Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Mentoring students can lead to increasedengagement and success with mathematics

In September 2009, the author commenced a research project with colleagues to investigate the reasons why students do or do not engage with mathematics. The initial stages of this project involved contacting and meeting students who were repeating at least one of their first year mathematics modules. The author decided to offer the students an opportunity to participate in a mentoring scheme. This paper will describe the scheme, the mathematical background of the students and focus on their engagement levels, their behaviour and feedback. We look at the students’ reactions when they were asked to bring in their attempted work. We also present evidence that suggests a positive impact on student progression, and we will briefly present the outcomes of the project in terms of how it impacted on further initiatives and interventions run by our department.
Corticotrophs in the anterior pituitary glands of normal and adrenalectomized rats as revealed by electron microscopy.

The anterior pituitary glands of normal, adrenalectomized and sham-operated rats were observed wth the electron microscope. Besides the already known 5 cell types, a new type of granulated cell was found in pituitaries of both the normal and adrenalectomized animals. This cell type, designated by us as a corticotroph, is characterized by small secretory granules (150–200 mμ) and a polyhedral or retort-like outline of the cell body. The general morphology of this cell type resembles that of the thyrotroph, but the whole cell body is much larger than that of the latter, and the size of the granules is slightly larger. Granules present in this cell type are variable in density and are often seen as vesicles having a dark central core. After bilateral adrenalectomy, this cell is subject to more remarkable changes than any other type of anterior pituitary cell. The secretory granules increase in number in 1–3 days, and most of the granules turn to vesicles 5 days after adrenalectomy. Most cells of this type ar.
An Experiment in Fair Value Accounting: UK Investment Vehicles

Abstract We use the British real estate and investment fund industries as experimental settings where historic cost (HC) and fair value accounting (FVA) can be compared. Both industries have the majority of their assets marked to market and hence the difference between the two accounting systems is profound. However, as the valuation of real estate is arguably more subjective than that of investment funds, we are able to contrast fair value accounting in a near ideal setting with one where it remains important, but where valuation difficulties may permit bias. As this distinction is incorporated in the recently issued SFAS 157, which also formed the basis of the IASB's relevant discussion document, the results of our study may be particularly timely. As expected, we find that fair value income is considerably more value relevant than historic cost income. However, in the presence of changes in FVA balance sheet values, income measures become largely irrelevant. This implies that there is no obvious advantage from adopting FVA income accounting if FVA balance sheet values are available to the user. Furthermore, FVA for our real estate sample is considerably less value relevant than for the investment companies and the evidence for this sample, if not conclusive, is consistent with earnings management. We interpret these results as confirming that fair values are highly relevant and largely unbiased where the values are unambiguous. Where valuation is ambiguous, which will normally be the case, value relevance will be lower and biased accounting may be revealed.
Species-based comparison of disease severity and risk factors for disseminated Candida infections in pediatric patients

Background Pediatric Candida infections are associated with worse clinical outcomes and increased costs. Yet, it is not definitively known if particular species are associated with more severe illness. Differential risk factor exposures among the species group may also exist. We aimed to determine whether certain Candida species are more strongly associated with worse outcomes, and whether certain risk factors more strongly predispose patients to infection with certain species. Methods Microbiology lab records from patients seen from 2003 to 2010 at an urban children’s hospital were reviewed for invasive or disseminated Candida infections. Data on measures of disease severity/outcome and risk factors were abstracted and analyzed to determine differences associated with various Candida species. Results Exactly 106 cases of infection were analyzed. Non-albicans species were associated with a significantly longer length of stay postdiagnosis (P=0.03), as well as longer treatment (P=0.02). Candida albicans was associated with a higher number of antihypotensive medications required (P=0.03) and length of mechanical ventilation postdiagnosis (P=0.05). Candida tropicalis was associated with the highest mortality (45.5%). Hypotension, which was found to be significantly associated with concurrent infection, was significantly associated with increased risk of mortality (odds ratio =5.85, P=0.005). Initial choice of antifungal therapy was not associated with differences in eventual patient mortality. Multivariate logistic regression modeling revealed a trend toward C. albicans infection in patients receiving antineoplastic chemotherapy and non-albicans infection in patients with >96 hours mechanical ventilation. Conclusion Interspecies differences may exist for Candida in terms of disease severity and risk factors. Underlying morbidity and the role of concurrent infections may play a key role in poor outcomes.
Do Speakers Avoid Ambiguities During Dialogue?

What affects speakers' production of ambiguous utterances in dialogue? They might consider ease of production for themselves, or ease of comprehension for their addressees. Previous research has demonstrated that ease of production plays a role in speakers' syntactic choices, but that ease of comprehension does not. However, such studies have not employed dialogues that involve role swapping on a turn-by-turn basis. In our experiment, participants alternated in giving and following instructions to move objects around on a grid. They tended to repeat the syntactic form just used by their interlocutor, reflecting sensitivity to ease of production. More interestingly, they were more likely to disambiguate their utterances when the visual context was potentially ambiguous than when it was not, reflecting sensitivity to ease of comprehension. We conclude that speakers pay attention to their beliefs about their addressees' ease of comprehension, in addition to considering ease of production for themselves.
Six-month polyol chewing-gum programme in kindergarten-age children: a feasibility study focusing on mutans streptococci and dental plaque.

AIM To investigate the use of polyol-containing chewing gums in a day-care centre (kindergarten) setting as a means to affect the growth of mutans streptococci and dental plaque. DESIGN Over a period of six months, 123 five-year-old children chewed xylitol (X group), sorbitol (G group), or did not chew gum (C group). Consumption of xylitol, and sorbitol was 4.5 to 5.0 g per day and subjects consumed in five supervised daily chewing episodes four at the day-care centres and one at home. METHODS Interproximal dental plaque was sampled at baseline and after six months for a laboratory study of mutans streptococci counts. The Quigley & Hein plaque index procedure was used. Interviews and questionnaires elucidated the acceptability of the programme. RESULTS Parents and kindergarten personnel regarded the programme as an important, additional procedure to promote better oral health. The children regarded the use of chewing gum as a pleasurable experience. Compared with groups G and C, there was a statistically significant reduction of mutans streptococci in the interproximal plaque in the X group. The Quigley & Hein plaque index scores tended to decrease in the X group, while no such trend was observed in the G group. CONCLUSIONS Habitual use of relatively small daily quantities of polyol-containing chewing gum by young children may be regarded as an important additional caries-preventive procedure in a combined day-care centre and home setting. Especially xylitol-containing chewing gum may significantly reduce the growth of mutans streptococci and dental plaque which may be associated with dental caries.
The Impact of Chronic Pain Patients' Psychotropic Drug Knowledge and Warning Labels on the Decision Whether to Drive a Car or Not

Objective. The attitudes of patients towards driving a car while taking medication with psychotropic side effects is unclear. A growing number of patients use these psychotropic medicines on a daily basis, and this may interfere with their ability to drive a car. Methods. By means of a survey, we examined attitudes towards driving while using psychotropic medicinal drugs and the effect of warning labels on the decision whether to drive a car or not in patients with chronic pain. Results. Fifty-eight of 100 patients possessing a driver's license used psychotropic medication. Despite warning labels affixed on the packages that these drugs might impair driving ability, the majority (71%) of these patients continued driving a car. A point of concern is that 40% of these patients reported not to be more cautious in traffic after taking psychotropic drugs. Conclusion. The results of this survey indicate that drug warning labels applied by Dutch pharmacies do not significantly change attitudes towards driving a car in patients taking medicinal drugs with psychotropic side effects. Future road-safety campaigns should pay more attention to the impairing effects of psychotropic drugs on driving.
Differential Heparin Sensitivity of α-Dystroglycan Binding to Laminins Expressed in Normal and dy/dy Mouse Skeletal Muscle*

The α-dystroglycan binding properties of laminins extracted from fully differentiated skeletal muscle were characterized. We observed that the laminins expressed predominantly in normal adult rat or mouse skeletal muscle bound α-dystroglycan in a Ca2+-dependent, ionic strength-sensitive, but heparin-insensitive manner as we had observed previously with purified placental merosin (Pall, E. A., Bolton, K. M., and Ervasti, J. M. 1996 J. Biol. Chem. 271, 3817–3821). Rat skeletal muscle laminins partially purified by heparin-agarose affinity chromatography also bound α-dystroglycan without sensitivity to heparin. We also confirm previous studies of dystrophicdy/dy mouse skeletal muscle showing that the α2 chain of merosin is reduced markedly and that the laminin α1 chain is not up-regulated detectably. However, we further observed a quantitative decrease in the expression of laminin β/γ chain immunoreactivity in α2 chain-deficient dy/dy skeletal muscle and reduced α-dystroglycan binding activity in laminin extracts fromdy/dy muscle. Most interestingly, the α-dystroglycan binding activity of residual laminins expressed in merosin-deficientdy/dy skeletal muscle was inhibited dramatically (69 ± 19%) by heparin. These results identify a potentially important biochemical difference between the laminins expressed in normal anddy/dy skeletal muscle which may provide a molecular basis for the inability of other laminin variants to compensate fully for the deficiency of merosin in some forms of muscular dystrophy.
The identification of severity ranges for the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale

Abstract Objective: The present study established severity cut-off scores for the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) based on a widely used depression symptom severity measure, the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). Background: The EPDS is a widely used screening tool to identify clinically significant levels of depression in postpartum women. Traditionally, an EPDS cut-off score is used to identify probable depression. This dichotomisation of postpartum women into depressed vs. non-depressed groups fails to account for valuable information regarding the variability in symptom severity among those in the depressed group. The identification of depression severity ranges (e.g. mild, moderate or severe) for the EPDS would provide incremental information regarding level of depression, which in turn, could inform treatment referrals. Methods: A sample of 1516 postpartum women completed the EPDS and the BDI. Equipercentile linking was used to develop concordance between EPDS and BDI scores, and severity ranges were established by identifying EPDS scores that corresponded to established severity ranges on the BDI. Results: The following severity ranges were established for the EPDS: none or minimal depression (0–6), mild depression (7–13), moderate depression (14–19), and severe depression (19–30). Conclusion: Postpartum women experience a wide range of depression severity. The establishment of severity ranges for EPDS scores may guide treatment referrals. Although the study sample size was large, only a limited number of women scored in the severe range of depression symptoms. Replication in a larger sample of depressed women is an important direction for future research.
Body Mass Index and Pediatric Asthma Outcomes

Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine the association between body mass index (BMI), a measure of obesity, with emergency department admission rate in children with asthma. Methods: This was a prospective study in a tertiary care, urban pediatric emergency department. Treating physicians and academic associates enrolled subjects during June 2005 to April 2008. Eligible subjects with documented weight and height were between ages 6 and 18 years with chief complaint of wheezing. We compared admission rates between overweight children (BMI, ≥85% percentile) and nonoverweight children (BMI, <85% percentile). Data were expressed as mean (SD). Group comparisons were made by Student t test or Fisher exact test, as appropriate. All tests were 2-tailed with an &agr; set at 0.05. Result: We studied 183 children, where 108 children were classified overweight. Demographic differences (mean age, male sex, and African-American race) between overweight and nonoverweight children were not statistically significant. In addition, changes in asthma outcome measures (inpatient admissions during the previous year, asthma visits in the last 30 days, and missed school days in the last 30 days) were not statistically significant. Only household tobacco use approached statistical significance (P = 0.07). The admission rate for nonoverweight children was 9.3% (95% confidence interval [CI], 4.3-18.3) compared with the 10.2% (95% CI, 5.6-17.5) for overweight children; a P = 1.0 was equivalent. Conclusions: Body mass index, a method to quantify overweight children, failed to predict admission of children with ambulatory asthma who presented to the pediatric emergency department.
Optical Imaging of Neuronal Activity and Visualization of Fine Neural Structures in Non-Desheathed Nervous Systems

Locating circuit neurons and recording from them with single-cell resolution is a prerequisite for studying neural circuits. Determining neuron location can be challenging even in small nervous systems because neurons are densely packed, found in different layers, and are often covered by ganglion and nerve sheaths that impede access for recording electrodes and neuronal markers. We revisited the voltage-sensitive dye RH795 for its ability to stain and record neurons through the ganglion sheath. Bath-application of RH795 stained neuronal membranes in cricket, earthworm and crab ganglia without removing the ganglion sheath, revealing neuron cell body locations in different ganglion layers. Using the pyloric and gastric mill central pattern generating neurons in the stomatogastric ganglion (STG) of the crab, Cancer borealis, we found that RH795 permeated the ganglion without major residue in the sheath and brightly stained somatic, axonal and dendritic membranes. Visibility improved significantly in comparison to unstained ganglia, allowing the identification of somata location and number of most STG neurons. RH795 also stained axons and varicosities in non-desheathed nerves, and it revealed the location of sensory cell bodies in peripheral nerves. Importantly, the spike activity of the sensory neuron AGR, which influences the STG motor patterns, remained unaffected by RH795, while desheathing caused significant changes in AGR activity. With respect to recording neural activity, RH795 allowed us to optically record membrane potential changes of sub-sheath neuronal membranes without impairing sensory activity. The signal-to-noise ratio was comparable with that previously observed in desheathed preparations and sufficiently high to identify neurons in single-sweep recordings and synaptic events after spike-triggered averaging. In conclusion, RH795 enabled staining and optical recording of neurons through the ganglion sheath and is therefore both a good anatomical marker for living neural tissue and a promising tool for studying neural activity of an entire network with single-cell resolution.
The effect of brief intrascleral or episcleral application of mitomycin C on the ciliary epithelium and pressure in the rabbit eye

Abstract. Ten albino rabbits underwent bilateral Cairns' trabeculectomy (group 1). A sponge soaked with 0.5 mg/ml mitomycin C solution was applied under the scleral flap for 5 min followed by irrigation with 20 ml 0.9% sodium chloride solution in the left eyes. In the right eyes a sponge soaked with 0.9% sodium chloride solutions was applied. In 9 albino rabbits a 3 times 2 mm episcleral area at 12 o'clock position was exposed to 0.5 mg/ml mitomycin C solution on one side and to 0.9% sodium chloride solution in the contralateral eye (group 2). Five, 10 and 30 days (group 1 and 2) and 3 months (group 1) following surgery specimens of the ciliary body adjacent, beside and opposite to the site of the operation were excised and studied with light and electron microscopy. No stromal or epithelial morphological changes of toxic origin have been revealed in the ciliary processes, even in specimens adjacent to the surgical area. In 5 albino rabbits (group 3) intraocular pressure was recorded before surgery and 5, 10 and 30 days after unilateral, episcleral mitomycin C application described in group 2. No significant changes or interocular difference has been recorded. The results suggest that long‐term postoperative hypotony following trabeculectomy with mitomycin C is not caused by reduced aqueous humour secretion of toxic origin.
A Vibrotactile and Plantar Force Measurement-Based Biofeedback System: Paving the Way towards Wearable Balance-Improving Devices

Although biofeedback systems have been used to improve balance with success, they were confined to hospital training applications. Little attempt has been made to investigate the use of in-shoe plantar force measurement and wireless technology to turn hospital training biofeedback systems into wearable devices. This research developed a wearable biofeedback system which detects body sway by analyzing the plantar force and provides users with the corresponding haptic cues. The effects of this system were evaluated in thirty young and elderly subjects with simulated reduced foot sensation. Subjects performed a Romberg test under three conditions: (1) no socks, system turned-off; (2) wearing five layers of socks, system turned-off; (3) wearing five layers of socks, and system turned-on. Degree of body sway was investigated by computing the center of pressure (COP) movement measured by a floor-mounted force platform. Plantar tactile sensation was evaluated using a monofilament test. Wearing multiple socks significantly decreased the plantar tactile sensory input (p < 0.05), and increased the COP parameters (p < 0.017), indicating increased postural sway. After turning on the biofeedback system, the COP parameters decreased significantly (p < 0.017). The positive results of this study should inspire future development of wearable plantar force-based biofeedback systems for improving balance in people with sensory deficits.
A multivariate analysis of the risk of cytomegalovirus infection in heart transplant recipients.

Thirty-four consecutive heart transplant recipients were studied over a two-year period for evidence of cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection. Twenty-three episodes of CMV infection were identified; 19 of these occurred within 120 d after transplantation and were statistically analyzed. Fifteen potential risk factors were evaluated, including the following: pretransplant CMV serological status of donor and recipient; recipient's age, sex, race, and cardiac disease; number and type of blood products transfused; type and intensity of immunosuppression; occurrence of rejection; and leukopenia. The Cox proportional hazards model identified both greater than average steroid dosage and positive recipient CMV serology as significant risk factors for CMV infection (P = .014 and .048, respectively). In a separate analysis, however, only greater than average steroid dosage was associated with clinically significant CMV infection (P = .005).
Neural mechanisms for bilateral force asymmetry during supine lower limb extensions in neurologically intact individuals and individuals with post -stroke hemiparesis

Previous research suggests that individuals use a sense of effort, more than proprioceptive feedback, to gauge force production in their upper limbs. We have adopted an isometric force matching task to determine if force asymmetry between lower limbs during bilateral force production results from a neural mechanism related to sense of effort. We hypothesized that subjects attempting to produce equal foot reaction forces would generate equal percentages of their bilateral maximum voluntary strength rather than equal absolute forces. Ten subjects performed isometric lower limb extensions on an exercise machine. Subjects attempted to match forces in their lower limbs at three different submaximal levels (20, 40, and 60% of their weaker limb peak force during bilateral maximum voluntary contraction). Subjects received visual feedback of only the target and stronger limb force. Results showed that subjects consistently produced less force in their weaker limb during all force matching levels when normalized to their unilateral maximum voluntary contraction force (ANOVAs 20% P = 0.0473, 40% P = 0.0012, 60% P = 0.0007). As predicted by our hypothesis, normalizing force magnitudes by bilateral maximum voluntary