications

Aim: To assess the impact of a range of national and regional initiatives introduced in the North Lancashire Teaching Primary Care Trust (NLTPCT) since 2004 to enhance the quality and efficiency of prescribing proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), statins and ezetimibe. In addition, to suggest additional measures that could be introduced in NLTPCT to further enhance the quality and efficiency of prescribing based on initiatives in other European countries. Method: A before-and-after observational study was undertaken on the utilization and expenditure of prescriptions dispensed in ambulatory care in NLTPCT from 2004 to 2007. Utilization was assessed using ‘defined daily doses’ (DDDs) and ‘DDDs/1000 inhabitants per day’ and compared over the study period. Reimbursed expenditure was assessed in terms of overall expenditure, expenditure/DDD, as well as expenditure/1000 inhabitants per year. Results: The combination of measures and initiatives enhanced the utilization of generic PPIs. International Nonproprietary Name (INN) prescribing of omeprazole reached 98% of all omeprazole by 2007. The measures also resulted in limited utilization of esomeprazole and lowered reimbursed expenditure/DDD of generic omeprazole to GB£0.13 by 2007. This was 87% below 2004 originator prices, leading to a 41% fall in PPI expenditure during the study period despite increased utilization. Utilization of statins grew by over 130% during the study period enhanced by increased utilization of high doses of simvastatin and atorvastatin following the introduction of the quality and outcomes framework. Simvastatin dominated statin utilization by 2007, with generic simvastatin accounting for over 99.5% of total simvastatin. Reimbursed expenditure/DDD for generic simvastatin was £0.03 in 2007, 95% below 2004 originator prices, leading to a fall in overall expenditure on statins. It proved difficult to undertake an impact analysis as, typically, a range of measures were introduced sequentially and simultaneously during the study period. Conclusion: The findings are in line with expectations and do provide examples to other European countries. This includes a high rate of INN prescribing, low reimbursed prices for generic simvastatin and omeprazole and growing utilization of higher strength statins. The high rate of INN prescribing reduces the need for additional measures that have been instigated in other European countries to further enhance the prescribing and dispensing of generics to fully realize the resource benefits. Additional demand side measures are feasible and have already been instigated to conserve resources.
Disentangling factors of variation in deep representation using adversarial training

We introduce a conditional generative model for learning to disentangle the hidden factors of variation within a set of labeled observations, and separate them into complementary codes. One code summarizes the specified factors of variation associated with the labels. The other summarizes the remaining unspecified variability. During training, the only available source of supervision comes from our ability to distinguish among different observations belonging to the same class. Examples of such observations include images of a set of labeled objects captured at different viewpoints, or recordings of set of speakers dictating multiple phrases. In both instances, the intra-class diversity is the source of the unspecified factors of variation: each object is observed at multiple viewpoints, and each speaker dictates multiple phrases. Learning to disentangle the specified factors from the unspecified ones becomes easier when strong supervision is possible. Suppose that during training, we have access to pairs of images, where each pair shows two different objects captured from the same viewpoint. This source of alignment allows us to solve our task using existing methods. However, labels for the unspecified factors are usually unavailable in realistic scenarios where data acquisition is not strictly controlled. We address the problem of disentaglement in this more general setting by combining deep convolutional autoencoders with a form of adversarial training. Both factors of variation are implicitly captured in the organization of the learned embedding space, and can be used for solving single-image analogies. Experimental results on synthetic and real datasets show that the proposed method is capable of generalizing to unseen classes and intra-class variabilities.
Atypical diffusion tensor hemispheric asymmetry in autism

Background: Biological measurements that distinguish individuals with autism from typically developing individuals and those with other developmental and neuropsychiatric disorders must demonstrate very high performance to have clinical value as potential imaging biomarkers. We hypothesized that further study of white matter microstructure (WMM) in the superior temporal gyrus (STG) and temporal stem (TS), two brain regions in the temporal lobe containing circuitry central to language, emotion, and social cognition, would identify a useful combination of classification features and further understand autism neuropathology. Methods: WMM measurements from the STG and TS were examined from 30 high‐functioning males satisfying full criteria for idiopathic autism aged 7–28 years and 30 matched controls and a replication sample of 12 males with idiopathic autism and 7 matched controls who participated in a previous case–control diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) study. Language functioning, adaptive functioning, and psychotropic medication usage were also examined. Results: In the STG, we find reversed hemispheric asymmetry of two separable measures of directional diffusion coherence, tensor skewness, and fractional anisotropy. In autism, tensor skewness is greater on the right and fractional anisotropy is decreased on the left. We also find increased diffusion parallel to white matter fibers bilaterally. In the right not left TS, we find increased omnidirectional, parallel, and perpendicular diffusion. These six multivariate measurements possess very high ability to discriminate individuals with autism from individuals without autism with 94% sensitivity, 90% specificity, and 92% accuracy in our original and replication samples. We also report a near‐significant association between the classifier and a quantitative trait index of autism and significant correlations between two classifier components and measures of language, IQ, and adaptive functioning in autism.
Uncertainty About the Length of the Monetary Policy Transmission Lag: Implications for Monetary Policy

This paper examines implications for monetary policy of uncertainty about the length of the monetary policy transmission lag in a stochastic environment. Two key questions are asked. Firstly, which type of inflation-forecast-based rules work well when the central bank does not know the length of the monetary policy transmission lag? The results show that rules that are less aggressive and more forward looking are more robust. That is, the performance of these rules are least affected by lag uncertainty. However, it is still the case that relatively more aggressive and less forward looking rules will produce lower inflation variability. With any inflation forecasting model, policymakers must take a view on how quickly their actions impact on inflation. There will always be a significant degree of uncertainty surrounding this transmission lag such that a central bank is unlikely to get this right all the time. The second question asks, is it better to overestimate or underestimate this transmission lag? When the lag is overestimated (underestimated), the central bank behaves as if inflation is harder (easier) to control than it really is. The results show that a strategy of overestimating is superior to underestimating the lag. In fact, it may be even be a preferred strategy to knowing the true lag.
Teachers' Views of Textbooks and Text Reading Instruction: Experience Matters.

the text according to responses to this survey. And guess which teachers make most use of the textbookthose in schoo/s where teachers choose the books. ^Hlt is a widely held assumption in the United States that textbooks play a dominant role in the education of secondary students. Indeed, descriptive research has documented the prevalence of textbooks in content classrooms (Moore & Murphy, 1987). Moreover, the belief that cultural reproduction is one of the goals of schooling has led many teachers to rely on textbooks as an approved source of this information (Moore & Murphy, 1987). Apple (1992) describes textbooks as artifacts that play a "major role in defining whose culture is taught. " If textbooks bear such a powerful role in schooling, their use in the classroom needs examination.
Proteasome Inhibition Augments Cigarette Smoke-Induced GM-CSF Expression in Trophoblast Cells via the Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor

Maternal cigarette smoking has adverse effects on pregnancy outcomes. The granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) is an essential cytokine for a normal pregnancy. We investigated the impact of cigarette smoke extract (CSE) on GM-CSF expression in human cytotrophoblast cells and suggested a cellular mechanism underlying the CSE-induced GM-CSF expression. An immortalized normal human trophoblast cell line (B6Tert-1) was treated with CSE. The viability and proliferation of the CSE-treated B6Tert-1 cells were evaluated, and the expression of GM-CSF in these cells was quantified at the mRNA and the protein levels by means of reverse-transcription and quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR); and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), respectively. Human trophoblast cells treated with CSE had an increased expression of GM-CSF at both the mRNA and the protein levels. The CSE-induced GM-CSF expression was synergistically enhanced by the addition of the proteasome inhibitor MG-132, but inhibited by AG-1478, an inhibitor of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) kinase. Furthermore, CSE treatment increased the phosphorylation of the extracellular-signal regulated kinases (ERK1/2) in the trophoblast cells. The expression of other growth factors such as heparin-binding epidermal growth factor-like growth factor (HB-EGF) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) was also evaluated. Our data suggested that cigarette smoking and proteasome inhibition synergistically up-regulate GM-CSF cytokine expression by activating the EGFR signaling pathway.
The geometric architecture of the subtalar and midtarsal joints in rheumatoid arthritis based on magnetic resonance imaging.

OBJECTIVE To compare in vivo the 3-dimensional (3-D) geometric architecture of the subtalar and midtarsal joints in normal and rheumatoid arthritic (RA) feet, using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) analysis. METHODS MRI was performed on 23 patients with RA, all of whom had disease activity in the subtalar and/or midtarsal joints. Image processing techniques were used to create 3-D reconstructions of the calcaneus (C), cuboid (c), navicular (N), and talus (T) bones. Twenty-four standard architectural parameters were measured from the reconstructions and were compared with data from 10 normal subjects. These parameters defined both 3-D distance and angular relationships among the 4 bones studied. Pattern classification techniques were used to establish a geometric architecture foot profile for the RA patients. The degree of individual patient fit to the new RA foot profile and to profiles for normal, pes planus, and pes cavus foot types was derived. Logistic regression was used to examine the relationship of foot architecture to inflammatory disease characteristics and physical examination variables. RESULTS Subtalar or midtarsal pain was reported by all 23 patients, and 22 of the 23 patients presented with >/=1 clinical feature of pes planovalgus deformity. In 21 patients, ultrasonography revealed synovitis at >/=1 tarsal joint or surrounding tendon. In the RA group, the normalized distances between the geometric centroids were significantly closer for bone pairs Cc and cT and significantly distracted for bone pair CN compared with the distances in normal subjects. In RA patients (versus normal subjects), the angles subtended at the bone centroids were significantly decreased in 3 bone groups (CNc, TCN, and TNc) and significantly increased in 3 bone groups (CcN, CcT, NTc). The angles formed between the major principal axes of bone pairs CT and cT were significantly increased in RA patients compared with those in normal subjects. Pattern classification defined 11 RA feet as having normal structure and 12 as having abnormal structure. However, the abnormal feet did not fit consistently with structures defined for RA, pes planus, or pes cavus foot types. Logistic regression demonstrated that subtalar joint synovitis was the only predictive factor for abnormal subtalar and midtarsal architecture (odds ratio 19.2, 95% confidence interval 1.77-200.0). CONCLUSION This unique 3-D MRI-based technique successfully quantified the effects of RA on the geometric architecture of the foot and the patient-specific nature of these changes. This technique can be used to provide logical therapy for correction.
Efficient high‐frequency body coil for high‐field MRI

The use of body coils is favored for homogeneous excitation, and such coils are often paired with surface coils or arrays for sensitive reception in many MRI applications. While the body coil's physical size and resultant electrical length make this circuit difficult to design for any field strength, recent efforts to build efficient body coils for applications at 3T and above have been especially challenging. To meet this challenge, we developed an efficient new transverse electromagnetic (TEM) body coil and demonstrated its use in human studies at field strengths up to 4T. Head, body, and breast images were acquired within peak power constraints of <8 kW. Bench studies indicate that these body coils are feasible to 8T. RF shimming was used to remove a high‐field‐related cardiac imaging artifact in these preliminary studies. Magn Reson Med 52:851–859, 2004. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Automatic detection of fire smoke using artificial neural networks and threshold approaches applied to AVHRR imagery

Satellite-based remote sensing techniques were developed for identifying smoke from forest fires. Both artificial neural networks (NN) and multithreshold techniques were explored for application with imagery from the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) aboard NOAA satellites. The NN was designed such that it does not only classify a scene into smoke, cloud, or clear background, but also generates continuous outputs representing the mixture portions of these objects. While the NN approach offers many advantages, it is time consuming for application over large areas. A multithreshold algorithm was thus developed as well. The two approaches may be employed separately or in combination depending on the size of an image and smoke conditions. The methods were evaluated in terms of Euclidean distance between the outputs of the NN classification, using error matrices, visual inspection, and comparisons of classified smoke images with fire hot spots. They were applied to process daily AVHRR images acquired across Canada. The results obtained in the 1998 fire season were analyzed and compared with fire hot spots and TOMS-based aerosol index data. Reasonable correspondence was found, but the signals of smoke detected by TOMS and AVHRR are quite different but complementary to each other. In general, AVHRR is most sensitive to low dense smoke plumes located near fires, whereas smoke detected by TOMS is dispersed, thin, elevated, and further away from fires.
Systemic and cerebral endothelial dysfunction in chronic migraine. A case-control study with an active comparator

Background and objective Unlike migraine and migraine with aura, little information exists regarding chronic migraine (CM) as a risk factor for cardiovascular disease. In this study we aim to determine whether an association between CM and endothelial dysfunction exists. Methods Individuals 18 years and older diagnosed with episodic migraine (EM) and CM according to ICHD criteria were studied. After an overnight fast and abstinence from vasoactive drugs, ultrasound studies were performed and blood samples taken from patients and matched controls according to internationally agreed on protocols. Results A total of 113 individuals were enrolled (35 CM, 37 EM, 41 controls). CM patients had a lower percentage of flow-mediated vasodilation (FMD; difference of means = 5.03%; p = 1.0E-6) and breath-holding index (BHI; difference of means 0.754; p = 2.0E-6), as well as increased carotid intima media thickness (cIMT; difference of means = 0.128 mm; p = 7.0E-5) than controls. The EM patients and controls comparison found similar, but less pronounced, differences: decreased BHI (p = 0.031), and increased cIMT (p = 0.028). Fibrinogen (r = 0.277; p = 0.006), C-reactive protein (r = 0.288; p = 0.003), and erythrocyte rate sedimentation (r = 0.298; p = 0.002) also correlated with cIMT, and inversely with BHImV and FMD. Conclusions Migraine is associated with systemic and cerebral endothelial dysfunction demonstrated by ultrasound studies and biological markers. The degree of these changes was strongly associated with the severity of migraine. Our data indicate that migraine may be a cerebral disorder with systemic endothelial damage.
Improved GPS-based time link calibration involving ROA and PTB

The calibration of time transfer links is mandatory in the context of international collaboration for the realization of International Atomic Time. In this paper, we present the results of the calibration of the GPS time transfer link between the Real Instituto y Observatorio de la Armada (ROA) and the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB) by means of a traveling geodetic-type GPS receiver and an evaluation of the achieved type A and B uncertainty. The time transfer results were achieved by using CA, P3, and also carrier phase PPP comparison techniques. We finally use these results to re-calibrate the two-way satellite time and frequency transfer (TWSTFT) link between ROA and PTB, using one month of data. We show that a TWSTFT link can be calibrated by means of GPS time comparisons with an uncertainty below 2 ns, and that potentially even sub-nanosecond uncertainty can be achieved. This is a novel and cost-effective approach compared with the more common calibration using a traveling TWSTFT station.
Proteus mirabilis fimbriae: identification, isolation, and characterization of a new ambient-temperature fimbria

Urinary tract infections involving Proteus mirabilis may lead to complications including bladder and kidney stones, acute pyelonephritis, and bacteremia. This bacterium produces a number of fimbriae, two of which, MR/P fimbria and P. mirabilis fimbria, have been shown to contribute to the ability of this pathogen to colonize the bladder and kidney. We have now purified and characterized a previously undescribed fimbria of P. mirabilis, named ambient-temperature fimbria (ATF). Electron microscopy of a pure preparation and immunogold labeling of cells demonstrated that ATF was fimbrial in nature. The major fimbrial subunit of ATF has an apparent molecular weight of 24,000. The N-terminal amino acid sequence, E-X-T-G-T-P-A-P-T-E-V-T-V-D-G-G-T-I-D-F, did not show significant similarity to that of any previously described fimbrial protein. ATF was expressed by all eight P. mirabilis strains examined. Culture conditions affected expression of ATF, with optimal expression observed in static broth cultures at 23 degrees C. This fimbria was not produced by cells grown at 42 degrees C or on solid medium. Expression of ATF did not correlate with mannose-resistant/Proteus-like (MR/P) or mannose-resistant/Klebsiella-like (MR/K) hemagglutination and represents a novel fimbria of P. mirabilis.
Family Experiences of Ambiguous Loss in Response to Serious Childhood Illness: Parental Perspectives

The diagnosis and treatment of a serious childhood illness impacts the entire family system and causes a wide range of changes and losses. This research explored the experience of eight families faced with the extended hospitalization of a child and investigated how their experiences could be understood from an ambiguous loss framework. Qualitative interviews were conducted with eight mothers to explore their perception of the changes within the family unit during extended hospitalization. Results indicated families do experience ambiguous loss during extended hospitalization, particularly family boundary ambiguity and the loss of a normative family experience. Participants indicated these losses were related to the ambiguous absence of the patient and caregiver. Social workers should be aware of these unrecognized or uncertain losses and how they impact the entire family system when working with children with a serious medical illness.
Rad52 inactivation is synthetically lethal with BRCA2 deficiency

Synthetic lethality is a powerful approach to study selective cell killing based on genotype. We show that loss of Rad52 function is synthetically lethal with breast cancer 2, early onset (BRCA2) deficiency, whereas there was no impact on cell growth and viability in BRCA2-complemented cells. The frequency of both spontaneous and double-strand break-induced homologous recombination and ionizing radiation-induced Rad51 foci decreased by 2–10 times when Rad52 was depleted in BRCA2-deficient cells, with little to no effect in BRCA2-complemented cells. The absence of both Rad52 and BRCA2 resulted in extensive chromosome aberrations, especially chromatid-type aberrations. Ionizing radiation-induced and S phase-associated Rad52-Rad51 foci form equally well in the presence or absence of BRCA2, indicating that Rad52 can respond to DNA double-strand breaks and replication stalling independently of BRCA2. Rad52 thus is an independent and alternative repair pathway of homologous recombination and a target for therapy in BRCA2-deficient cells.