Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
PROPELLER MRI: Clinical testing of a novel technique for quantification and compensation of head motion

While head motion is considered a significant problem in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), there is no data to quantify its extent, severity, or effect on image quality. PROPELLER (Periodically Rotated Overlapping ParallEL Lines with Enhanced Reconstruction) MRI offers a novel means of quantifying and compensating for head motion. We performed axial T2‐weighted PROPELLER (motion corrected: P‐CR; uncorrected: P‐UNCR) and conventional MRI (CONV), with equal scan times, in five normal volunteers and 35 clinical subjects. Volunteers were examined lying still and performing two separate head movements (shake “no” and nod “yes”) to assess detection and compensation of in‐plane motion by PROPELLER MRI. Images were examined by three radiologists for motion artifact and for overall image quality. Head rotation and translation was detected in all subjects during each slice acquisition, with expected changes occurring with volunteer head motion. Motion artifact was less commonly seen on PROPELLER than CONV MR (χ2 test P < 0.001). PROPELLER was preferred over CONV in all subjects (P < 0.05) and P‐CR was judged superior to P‐UNCR (P = 0.02). Intracranial pathology was equally or better demonstrated with PROPELLER. PROPELLER MRI offers a means of quantifying head motion, reducing motion artifact, and improving image quality. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2001;14:215–222. © 2001 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Metagenomic analysis of the rumen microbial community following inhibition of methane formation by a halogenated methane analog

Japanese goats fed a diet of 50% Timothy grass and 50% concentrate with increasing levels of the anti-methanogenic compound, bromochloromethane (BCM) were investigated with respect to the microbial population and functional shifts in the rumen. Microbial ecology methods identified species that exhibited positive and negative responses to the increasing levels of BCM. The methane-inhibited rumen appeared to adapt to the higher H2 levels by shifting fermentation to propionate which was mediated by an increase in the population of H2-consuming Prevotella and Selenomonas spp. Metagenomic analysis of propionate production pathways was dominated by genomic content from these species. Reductive acetogenic marker gene libraries and metagenomics analysis indicate that reductive acetogenic species do not play a major role in the BCM treated rumen.
Validating the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health Comprehensive Core Set for Rheumatoid Arthritis from the patient perspective: a qualitative study.

OBJECTIVE To validate the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) Comprehensive Core Set for Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) from the patient perspective. METHODS Patients with RA were interviewed about their problems in daily functioning. Interviews were tape recorded and transcribed verbatim. Interview texts were divided into meaning units. The concepts contained in these meaning units were linked to the ICF according to 10 established linking rules. Of the transcribed data, 15% were analyzed and linked by a second health professional. The degree of agreement was calculated using the kappa statistic. RESULTS Twenty-one patients were interviewed. Two hundred twenty different concepts contained in 367 meaning units were identified in the qualitative analysis of the interviews and linked to 109 second-level ICF categories. Of the 76 second-level categories from the ICF RA Core Set, 63 (83%) were also found in the interviews. Twenty-five second-level categories, which are not part of the current ICF RA Core Set, were identified in the interviews. The result of the kappa statistic for agreement was 0.62 (95% boot-strapped confidence interval 0.59-0.66). CONCLUSION The validity of the ICF RA Core Set was supported by the perspective of individual patients. However, some additional issues raised in this study but not covered in the current ICF RA Core Set need to be investigated.
Levels of quinolone resistance in Escherichia coli from faecal flora of pigs

La resistance aux antibiotiques est actuellement un sujet de preoccupation majeur a la fois en medecine humaine et en medecine veterinaire. Cette etude a pour objectif de decrire les niveaux de resistance aux quinolones observes sur des souches d'une bacterie indicatrice de la flore fecale, Escherichia coli. Les isolats bacteriens etudies proviennent de truies et porcs charcutiers presents dans des elevages ou les truies sont regulierement traitees avec de la flumequine. Apres evaluation de la resistance aux antibiotiques par la methode de l'antibiogramme standard, 114 souches ont ete selectionnees car resistantes aux quinolones avec des niveaux variables. Pour ces souches les CMI de l'acide nalidixique, la flumequine, l'enrofloxacine, la marbofloxacine et la ciprofloxacine ont ete determinees. Il est apparu que les valeurs de CMI obtenues avec la ciprofloxacine etaient significativement plus faibles que celles de l'enrofloxacine et de la marbofloxacine. De plus, la methode de l'antibiogramme standard s'est revelee interessante pour la description de la resistance aux quinolones, permettant notamment d'identifier des souches avec une sensibilite diminuee vis a vis des fluoroquinolones.
Visual hallucinations in schizophrenia: confusion between imagination and perception.

OBJECTIVE An association between hallucinations and reality-monitoring deficit has been repeatedly observed in patients with schizophrenia. Most data concern auditory/verbal hallucinations. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between visual hallucinations and a specific type of reality-monitoring deficit, namely confusion between imagined and perceived pictures. METHOD Forty-one patients with schizophrenia and 43 healthy control participants completed a reality-monitoring task. Thirty-two items were presented either as written words or as pictures. After the presentation phase, participants had to recognize the target words and pictures among distractors, and then remember their mode of presentation. RESULTS All groups of participants recognized the pictures better than the words, except the patients with visual hallucinations, who presented the opposite pattern. The participants with visual hallucinations made more misattributions to pictures than did the others, and higher ratings of visual hallucinations were correlated with increased tendency to remember words as pictures. No association with auditory hallucinations was revealed. CONCLUSIONS Our data suggest that visual hallucinations are associated with confusion between visual mental images and perception.
A ten-year assessment of anabolic steroid misuse among competitive athletes in Puerto Rico.

OBJECTIVE Little is known about anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS) misuse in the Caribbean region in spite of increased popularity among athletes and adolescents. The present study examines the usage of AAS among competitive athletes in Puerto Rico. METHODS Doping test results of competitive athletes obtained by random sampling out of competition during the 2000-2009 period were analysed. Doping tests were executed by the Centre for Sports, Health and Exercise Sciences (Albergue Olímpico, Salinas, Puerto Rico). A total of 550 athletes were monitored during 2000-2009. Information was collected with regard to competitive sport, gender and AAS compounds whenever a positive test result was encountered. RESULTS From the total sample of monitored cases during the past decade, 5.4% showed adverse analytical findings. Anabolic androgenic steroids misuse was detected among male (62%) and female (38%) athletes. Weightlifting showed the greatest percentage of positive AAS doping test results (70% of total cases) and stanozolol was the most commonly misused exogenous androgen (60% of abused AAS whether alone or as part of a cocktail). Testosterone was the most common endogenous misused steroid (10% of misused compounds). CONCLUSION In Puerto Rico, AAS misuse was detected across competitive sports for both genders. Although AAS misuse among Puerto Rican athletes shares some features that are consistent with the international sports community, it is imperative to address AAS misuse in the Caribbean region.
Comparative evaluation of three different rotary instrumentation systems for removal of gutta-percha from root canal during endodontic retreatment: An in vitro study

Context: Endodontic retreatment is performed in teeth with endodontic failures. The main goal of retreatment is cleaning and shaping of the root canal with removal of old root filling material. Hand instruments and rotary instruments are mainly used for removing this filling material. Aim of Study: To compare the relative efficacy of three rotary instrumentation systems for removal of gutta-percha from root canal during endodontic retreatment. Objective of Study: To find out which NiTi system is more efficacious in retreatment and to check out the efficacy of retreatment with and without use of solvent. Materials and Methods: Sixty freshly extracted, single-rooted human mandibular premolars were instrumented with K-files, and each root canal was filled with gutta-percha and AH Plus (Dentsply Detrey, Konstanz, Germany) sealer using lateral compaction. Specimens were then divided into three experimental groups with twenty specimens each. Groups were then subdivided into ten specimens each. Groups were then retreated either with or without solvent. The removal of gutta-percha was performed using ProTaper retreatment files, Mtwo retreatment files, and R-Endo files after 2 weeks. The amount of root canal filling material remnant in the coronal, middle, and apical thirds was measured using stereomicroscope and computer image analysis program. Statistical Analysis Used: Data were evaluated statistically using analysis of variance. Results: ProTaper group was found to have less remnant filling material as compared to the other groups in coronal and middle thirds, but a significant difference was observed between ProTaper and Mtwo and Mtwo and R-Endo in the nonsolvent groups (P < 0.05). Mtwo group demonstrated less amount of remaining filling material in the nonsolvent group. Conclusions: Both nickel–titanium systems and ProTaper and Mtwo retreatment file systems, were found to be effective in the removal of root canal filling material. However, complete removal of gutta-percha from root canals did not occur with any of the experimental groups.
The relationship between discus throwing performance and combinations of selected technical parameters

The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between discus throwing performance and the following technical parameters: hip–shoulder and shoulder–arm separation, trunk forward–backward tilt, throwing-arm elevation angles, and the absolute and relative throwing procedure phase times. Videographic data of 51 male and 53 female discus throwers' competitive performances were captured during major meets. The three-dimensional coordinates of 21 body landmarks and the discus were obtained for each thrower's best trial using direct linear transformation. The technical parameters were reduced from the three-dimensional data at six critical instants during the throwing procedure. Hierarchical stepwise multiple regression analyses were performed to determine the relative influence of linear combinations of the technical parameters on discus throwing performance. Specific techniques associated with linear combinations of certain technical parameters were identified using canonical correlations. Males and females were analysed separately. Suggestions for controlling the height of release and the vertical component of the speed of release using an effective technique are made.
Design space exploration for low-power reconfigurable fabrics

This paper presents a parameterizable, coarse grained, reconfigurable fabric model that attempts to maintain field programmable gate array (FPGA)-like programmability and computer aided design (CAD), with application specific integrated circuit (ASIC)-like power characteristics for digital signal processing (DSP) style applications. Using this model, architectural design space decisions are explored in order to define an energy-efficient fabric. The impact on energy and performance due to the variation of different parameters such as data width and interconnection flexibility has been studied. The multiplexer cardinality usage has also been studied by mapping some of the signal processing applications onto the fabric. The results point to the use of power optimized 32-bit width computational elements interconnected by low cardinality multiplexers like 4:1 multiplexers
An Empirical Investigation of Analysts ’ Objective Function

Assumptions about sell-side analysts’ objective function are critical to empirical researchers’ understanding of their incentives and the resulting behavior. This paper provides empirical evidence about the objective function underlying analysts’ choice of forecasts. In contrast to approaches used in previous papers which rely exclusively on statistical properties of forecasts, I compare theoretical models with alternate objective functions based on their ability to explain observed forecasts. A linear loss objective function which incorporates the effect future analysts’ actions on analysts’ deviation from peer forecasts is best rationalized by the data. I find that assumptions about the objective function has a substantial impact on the conclusions from empirical tests about analysts’ incentives and resulting behavior. Doctoral Candidate in Accounting, Graduate School of Business, Stanford University. E-mail: youfei.xiao@stanford.edu. I am deeply indebted to Dave Larcker and Peter Reiss for their invaluable advice. I also thank Mary Barth, Anne Beyer, Ed deHaan, Ron Dye, Mike Klausner and Stefan Reichelstein for helpful comments and discussions. Financial support from the Chartered Accountants Education Foundation and the Social Sciences and Humanities Council of Canada is gratefully acknowledged. All errors are my own.
Image and Signal Processing with Non-Gaussian Noise: EM-Type Algorithms and Adaptive Outlier Pursuit

Most of the studies of noise-induced phenomena assume that the noise source is Gaussian because of the possibility of obtaining some analytical results when working with Gaussian noises. The use of non-Gaussian noises is rare, mainly because of the difficulties in handling them. However, there is experimental evidence indicating that in many phenomena, the noise sources could be non-Gaussian, for example Poisson data and sparsely corrupted data. This thesis provides two classes of algorithms for dealing with some special types of non-Gaussian noise.Obtaining high quality images is very important in many areas of applied sciences, and the first part of this thesis is on expectation maximization (EM)-Type algorithms for image reconstruction with Poisson noise and weighted Gaussian noise. In these two chapters, we proposed general robust expectation maximization (EM)-Type algorithms for image reconstruction when the measured data is corrupted by Poisson noise and weighted Gaussian noise, without and with background emission. This method is separated into two steps: EM step and regularization step. In order to overcome the contrast reduction introduced by some regularizations, we suggested EM-Type algorithms with Bregman iteration by applying a sequence of modified EM-Type algorithms. One algorithm with total variation being the regularization is used for image reconstruction in computed tomography application.The second part of this thesis is on adaptive outlier pursuit method for sparsely corrupted data. In many real world applications, there are all kinds of errors in the measurements during data acquisition and transmission. Some errors will damage the data seriously and make the obtained data containing no information about the true signal, for example, sign flips in measurements for 1-bit compressive sensing and impulse noise in images. Adaptive outlier pursuit is used to detect the outlier and reconstruct the image or signal by iteratively reconstructing the image or signal and adaptively pursuing the outlier. Adaptive outlier pursuit method is used for robust 1-bit compressive sensing and impulse noise removal in chapters 4 and 5 respectively.
ARINC 653 hypervisor

We have developed an early prototype of an ARINC 653 implementation using the virtualization technology of the open source Xen hypervisor along with a Linux-based domain/partition OS. In this paper we share lessons learned from adding to our prototype both an ARINC 653 CPU scheduler and a simple ARINC 653 serial I/O driver. By using a common hypervisor technology on multiple platforms, early application development can be done in a PC environment with relatively good modeling of the final target's behavior. The paper covers three topics. First, we start with an overview of the ARINC 653 standard, which is important because it reduces development costs, reduces system weight, and lowers certification costs. The standard focuses on resource partitioning of time and space on an avionics computer, managing the three primary subsystems of the computer: Central Processing Unit (CPU), Memory, and Input/Output (I/O). Second, we will review virtualization technology, an established method of sharing a computing resource, considering it for adaptation to ARINC 653. Third, as a case study, we will examine our prototype implementation of the ARINC 653 standard using the Xen open source hypervisor. We conclude with a discussion of our plans for future work towards ARINC 653 simulation and development environments on both PC desktop and embedded targets.
Which of the following SPARQL Queries are Similar? Why?

Linked data on the Web can be accessed by SPARQL queries. Previously executed queries to SPARQL endpoints are valuable information sources about the underlying data structure and schema of data sources. These queries reveal how resources are related to each other and they re flect the user interests on the data. Therefore, methods for query logs analysis provides a basis for extracting relevant and qualitative data from the LOD cloud. These query logs analysis rely on similarity measures for SPARQL queries in order to determine whether a query is related to another query. However, there is no commonly agreed notion of similarity for SPARQL queries. Instead, there are several measures that not only vary computational complexity and output values, but also on their purpose. In this paper, we present a comparison and a discussion of the existing similarity measures for SPARQL queries in the literature. Our results are guidelines designed to provide guidance on the application of similarity measures for comparing SPARQL queries.
Obstructive Sleep Apnea and Diabetic Nephropathy

OBJECTIVE Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is a leading cause of end-stage renal disease (ESRD). Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is common in type 2 diabetes and increases oxidative stress. Hence, OSA could promote the development and progression of DN. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS This was a cohort study in adults with type 2 diabetes. Patients with known OSA or ESRD were excluded. DN was defined as the presence of albuminuria or an estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) <60 mL/min/1.73 m2. DN progression was based on eGFR measurements. OSA was defined as apnea hypopnea index (AHI) ≥5 events/h. Serum nitrotyrosine abundance (a marker of nitrosative stress) was measured by ELISA. RESULTS A total of 224 patients were included. OSA and DN prevalence was 64.3 and 40.2, respectively. DN prevalence was higher in patients with OSA (OSA+) compared with those without OSA (OSA−) (49.3% vs. 23.8%, P < 0.001). After adjustment, OSA (odds ratio 2.64 [95% CI 1.13–6.16], P = 0.02) remained independently associated with DN. After an average follow-up of 2.5 (0.7) years, eGFR decline was greater in OSA+ compared with OSA− patients (median −6.8% [interquartile range −16.1 to 2.2] vs. −1.6% [−7.7 to 5.3%], P = 0.002). After adjusting, both baseline OSA (B = −3.8, P = 0.044) and AHI (B = −4.6, P = 0.02) remained independent predictors of study-end eGFR. Baseline serum nitrotyrosine abundance (B = −0.24, P = 0.015) was an independent predictor of study-end eGFR after adjustment. CONCLUSIONS OSA is independently associated with DN in type 2 diabetes. eGFR declined faster in patients with OSA. Nitrosative stress may provide a pathogenetic link between OSA and DN. Interventional studies assessing the impact of OSA treatment on DN are needed.
Scalable Algorithms for CQA Post Voting Prediction

Community Question Answering (CQA) sites, such as Stack Overflow and Yahoo! Answers, have become very popular in recent years. These sites contain rich crowdsourcing knowledge contributed by the site users in the form of questions and answers, and these questions and answers can satisfy the information needs of more users. In this article, we aim at predicting the voting scores of questions/answers shortly after they are posted in the CQA sites. To accomplish this task, we identify three key aspects that matter with the voting of a post, i.e., the non-linear relationships between features and output, the question and answer coupling, and the dynamic fashion of data arrivals. A family of algorithms are proposed to model the above three key aspects. Some approximations and extensions are also proposed to scale up the computation. We analyze the proposed algorithms in terms of optimality, correctness, and complexity. Extensive experimental evaluations conducted on two real data sets demonstrate the effectiveness and efficiency of our algorithms.
Effects of Visual and Phonological Distinctiveness on Syllogistic Reasoning.

Mental models theorists (e.g., Johnson-Laird & Byrne, 1991) suggest that syllogism terms are represented in working memory as ‘abstract tokens’. However, the role that working memory sub-systems and prior knowledge play in the representation and processing of such terms is poorly specified. Two experiments are reported in which the representational distinctiveness of syllogism terms was manipulated. In Experiment 1 participants were required to evaluate the logical validity of conclusions for syllogisms whose premises contained visualisable terms (e.g., spotty or hairy), character terms (e.g., friendly or stupid), or nonsense terms (e.g., drenful or furplish). A logic x content interaction was observed, such that the effect of logic was greatest with syllogisms whose premises were visualisable and smallest with syllogisms whose premises contained nonsense terms. In Experiment 2 participants were required to evaluate conclusions for syllogisms containing either phonologically similar terms (e.g., fuds, fods and fids) or dissimilar terms (e.g., harks, paps and fids). Again, a logic x content interaction was observed such that a strong effect of logic arose with the dissimilar content, but not with the similar content. Set within a mental models framework, hypotheses are proposed to explain the importance of phonological and visuo-spatial distinctiveness in syllogistic reasoning.