Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Robust local intervertebral disc alignment for spinal MRI

Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging is frequently used to diagnose abnormalities in the spinal intervertebral discs. Owing to the non-isotropic resolution of typical MR spinal scans, physicians prefer to align the scanner plane with the disc in order to maximize the diagnostic value and to facilitate comparison with prior and follow-up studies. Commonly a planning scan is acquired of the whole spine, followed by a diagnostic scan aligned with selected discs of interest. Manual determination of the optimal disc plane is tedious and prone to operator variation. A fast and accurate method to automatically determine the disc alignment can decrease examination time and increase the reliability of diagnosis. We present a validation study of an automatic spine alignment system for determining the orientation of intervertebral discs in MR studies. In order to measure the effectiveness of the automatic alignment system, we compared its performance with human observers. 12 MR spinal scans of adult spines were tested. Two observers independently indicated the intervertebral plane for each disc, and then repeated the procedure on another day, in order to determine the inter- and intra-observer variability associated with manual alignment. Results were also collected for the observers utilizing the automatic spine alignment system, in order to determine the method's consistency and its accuracy with respect to human observers. We found that the results from the automatic alignment system are comparable with the alignment determined by human observers, with the computer showing greater speed and consistency.
The Effects of Auditory Bandwidth and Spatial Congruence on Early Audiovisual Interactions Appendix A: Average Erp's from Six Electrodes over Fronto-central Scalp ........ 69 List of Figures

Research suggests that audiovisual (AV) stimuli can result in cross-modal interactions during early visual processing stages. But only a couple of investigations have begun to uncover the systematic principles underlying these interactions. Therefore, this study attempts to determine whether these interactions are sensitive to the spectral characteristics of auditory stimuli, or the spatial congruence of the (AV) stimulus. And lastly, this study investigated whether these early AV interactions occur when the AV stimulus is not task-relevant. Therefore, participants performed a task on the fixation cross, while auditory, visual, or audiovisual stimuli were presented. Meanwhile Eventrelated potentials (ERPs) were recorded. The auditory and visual components of the AV stimulus could be spatially congruent or spatially incongruent. Moreover, the auditory component of the AV stimulus was either a white noise, or a pure tone. ERP’s induced by auditory and visual stimuli alone were added together, creating a ‘sum’ waveform. the ‘sum’ waveform was compared to the ERP induced by AV stimuli, referred to as the ‘simultaneous’ waveform. AV interactions were quantified by a significant amplitude difference between these two ERP waveforms. The spatially congruent white noise produced a significant cross-modal interaction over occipital scalp between 84 and 104 ms, which coincided with the visual C1 component. Moreover, the spatially congruent pure tone produced a significant cross-modal interaction over parieto-occipital scalp between 98 and 114 ms. This interaction coincided with the early part of the visual P1 component. Spatially incongruent AV stimuli did not produce any early cross modal interactions. The results suggest that pure tones and white noises interact differently with early visual processing. Moreover, spatially incongruent AV stimuli may not produce interactions within the early stages visual processing. Finally, while task-relevance was not manipulated experimentally, these results suggest that task-irrelevant stimuli may interact within the early stages of visual processing.
Examining the effect of cultural differences measuring with cultural intelligence scale (cqs) on employees job satisfaction in multi-cultural companies

In recent years, multiculturalism and management of cultural differences issues have begun to gain importance with globalization process and these issues become to two of main research topics in literature. These topics especially have associated with the cultural intelligence which has become the focus of much research. Within the framework of these issues, this study was conducted with an aim to examine the effect of cultural differences on job satisfaction in MNCs with cultural intelligence subscales. With this purpose, the survey was prepared which comprised of three parts (demographical questions, Cultural Intelligence Scale (CQS) questions and Minnesota Job Satisfaction Scale questions). The survey of this study was conducted on 100 employees working in different firms operating in different industries in Turkey. The obtained data from the questionnaires were analyzed through the SPSS statistical packaged software. The analyses results revealed that both dimensions of cultural intelligence had effect on all dimensions of job satisfaction.
Journal of Internet Banking and Commerce an Empirical Study on Service Quality Perceptions and Continuance Intention in Mobile Banking Context in India

He has completed his doctoral program from PSG institute of Management, Coimbatore under Anna University of Technology, Coimbatore. His areas of interest are Service quality in banking context, Model development and analysis etc. Abstract This paper examines the factors influencing the continuance decisions of the early adopters of m-banking services in Kerala, India. The study was designed in the-2-backdrop of the issues faced by the banks to attract more customers irrespective of the huge mobile penetration in the country. The study used constructs adopted from Technology Acceptance Model along with constructs of perceived service quality, perceived credibility and perceived risk to empirically establish the influence on satisfaction and continuance usage intentions. The study could find strong linkage between perceived service quality, satisfaction and continuance intentions. The study also confirmed that after adoption of the technology, the customer finds satisfaction in the quality parameters of the service. Perceptions about the risks involved in m-banking had adverse impact on service quality and satisfaction. Continuance intentions were found solely dependent on satisfaction in the m-banking context in Kerala.
Functioning and participation problems of students with ADHD in higher education: which reasonable accommodations are effective?

Abstract Students with ADHD struggle in higher education as a result of various functioning and participation problems. However, there are remaining gaps in the literature. First, it remains unclear how often and during which teaching and evaluation methods problems arise. Second, we do not yet know which reasonable accommodations are most effective to deal with the functioning. And third, we do not know which accommodations are most effective to address participation problems of students with ADHD in higher education. This study addresses these three gaps in literature. In total, 86 students with ADHD, 42 student counsellors and 86 students without a disability participated in a survey-based study. The results show that students with ADHD most frequently experience problems with sustaining and focusing attention and it is demonstrated that most problems arise during classical teaching or evaluation methods. Finally, the perception of the effectiveness of reasonable accommodations is strongly dependent on which problems students experience in higher education. These findings suggest that it is important to consider both personal and environmental characteristics when selecting and implementing reasonable accommodations.
A computational study of high speed droplet impact

When a droplet impacts a solid surface at high speed, the contact pe- riphery expands very quickly and liquid compressibility plays an important role in the initial dynamics and the formation of lateral jets. The high speed impact results in high pressures that can account for the surface erosion. In this study, we nu- merically investigated a high speed droplet impacts on a solid wall. The multicom- ponent Euler equations with the stiffened equation of state are computed using a FV-WENO scheme with an HLLC Riemann solver that accurately captures shocks and interfaces. In order to compare the available theories and experiments, 1D, 2D and axisymmetric solutions are obtained. The generated pressures, shock speeds, and differences in the dimensionality are investigated. In addition, the effect of target compliance is evaluated.
Ecological Combining Ability and Competitive Combining Ability in Plants: Toward a General Evolutionary Theory of Coexistence in Systems of Competition

The common assumption that species coexistence in nature can be generally explained by processes of natural selection for niche differentiation does not have strong empirical support for plants. The meaning of competitive ability has traditionally been embedded within an Eltonian view of the niche. In particular reference to plants, however, a true distinction between the meanings of niche and competitive ability is established based on the premise that for one species to competitively exclude another, two distinct conditions must be satisfied: (1) There must be a sufficient degree of overlap in the niche requirements of the two species; and (2) one species must be sufficiently superior at reducing the availability of resources to the other. Following these considerations an evolutionary theory of coexistence is proposed involving two alternative mechanisms based on a broader interpretation of the operation of natural selection in systems of competition than previously recognized. Competitive exclusion may be avoided either if natural selection results in niche differentiation (selection for ecological combining ability), or if reciprocal selection maintains a balance of competitive abilities (selection for competitive combining ability). Competitive combining ability, although previously overlooked, has wide applicability to plants for which coexistence frequently is explained incompletely by ecological combining ability. The main argument is as follows: All biological attributes of a species will play a part in determining its niche requirements on the one hand, and its relative competitive ability for those requirements on the other. Given the assumption that niche requirements generally overlap broadly in plants, I propose that coexistence is permitted because there are numerous possible permutations and combinations of biological attributes in plants which are roughly equivalent in the overall competitive power which they confer. In selection for competitive combining ability, these attribute complexes are continually adjusted in an ongoing process of coevolution in which local neighborhoods are constantly engaged in a fine-tuning process that alters the way members respond to one another. Consequently, natural selection ultimately maintains a balance of overall relative competitive abilities between two species for essentially the same contested resources. I discuss the relevance of this mechanism and its relationship to other theories and concepts associated with coexistence in contexts of competition. It is proposed that, in nature, selection for ecological combining ability and selection for competitive combining ability operate in concert, and this provides reconciliation of the contradiction in theory between convergent adaptation to a common habitat and divergent adaptation to other members of the community.
Anisotropic Patterning to Reduce Instability of Concentric-Tube Robots

As a steerable needle or robotic manipulator, the concentric-tube robot shows good potential for use in minimally invasive medical procedures. However, the torsional deformation of the precurved tubes comes at the price of instability, which not only limits the workspace and tool path but also potentially creates danger of tissue rupture when external load is applied. In this paper, we propose anisotropic patterning of tubes to solve the instability problem. Hole-patterning can tune the mechanical properties of the tubes so that the ratio of the torsional rigidity to the bending rigidity becomes higher. This study investigates the effect of pattern design parameters by building a lumped analytical model and examining it with finite-element analysis. The pattern is engraved via laser machining and we experimentally verify that material anisotropy reduces instability.
Exact Circuit Synthesis

In this paper we present an exact algorithm for nding a minimal circuit for a given Boolean function. The algorithm is based on graph enumeration and makes use of several pruning techniques to reduce the huge search space. It can handle not only single output but also multiple output functions. The exact netlists obtained are compared to circuits determined by SIS, a state-of-the-art synthesis tool. It turns out that the results can be improved up to 40% also on small examples. Logic synthesis is one of the most important steps in the design process of ICs. Many heuristic synthesis approaches for circuit design have been proposed in the past for two-level and multi-level synthesis 1, 7, 8, 6]. While for two-level realizations powerful tools for exact minimization have been developed 2], exact multi-level optimization has only been considered in the 1960s 4, 3]. But these approaches were of limited practical interest, since they were only applicable to very small functions. However, meanwhile the computational power of modern workstations and the knowledge in eecient data structures has extremely increased. For this reason, exact circuit synthesis becomes an interesting topic again. In this paper we present an extension of the approach described in 3]: A circuit is considered as a directed acyclic graph. Basically, all possible graphs are enumerated, but in our approach we make use of a clever pruning technique that considers several constraints, i.e. topology of the network, functional behavior, symmetry, and library-speciic constraints. Based on these principles and an eecient backtracking method networks with up to 12 gates can be minimized exactly. Extension to optimization not only to area, but also delay are discussed. Furthermore, in contrast to 3] the algorithm can deal with arbitrary libraries (not only NAND gates). Analogously to 5], we merge logic optimization and mapping. However, our approach guarantees optimality of the solution. 2 PRELIMINARIES In general, a Combinational Logic Circuit (CLC) is deened over a xed library and is modeled as a directed acyclic graph C = (V; E) with some additional properties. Very often a standard library (STD) consisting of primary input (PI) and output ports (PO), the 2-input, 1-output AND and OR gates and the 1-input, 1-output inverter NOT is used. NANDg is used, where NAND denotes the 2-input, 1-output NAND gate. Also other (more complex) libraries can be considered. Deenition 1 An exact CLC over library Lib for a given Boolean …
System Description and First Light Curves of the Hungarian Automated Telescope, an Autonomous Observatory for Variability Search

Having been operational at Kitt Peak for more than a year, the prototype (HAT‐1) of the Hungarian Automated Telescope (HAT) has been used for an all‐sky variability search of the northern hemisphere. This small autonomous observatory is recording the brightness of stars in the range of IC ≈ 6–13 mag with a telephoto lens and its 9° × 9° field of view, yielding a data rate of ∼106 photometric measurements per night. We give brief hardware and software descriptions of the system, controlled by a single PC running RealTime Linux OS. We provide an overview of site‐specific details and quantify the astrometric and photometric capabilities of HAT. As a demonstration of system performance, we give a sample of 60 short‐period variables in a single selected field, all bright, with I<13 mag, where only 14 were known before. Depending on the observing strategy, a search for extrasolar planet transits is also a feasible observing program. We conclude with a short discussion on future directions. Further information can be found at the HAT Web page.
Assessing Mobile Learning Readiness in Saudi Arabia Higher Education: An Empirical Study.

Mobile learning has been introduced for quite some time now at Taif University. However, there is no research conducted to measure the readiness of mobile learning within its context. As such, the aim of this study is to assess the lecturers’ readiness for mobile learning in higher education in terms of perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use. A total of 140 lecturers were collected from the faculty of education using online survey. A five-point Likert scale that demonstrated degrees of agreement (from strongly disagree to strongly agree) was applied to capture the lecturers’ perceptions on their readiness for mobile learning. The instrument validity was conducted using factor analysis. A multiple regression model demonstrated that all predictors accounted for 60.9% of the variation. The findings showed that perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness are the valid predictors of assessing lecturers’ readiness for mobile learning in higher education. Therefore, it was concluded that perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use have a significant impact on readiness for mobile learning.
Nanopharmaceuticals (part 1): products on the market

In 2000, the National Institute of Health launched the National Nanotechnology Initiative to support, coordinate, and advance research and development of nanoscale projects. The impact of this new program on health-science related research and development became quickly visible. Broad governmental financial support advanced the start of new, and the deepening of already existing, interdisciplinary research. The anticipated merger of nanoscience with medicine quickly instigated the conceptualization of nanomedicine. The adoption of nanoscience terminology by pharmaceutical scientists resulted in the advent of nanopharmaceuticals. The term “nano” became tantamount to “cutting-edge” and was quickly embraced by the pharmaceutical science community. Colloidal drug delivery systems reemerged as nanodrug delivery systems; colloidal gold became a suspension of nano gold particles. In this review, we first review nanoscience related definitions applied to pharmaceuticals, we then discuss all 43 currently approved drug formulations which are publicized as nanopharmaceuticals, and finally we analyze clinical aspects of selected drug formulations.
A Possible Link between Supra-Second Open-Ended Timing Sensitivity and Obsessive-Compulsive Tendencies

One of the main characteristics of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is the persistent feeling of uncertainty, affecting many domains of actions and feelings. It was recently hypothesized that OCD uncertainty is related to attenuated access to internal states. As supra-second timing is associated with bodily and interoceptive awareness, we examined whether supra-second timing would be associated with OC tendencies. We measured supra-second (~9 s) and sub-second (~450 ms) timing along with control non-temporal perceptual tasks in a group of 60 university students. Supra-second timing was measured either with fixed criterion tasks requiring to temporally discriminate between two predefined fixed interval durations (9 vs. 9.9 s), or with an open-ended task requiring to discriminate between 9 s and longer intervals which were of varying durations that were not a priori known to the participants. The open-ended task employed an adaptive Bayesian procedure that efficiently estimated the duration difference required to discriminate 9 s from longer intervals. We also assessed symptoms of OCD, depression, and anxiety. Open-ended supra-second temporal sensitivity was correlated with OC tendencies, as predicted (even after controlling for depression and anxiety), whereas the other tasks were not. Higher OC tendencies were associated with lower timing sensitivity to 9 s intervals such that participants with higher OC tendency scores required longer interval differences to discriminate 9 s from longer intervals. While these results need to be substantiated in future research, they suggest that open-ended timing tasks, as those encountered in real-life (e.g., estimating how long it would take to complete a task), might be adversely affected in OCD.
A Practical Sampling Strategy for Efficient Retrieval Evaluation

We consider the problem of large-scale retrieval evaluation, with a focus on the considerable effort required to judge tens of thousands of documents using traditional test collection construction methodologies. Recently, two methods based on random sampling were proposed to help alleviate this burden: While the first method proposed by Aslam et al. is very accurate and efficient, it is also very complex, and while the second method proposed by Yilmaz et al. is relatively simple, its accuracy and efficiency are significantly lower than the former. In this work, we propose a new method for large-scale retrieval evaluation based on random sampling which combines the strengths of each of the above methods: it maintains the simplicity of the Yilmaz et al. method while achieving the performance of the Aslam et al. method. Furthermore, we demonstrate that this new sampling method can be adapted to incorporate both randomly sampled and fixed relevance judgments, as were available in the most recent TREC Terabyte track, for example.
Thyroglobulin mRNA quantification in the peripheral blood is not a reliable marker for the follow-up of patients with differentiated thyroid cancer.

BACKGROUND The detection of serum thyroglobulin (Tg) by immunoassay is widely used to detect residual, recurring or metastatic thyroid carcinoma tIssue in patients with differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) after total thyroidectomy and radioiodine therapy. However, this method requires thyroid hormone withdrawal to increase sensitivity and is limited by the interference of anti-Tg antibodies. To solve these problems, the detection of Tg mRNA from circulating thyroid cells by reverse transcription (RT)-PCR has been suggested as an alternative method. However, different previous reports show discrepant conclusions as to the clinical usefulness of Tg mRNA quantification. METHODS We compared three methods of blood collection and RNA extraction, and quantified Tg mRNA (by real time RT-PCR) in the peripheral blood of a) probands without thyroid disease (n=42), patients with b) thyroid autonomy (n=15), c) Graves' disease (n=22), d) euthyroid goiter (n=6), and in DTC-patients after thyroidectomy and radioiodine therapy e) with (n=16) and f) without (n=37) metastasis. As the use of citrate blood in combination with a subsequent separation of mononuclear cells showed a significantly better RNA yield than the extraction of RNA from EDTA or citrate blood without the separation of mononuclear cells, this was the method used. Total RNA was reverse transcribed with random hexamer primers and Tg mRNA was amplified by real time RT-PCR using specific primers and hybridization probes. The Tg mRNA concentrations were normalized to beta-actin mRNA concentrations. RESULTS Mean circulating Tg mRNA for each group detailed above, expressed as the ratio of Tg to beta-actin concentrations x 1000, were: a) 2.3 (range 0.03-70.89), b) 0.25 (range 0.02-0.55), c) 0.31 (range 0.05-1.36), d) 0.18 (range 0.08-0.35), e) 0.57 (range 0.03-3.03) and f) 0.17 (range 0.02-0.60). Furthermore, we found no correlation between serum Tg and Tg mRNA. CONCLUSIONS In summary, our data do not show significant differences in Tg mRNA expression between the investigated groups. Therefore, the detection and quantification of Tg mRNA in peripheral blood is unlikely to be suitable for the follow-up of DTC.