Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A nationwide report on blood pressure of children and adolescents according to socioeconomic status: The CASPIAN-IV study

Background: Hypertension is a major leading factor for global burden of diseases. Blood pressure (BP) tracks from childhood to adulthood. So, it is important to investigate its aff ecting factors. In this study we aimed to compare the BP status in the Iranian pediatric population according to the socioeconomic status (SES) of their living area. Materials and Methods: In this nationwide study, a representative sample of 14,880 students, aged 6-18 years was chosen by multistage random cluster sampling from 30 provinces in Iran. Anthropometric indices and BP were measured. A validated questionnaire, including the questions of the World Health Organization Global School-based Student Health Survey was completed. Findings were compared across the four regions of the country, categorized based on their elevating SES: Southeast, north-northeast, west, and central. Results: Participants consisted of 13,486 children and adolescents, that is, a participation rate of 90.6%, composed of 49.2% girls and 75.6% urban residents. The mean (standard deviation) age of participants was 12.47 (3.36) years. The region with highest SES (central) had the lowest rate of high BP (HBP), that is, 3.0% (95% of confidence interval [CI]: 2.4-3.9), and the region with lowest SES (southeast) had the highest rate, that is, 7.4% (4.4-12.2). The mean (95% CI) values of systolic BP for the four regions from lowest to highest SES were 100.5 (99.6-101.3), 100.9 (100.3-101.4), 101.7 (101.3-102), and 101.7 (101.2-102.1) mmHg. The corresponding mean Diastolic BP values were as follows: 65.4 (64.6-66.1), 63.4 (62.9-63.8), 65.6 (65.3-65.8), and 64.4 (64.0-64.7) mmHg. Conclusion: We found significant differences in mean BP and the frequency of HBP according to the SES of the living area. Further studies are necessary to find the underlying factors resulting in such differences.
Purification and characterization of human DNA damage checkpoint Rad complexes

Checkpoint Rad proteins function early in the DNA damage checkpoint signaling cascade to arrest cell cycle progression in response to DNA damage. This checkpoint ensures the transmission of an intact genetic complement to daughter cells. To learn about the damage sensor function of the human checkpoint Rad proteins, we purified a heteropentameric complex composed of hRad17-RFCp36-RFCp37-RFCp38-RFCp40 (hRad17-RFC) and a heterotrimeric complex composed of hRad9-hHus1-hRad1 (checkpoint 9-1-1 complex). hRad17-RFC binds to DNA, with a preference for primed DNA and possesses weak ATPase activity that is stimulated by primed DNA and single-stranded DNA. hRad17-RFC forms a complex with the 9-1-1 heterotrimer reminiscent of the replication factor C/proliferating cell nuclear antigen clamp loader/sliding clamp complex of the replication machinery. These findings constitute biochemical support for models regarding the roles of checkpoint Rads as damage sensors in the DNA damage checkpoint response of human cells.
Locally adaptive wavelet-based image interpolation

We describe a spatially adaptive algorithm for image interpolation. The algorithm uses a wavelet transform to extract information about sharp variations in the low-resolution image and then implicitly applies interpolation which adapts to the image local smoothness/singularity characteristics. The proposed algorithm yields images that are sharper compared to several other methods that we have considered in this paper. Better performance comes at the expense of higher complexity.
Activities of Daily Living Associated with Acquisition of Melioidosis in Northeast Thailand: A Matched Case-Control Study

Background Melioidosis is a serious infectious disease caused by the Category B select agent and environmental saprophyte, Burkholderia pseudomallei. Most cases of naturally acquired infection are assumed to result from skin inoculation after exposure to soil or water. The aim of this study was to provide evidence for inoculation, inhalation and ingestion as routes of infection, and develop preventive guidelines based on this evidence. Methods/Principal Findings A prospective hospital-based 1∶2 matched case-control study was conducted in Northeast Thailand. Cases were patients with culture-confirmed melioidosis, and controls were patients admitted with non-infectious conditions during the same period, matched for gender, age, and diabetes mellitus. Activities of daily living were recorded for the 30-day period before onset of symptoms, and home visits were performed to obtain drinking water and culture this for B. pseudomallei. Multivariable conditional logistic regression analysis based on 286 cases and 512 controls showed that activities associated with a risk of melioidosis included working in a rice field (conditional odds ratio [cOR] = 2.1; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.4–3.3), other activities associated with exposure to soil or water (cOR = 1.4; 95%CI 0.8–2.6), an open wound (cOR = 2.0; 95%CI 1.2–3.3), eating food contaminated with soil or dust (cOR = 1.5; 95%CI 1.0–2.2), drinking untreated water (cOR = 1.7; 95%CI 1.1–2.6), outdoor exposure to rain (cOR = 2.1; 95%CI 1.4–3.2), water inhalation (cOR = 2.4; 95%CI 1.5–3.9), current smoking (cOR = 1.5; 95%CI 1.0–2.3) and steroid intake (cOR = 3.1; 95%CI 1.4–6.9). B. pseudomallei was detected in water source(s) consumed by 7% of cases and 3% of controls (cOR = 2.2; 95%CI 0.8–5.8). Conclusions/Significance We used these findings to develop the first evidence-based guidelines for the prevention of melioidosis. These are suitable for people in melioidosis-endemic areas, travelers and military personnel. Public health campaigns based on our recommendations are under development in Thailand.
Authenticated encryption and steganography in unconditional security setting

We address authenticated encryption, the cryptographic technique that simultaneously provides both confidentiality and authenticity, and steganography that hides the very existence of messages. We focus on the security of these techniques against adversaries with unbounded computational resources. First, we reveal the strong security notion of unconditionally secure authenticated encryption and show how to achieve it. Second, we study unconditionally secure stegosystems under active attacks and show how to construct them by the above mentioned unconditionally secure authenticated encryption schemes
The Design and Analysis of Dual-Delay-Path Ring Oscillators

A dual-operation-mode ring oscillator that employs dual-delay paths is presented. The two operation modes, referred to as the differential and common modes, have different output waveform characteristics and oscillation frequencies. A nonlinear model for the dual-delay-path ring oscillator and the analysis of the stability of each operation mode are proposed to confirm both simulation and measurement results. Furthermore, a method for operation-mode selection is presented. The differential four-stage dual-delay-path ring oscillator is fabricated in a 0.18-μm CMOS technology. Measurements show that the tuning ranges are from 1.77 to 1.92 GHz and from 1.01 to 1.055 GHz for differential- and common-mode operations, respectively.
Euglycemic Diabetic Ketoacidosis with Persistent Diuresis Treated with Canagliflozin

Diabetic ketoacidosis is characterized by hyperglycemia, anion-gap acidosis, and increased plasma ketones. After the resolution of hyperglycemia, persistent diuresis is rare. We herein report the case of a 27-year-old Asian woman with type 2 diabetes who was treated with a sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitor (canagliflozin) who developed euglycemic diabetic ketoacidosis and persistent diuresis in the absence of hyperglycemia. Physicians should consider euglycemic diabetic ketoacidosis in the differential diagnosis of patients treated with SGLT2 inhibitors.
Semiempirical model of positron scattering and annihilation

A two-parameter semiempirical theory of positron scattering and annihilation is developed and used to investigate the behavior of positrons interacting with the rare gases and metal vapors. The two-parameter theory is able to do a reasonable job of reproducing existing cross section and annihilation data for the rare gases. A model-potential calculation that correctly predicts the behavior of the phase shifts will also predict the energy dependence of Zeff(k) even if the magnitude is incorrect. Analysis of the Zeff versus temperature data of Kurz et al. @Phys. Rev. Lett. 77, 2929 ~1996! # suggests scattering lengths of 25.661. 0a0 , 210.362. 0a0, and 256615a0 for Ar, Kr, and Xe, respectively. Existing bound-state calculations can be used to fix the values of the semi-empirical parameters for a number of metal vapors, resulting in predicted Zeff of 119, 36, and 94 for Be, Mg, and Cu at threshold. In addition to the calculations, expressions relating the threshold form of Zeff(k) to the complex scattering length are presented.
Effects of vinblastine and 5-fluorouracil on human glioma and thyroid cancer cell monolayers and spheroids.

The effects of the two antitumor drugs vinblastine and 5-fluorouracil on the growth of the human tumor cell lines U-118 MG (glioma) and HTh-7 (thyroid cancer) were analyzed. The cells were cultured both as monolayers and as multicellular spheroids and exposed to vinblastine (0.1, 1.0, or 10 micrograms/ml) or 5-fluorouracil (10, 100, or 1000 micrograms/ml) for 15 min, 2 hr, or 24 hr. The drugs induced growth delays of the monolayers and delays in the outgrowth of cells from spheroids which were placed on cell-adhesive surfaces. Cell cultures exposed to sublethal drug doses showed a dose-dependent lag period followed by regrowth at normal growth rates. In all cases with vinblastine exposures, the spheroids seemed more resistant to the drug treatments than did the monolayer cultures. Much smaller differences were obtained after treatments with 5-fluorouracil. The three-dimensional arrangement of cells in spheroids giving rise to, e.g., nutrient and proliferation gradients may, to some extent, be responsible for the increased resistance. The spheroids were especially resistant to short treatments with vinblastine. This was probably due to penetration barriers.
In vivo targeted gene delivery to peripheral neurons mediated by neurotropic poly(ethylene imine)-based nanoparticles

A major challenge in neuronal gene therapy is to achieve safe, efficient, and minimally invasive transgene delivery to neurons. In this study, we report the use of a nonviral neurotropic poly(ethylene imine)-based nanoparticle that is capable of mediating neuron-specific transfection upon a subcutaneous injection. Nanoparticles were targeted to peripheral neurons by using the nontoxic carboxylic fragment of tetanus toxin (HC), which, besides being neurotropic, is capable of being retrogradely transported from neuron terminals to the cell bodies. Nontargeted particles and naked plasmid DNA were used as control. Five days after treatment by subcutaneous injection in the footpad of Wistar rats, it was observed that 56% and 64% of L4 and L5 dorsal root ganglia neurons, respectively, were expressing the reporter protein. The delivery mediated by HC-functionalized nanoparticles spatially limited the transgene expression, in comparison with the controls. Histological examination revealed no significant adverse effects in the use of the proposed delivery system. These findings demonstrate the feasibility and safety of the developed neurotropic nanoparticles for the minimally invasive delivery of genes to the peripheral nervous system, opening new avenues for the application of gene therapy strategies in the treatment of peripheral neuropathies.
Omega‐3 fatty acids exacerbate DSS‐induced colitis through decreased adiponectin in colonic subepithelial myofibroblasts

Background: Although the immunoregulatory effects of &ohgr;‐3 fatty acid and adiponectin have been postulated, their role in intestinal inflammation is controversial. The aim of this study was to determine whether dietary fat intake influences activity of colonic inflammation through modulating this system. Methods: C57BL/6 mice received dextran sulfate sodium for induction of colitis. Mice were fed a control diet, &ohgr;‐3 fat‐rich diet, &ohgr;‐6 fat‐rich diet, or saturated fat‐rich diet. Some mice were administered a peroxisome proliferator activated receptor‐gamma; agonist, pioglitazone. Messenger RNA expression of adiponectin and its receptors were analyzed. Adiponectin expression in colonic mucosa of ulcerative colitis patients was also analyzed. Results: The receptors for adiponectin were found to be ubiquitously expressed in epithelial cells, intraepithelial lymphocytes, lamina proprial mononuclear cells, and subepithelial myofibroblasts from colonic tissue, but adiponectin was only expressed in myofibroblasts. Induction of colitis significantly decreased the expression of adiponectin in colonic mucosa. The &ohgr;‐3 fat diet group, but not the other fat diet groups, showed exacerbated colitis with a further decrease of adiponectin expression. Pioglitazone treatment ameliorated the level of decrease in adiponectin expression and improved colonic inflammation induced by the &ohgr;‐3 fat‐rich diet. In patients with ulcerative colitis, the expression level of adiponectin in colonic mucosa was also decreased compared with that in control mucosa. Conclusions: Adiponectin was found to be expressed in myofibroblasts. Adiponectin expression was significantly suppressed by induction of colitis, and aggravation of colitis after exposure to &ohgr;‐3 fat may be due to a further decrease in the expression level of adiponectin.
Inflammasome-independent Role of Apoptosis-associated Speck-like Protein Containing a CARD (ASC) in T Cell Priming Is Critical for Collagen-induced Arthritis*

Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disease with 1% prevalence in the industrialized world. The contributions of the inflammasome components Nlrp3, ASC, and caspase-1 in the pathogenesis of collagen-induced arthritis have not been characterized. Here, we show that ASC−/− mice were protected from arthritis, whereas Nlrp3−/− and caspase-1−/− mice were susceptible to collagen-induced arthritis. Unlike Nlrp3−/− and caspase-1−/− mice, the production of collagen-specific antibodies was abolished in ASC−/− mice. This was due to a significantly reduced antigen-specific activation of lymphocytes by ASC−/− dendritic cells. Antigen-induced proliferation of purified ASC−/− T cells was restored upon incubation with wild type dendritic cells, but not when cultured with ASC−/− dendritic cells. Moreover, direct T cell receptor ligation with CD3 and CD28 antibodies induced a potent proliferation of ASC−/− T cells, indicating that ASC is specifically required in dendritic cells for antigen-induced T cell activation. Therefore, ASC fulfills a hitherto unrecognized inflammasome-independent role in dendritic cells that is crucial for T cell priming and the induction of antigen-specific cellular and humoral immunity and the onset of collagen-induced arthritis.
Covariance-Preconditioned Iterative Methods for Nonnegatively Constrained Astronomical Imaging

We consider the problem of solving ill-conditioned linear systems $A\bfx=\bfb$ subject to the nonnegativity constraint $\bfx\geq\bfzero$, and in which the vector $\bfb$ is a realization of a random vector $\hat{\bfb}$, i.e., $\bfb$ is noisy. We explore what the statistical literature tells us about solving noisy linear systems; we discuss the effect that a substantial black background in the astronomical object being viewed has on the underlying mathematical and statistical models; and, finally, we present several covariance-based preconditioned iterative methods that incorporate this information. Each of the methods presented can be viewed as an implementation of a preconditioned modified residual-norm steepest descent algorithm with a specific preconditioner, and we show that, in fact, the well-known and often used Richardson-Lucy algorithm is one such method. Ill-conditioning can inhibit the ability to take advantage of a priori statistical knowledge, in which case a more traditional preconditioning approach may be appropriate. We briefly discuss this traditional approach as well. Examples from astronomical imaging are used to illustrate concepts and to test and compare algorithms.
The effect of acute maximal exercise on postexercise hemodynamics and central arterial stiffness in obese and normal‐weight individuals

Central arterial stiffness is associated with incident hypertension and negative cardiovascular outcomes. Obese individuals have higher central blood pressure (BP) and central arterial stiffness than their normal‐weight counterparts, but it is unclear whether obesity also affects hemodynamics and central arterial stiffness after maximal exercise. We evaluated central hemodynamics and arterial stiffness during recovery from acute maximal aerobic exercise in obese and normal‐weight individuals. Forty‐six normal‐weight and twenty‐one obese individuals underwent measurements of central BP and central arterial stiffness at rest and 15 and 30 min following acute maximal exercise. Central BP and normalized augmentation index (AIx@75) were derived from radial artery applanation tonometry, and central arterial stiffness was obtained via carotid‐femoral pulse wave velocity (cPWV) and corrected for central mean arterial pressure (cPWV/cMAP). Central arterial stiffness increased in obese individuals but decreased in normal‐weight individuals following acute maximal exercise, after adjusting for fitness. Obese individuals also exhibited an overall higher central BP (P < 0.05), with no exercise effect. The increase in heart rate was greater in obese versus normal‐weight individuals following exercise (P < 0.05), but there was no group differences or exercise effect for AIx@75. In conclusion, obese (but not normal‐weight) individuals increased central arterial stiffness following acute maximal exercise. An assessment of arterial stiffness response to acute exercise may serve a useful detection tool for subclinical vascular dysfunction.
Optimizing Sentence Modeling and Selection for Document Summarization

Extractive document summarization aims to conclude given documents by extracting some salient sentences. Often, it faces two challenges: 1) how to model the information redundancy among candidate sentences; 2) how to select the most appropriate sentences. This paper attempts to build a strong summarizer DivSelect+CNNLM by presenting new algorithms to optimize each of them. Concretely, it proposes CNNLM, a novel neural network language model (NNLM) based on convolutional neural network (CNN), to project sentences into dense distributed representations, then models sentence redundancy by cosine similarity. Afterwards, it formulates the selection process as an optimization problem, constructing a diversified selection process (DivSelect) with the aim of selecting some sentences which have high prestige, meantime, are dissimilar with each other. Experimental results on DUC2002 and DUC2004 benchmark data sets demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach.
Topological modular forms (aftern Hopkins, Miller, and Lurie)

This is the companion article to the Bourbaki talk of the same name given in March 2009. The main theme of the talk and the article is to explain the interplay between homotopy theory and algebraic geometry through the Hopkins-Miller-Lurie theorem on topological modular forms, from which we learn that the Deligne-Mumford moduli stack for elliptic curves is canonically realized as an object in derived algebraic geometry.
Personality and Social Psychology Review Revising the Classical Perspective on Reliability a More Nuanced View of Reliability: Specificity in the Trait Hierarchy

Article In 2011, McCrae, Kurtz, Yamagata, and Terracciano published an article on the effects of reliability on the differential validity of personality measures. They thought the find-ings—that retest reliability predicted validity whereas internal consistency did not—were striking, and they expected the article to be provocative. So far, however, it has provoked few responses from statisticians (but see Holden & Bernstein, 2013). Many readers (like most of the original reviewers) seem to be uncomfortable with the conclusions, but no one so far has suggested obvious errors in the article or its conclusions. In this article, I argue that one possible explanation for the findings lies in the nature of the trait hierarchy, in which assessed traits may be better envisioned as the union, rather than as the intersection, of their subtraits. Conventional wisdom has it that reliability (loosely, how well a test measures something) sets limits to validity (how well a test measures what it is supposed to). Other things being equal, most psychologists would choose a scale with a coefficient alpha of . 80 over another with an alpha of . 60. Internal consistency is the most widely used measure of reliability because it is the easiest to obtain, but retest reliability is often considered a substitute, and occasionally other measures (interrater reliability, parallel form reliability) are used. have cautioned that this is an oversimplification, but that has had little impact on psychometric practice. McCrae, Kurtz, and colleagues (2011) hoped to revive this controversy by comparing validity coefficients for the 30 facet scales of the NEO Inventories, which differ in reliability. In large data sets, coefficient alpha did not consistently predict differential validity (operationalized as long-term stability, heritability, and cross-observer agreement)—despite a wide range of variation (αs ≈ .5-.9). Surprisingly, retest reliability did, despite a restricted range (r tt s ≈ .7-.9). It was not clear at the time why that should be so. Coefficient alpha is beloved of statisticians because it makes simple and elegant predictions—under a particular set of assumptions. Suppose (in the very simplest case) that a test consists of k items, equally valid measures of the trait, and that responses to these items are determined completely by the trait (T) and random (i.e., uncorrelated) error (ε). Then the proportion of trait variance in the total scale (the sum of the standardized items) is just alpha. If there is a parallel form with identical item properties, its correlation with …
GelTouch: Localized Tactile Feedback Through Thin, Programmable Gel

We present GelTouch, a gel-based layer that can selectively transition between soft and stiff to provide tactile multi-touch feedback. It is flexible, transparent when not activated, and contains no mechanical, electromagnetic, or hydraulic components, resulting in a compact form factor (a 2mm thin touchscreen layer for our prototype). The activated areas can be morphed freely and continuously, without being limited to fixed, predefined shapes. GelTouch consists of a poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) gel layer which alters its viscoelasticity when activated by applying heat (>32 C). We present three different activation techniques: 1) Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) as a heating element that enables tactile feedback through individually addressable taxels; 2) predefined tactile areas of engraved ITO, that can be layered and combined; 3) complex arrangements of resistance wire that create thin tactile edges. We present a tablet with 6x4 tactile areas, enabling a tactile numpad, slider, and thumbstick. We show that the gel is up to 25 times stiffer when activated and that users detect tactile features reliably (94.8%).