Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Maximising the First-Year Experience through the Incorporation of Generic Skills in a Medical Curriculum at the University of the Free State

The highest attrition rates occur among first-year students. Universities have designed different curricular programmes, such as the development of generic skills, to address this challenge. In the medical school at the University of the Free State in South Africa, these skills were incorporated in the MBChB curriculum as an eight credit-bearing module in 2000 and later increased to 12 credits in 2009. To date, the effectiveness of this first-year module in equipping students with generic skills was last determined in 2002. The aim of this research was to determine the perceptions of first‑year students regarding the effectiveness of this module in equipping them with generic skills. A questionnaire survey was distributed to 596 first-year medical students each year from 2013 to 2016. A focus group discussion (FGD) was held with 13 students who failed the first year of study in 2016 and had to repeat in 2017. According to the results, most students had a positive perception about the structure and organisation as well as the benefits of the module. However, from the questionnaire results, the overall rating of the effectiveness of the module was not very positive, with 35% of students rating it effective, 45% rating it relatively effective and 20% rating it not effective. However, during the FGD, seven (54%) of the 13 students rated it effective. In the qualitative statements of the questionnaire, a common comment related to the poor rating was about the unnecessary long hours in some sessions. Other comments from the questionnaire were medically related, with some students suggesting more practical and clinical demonstrations. During the FGD, students could not understand why their peers needed practical demonstrations in the first year. The incorporation of generic skills should be context- and discipline-specific and students should be “re-equipped” with certain skills during different stages of the curriculum.
They did it again! Social control responses to repeated incidences of deviance in small groups / ¡Lo han vuelto a hacer! Respuestas de control social a la incidencia repetida de la desviación en grupos pequeños

Abstract Deviant group members who break group norms often challenge social validity and group locomotion, invoking varying types of social control responses. The current study (N = 95) investigated changes over time in the use of four social control responses of varying severity (persuasion, embarrassment, temporary exclusion and permanent exclusion) employed in response to deviance. It also tested the roles that perceived effectiveness of and social support for various responses play in response selection. Findings show severity of social control response selection is driven by both pragmatic and identity-based concerns: Over time, responses become more severe, driven in part by effectiveness and social support.
Were Equatorial Regions Less Affected by the 2009 Influenza Pandemic? The Brazilian Experience

Although it is in the Tropics where nearly half of the world population lives and infectious disease burden is highest, little is known about the impact of influenza pandemics in this area. We investigated the mortality impact of the 2009 influenza pandemic relative to mortality rates from various outcomes in pre-pandemic years throughout a wide range of latitudes encompassing the entire tropical, and part of the subtropical, zone of the Southern Hemisphere (+5°N to −35°S) by focusing on a country with relatively uniform health care, disease surveillance, immunization and mitigation policies: Brazil. To this end, we analyzed laboratory-confirmed deaths and vital statistics mortality beyond pre-pandemic levels for each Brazilian state. Pneumonia, influenza and respiratory mortality were significantly higher during the pandemic, affecting predominantly adults aged 25 to 65 years. Overall, there were 2,273 and 2,787 additional P&I- and respiratory deaths during the pandemic, corresponding to a 5.2% and 2.7% increase, respectively, over average pre-pandemic annual mortality. However, there was a marked spatial structure in mortality that was independent of socio-demographic indicators and inversely related with income: mortality was progressively lower towards equatorial regions, where low or no difference from pre-pandemic mortality levels was identified. Additionally, the onset of pandemic-associated mortality was progressively delayed in equatorial states. Unexpectedly, there was no additional mortality from circulatory causes. Comparing disease burden reliably across regions is critical in those areas marked by competing health priorities and limited resources. Our results suggest, however, that tropical regions of the Southern Hemisphere may have been disproportionally less affected by the pandemic, and that climate may have played a key role in this regard. These findings have a direct bearing on global estimates of pandemic burden and the assessment of the role of immunological, socioeconomic and environmental drivers of the transmissibility and severity of this pandemic.
Early Miocene Gastropods from the Felli Section (Proto-Mediterranean Sea, NW Greece)

ABSTRACT The early Miocene mollusc faunas from the Proto-Mediterranean Sea are still poorly-known. Herein, Aquitanian gastropod assemblages from the Felli section in NW Greece are described. Two assemblages were recovered, a low-diversity coastal mudflat assemblage dominated by Granulolabium plicatum (Bruguière, 1792) and Mesohalina margaritacea (Brocchi, 1814), and a high-diversity marine assemblage dominated by Bittium larrieyense (Vignal, 1911). The marine assemblage yielded 44 species, of which three species are described as new and 23 are left in open nomenclature. A new combination is proposed for Finella perpusilla (Grateloup, 1827). The family Pyramidellidae is exceptionally represented by 15 species. 17 new occurences are reported for the Proto-Mediterranean Sea. Alvania amphitrite n. sp. , Homalopoma acaste n. sp. and Pyramistomia aliakmoni n. sp. are introduced as new species.
Increased Diacylglycerols Characterize Hepatic Lipid Changes in Progression of Human Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease; Comparison to a Murine Model

Background and Aims The spectrum of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) includes steatosis, nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), and progression to cirrhosis. While differences in liver lipids between disease states have been reported, precise composition of phospholipids and diacylglycerols (DAG) at a lipid species level has not been previously described. The goal of this study was to characterize changes in lipid species through progression of human NAFLD using advanced lipidomic technology and compare this with a murine model of early and advanced NAFLD. Methods Utilizing mass spectrometry lipidomics, over 250 phospholipid and diacylglycerol species (DAGs) were identified in normal and diseased human and murine liver extracts. Results Significant differences between phospholipid composition of normal and diseased livers were demonstrated, notably among DAG species, consistent with previous reports that DAG transferases are involved in the progression of NAFLD and liver fibrosis. In addition, a novel phospholipid species (ether linked phosphatidylinositol) was identified in human cirrhotic liver extracts. Conclusions Using parallel lipidomics analysis of murine and human liver tissues it was determined that mice maintained on a high-fat diet provide a reproducible model of NAFLD in regards to specificity of lipid species in the liver. These studies demonstrated that novel lipid species may serve as markers of advanced liver disease and importantly, marked increases in DAG species are a hallmark of NAFLD. Elevated DAGs may contribute to altered triglyceride, phosphatidylcholine (PC), and phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) levels characteristic of the disease and specific DAG species might be important lipid signaling molecules in the progression of NAFLD.
Evaluations of Topological Tutte Polynomials

We find new properties of the topological transition polynomial of embedded graphs, Q(G). We use these properties to explain the striking similarities between certain evaluations of Bollobás and Riordan's ribbon graph polynomial, R(G), and the topological Penrose polynomial, P(G). The general framework provided by Q(G) also leads to several other combinatorial interpretations these polynomials. In particular, we express P(G), R(G), and the Tutte polynomial, T(G), as sums of chromatic polynomials of graphs derived from G, show that these polynomials count k-valuations of medial graphs, show that R(G) counts edge 3-colourings, and reformulate the Four Colour Theorem in terms of R(G). We conclude with a reduction formula for the transition polynomial of the tensor product of two embedded graphs, showing that it leads to additional relations among these polynomials and to further combinatorial interpretations of P(G) and R(G).
Model reduction of multi-input dynamical networks based on clusterwise controllability

This paper proposes a model reduction method for a multi-input linear system evolving on large-scale complex networks, called dynamical networks. In this method, we construct a set of clusters (i.e., disjoint subsets of state variables) based on a notion of clusterwise controllability that characterizes a kind of local controllability of the state-space. The clusterwise controllability is determined through a basis transformation with respect to each input. Aggregating the constructed clusters, we obtain a reduced model that preserves interconnection topology of the clusters as well as some particular properties, such as stability, steady-state characteristic and system positivity. In addition, we derive an H∞-error bound of the state discrepancy caused by the aggregation. The efficiency of the proposed method is shown by a numerical example including a large-scale complex network.
Determining k-most demanding products with maximum expected number of total customers

In this paper, a problem of production plans, named k-most demanding products (k-MDP) discovering, is formulated. Given a set of customers demanding a certain type of products with multiple attributes, a set of existing products of the type, a set of candidate products that can be offered by a company, and a positive integer k, we want to help the company to select k products from the candidate products such that the expected number of the total customers for the k products is maximized. We show the problem is NP-hard when the number of attributes for a product is 3 or more. One greedy algorithm is proposed to find approximate solution for the problem. We also attempt to find the optimal solution of the problem by estimating the upper bound of the expected number of the total customers for a set of k candidate products for reducing the search space of the optimal solution. An exact algorithm is then provided to find the optimal solution of the problem by using this pruning strategy. The experiment results demonstrate that both the efficiency and memory requirement of the exact algorithm are comparable to those for the greedy algorithm, and the greedy algorithm is well scalable with respect to k.
Adaptive Joint Source–Channel Rate Allocation Policies for Delay Sensitive Applications Over Fading Channels

In this correspondence, we consider a problem of optimal source, channel coding rate pair allocation over a wireless link based on the channel fading state and the queue length of the transmitter. The source is delay sensitive. Therefore, our objective is to minimize the mean delay under given mean power and distortion constraints. We show that by jointly optimizing the source and channel rates, one can gain substantially in performance as compared to only source or channel rate optimization, as is usually considered in the literature. This is shown for single user, single-input-single-output (SISO), multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO), and multiuser systems. The methods used are from Markov decision theory
Investigating the Combinatory Effects of Biological Networks on Gene Co-expression

Co-expressed genes often share similar functions, and gene co-expression networks have been widely used in studying the functionality of gene modules. Previous analysis indicated that genes are more likely to be co-expressed if they are either regulated by the same transcription factors, forming protein complexes or sharing similar topological properties in protein-protein interaction networks. Here, we reconstructed transcriptional regulatory and protein-protein networks for Saccharomyces cerevisiae using well-established databases, and we evaluated their co-expression activities using publically available gene expression data. Based on our network-dependent analysis, we found that genes that were co-regulated in the transcription regulatory networks and shared similar neighbors in the protein-protein networks were more likely to be co-expressed. Moreover, their biological functions were closely related.
Technology Name and Celebrity Endorsement Effects of Autonomous Vehicle Promotional Messages: Mechanisms and Moderators

Autonomous vehicles represent an emerging technology with the potential to radically transform everyday life. Yet there is little understanding of how promotional tactics—easy-to-grasp technology labels or pairing the technology with well-known celebrities—influence public perceptions of risk, benefits, and intentions. Therefore, we experimentally tested (N = 721) the effects of technology name and celebrity presence on emotional, cognitive, and behavioral responses to promotional messages. Moreover, we examined how individual differences and attention to news about autonomous vehicles can moderate responses. Results of this exploratory study revealed the importance of affective and cognitive mediators and audience-related moderators in shaping responses.
Common Variants in the Periostin Gene Influence Development of Atherosclerosis in Young Persons

Objective—We investigated the influence of genetic variants (rare and common) in the gene encoding periostin (POSTN) on atherosclerosis as measured in arterial specimens from the Pathobiological Determinants of Atherosclerosis in Youth (PDAY) study. Methods and Results—A comprehensive survey of common POSTN variants (87 single-nucleotide polymorphisms [SNPs]) in PDAY subjects (n=2527) identified numerous SNPs associated with raised lesions in abdominal aorta and with fatty streaks in thoracic aorta. These SNPs belonged to a small number of correlation bins that spanned the entire locus. To examine effects of rare variants, we resequenced POSTN functional regions in PDAY cases with raised lesions (n=291) and controls with no raised lesions (n=294). However, we found no significant associations with case-control status for carriers of POSTN rare variants using the weighted-sum method for rare variant analysis. Conclusion—We identified common variants in POSTN that are associated with arterial lesions in young persons from the PDAY study. This finding strongly supports a role for periostin in atherogenesis, as suggested by recent proteomics analysis that found abundant expression of periostin in atherosclerotic lesions. Genetic variation may influence atherosclerosis via periostin's known involvement in multiple relevant pathways, including angiogenesis, vascular remodeling, and stimulation of migration and differentiation of vascular smooth muscle cells.
Empirical Studies of Test Effectiveness and Delivered Reliability

White-box testing techniques based on control flow and data flow analysis have been widely studied in the software testing research literature, but there is no definitive answer to the question of how effective these techniques are at finding software faults. In the absence of data indicating how effective (and how expensive) these techniques are, it is hardly surprising that they have not been adopted widely in practice. On the other hand, there is no easy answer to this question. Meanwhile, many analytical and empirical studies of software testing effectiveness have used the probability that a test set exposes at least one fault as the measure of effectiveness. That measure is useful for evaluating testing techniques when the goal of testing is to gain confidence that the program is free from faults. However, if the goal of testing is to improve the reliability of the program ( as determined by the probability that the program will fail when executed on an input randomly selected
Reducing cache contention in a multi-core processor via a scheduler

Multi-core architectures, which have multiple processing units on a single chip, are widely viewed as a way to achieve higher processor performance. Well scheduling of running threads on these processors will result in achieving higher performance. Modern multi-core systems are designed to allow clusters of cores to share various hardware structures, such as last-level caches, memory controllers, and interconnections, as well as prefetching hardware. Without considering these shared resources, scheduling the threads will cause serious degradation in overall performance of the system. In this paper we propose a novel algorithm to schedule the threads that considers these potential contentions to keep away from. The simulation results showed that the proposed scheduler would avoid from lots of contentions between threads on various resources especially on shared caches.
Guaranteed on-line weakly-hard real-time systems

A weakly hard real-time system is a system that can tolerate some degree of missed deadlines provided that this number is bounded and guaranteed off-line. In this paper we present an on-line scheduling framework called Bi-Modal Scheduler (BMS) for weakly-hard real-time systems. It is characterised by two modes of operation. In normal mode tasks can be scheduled with a generic scheduler (possibly best-effort). Weakly hard constraints are guaranteed to be satisfied by switching, whenever necessary, to a panic mode for which schedulability tests exist that guarantee that deadlines are met. Due to the sources of pessimism in the analysis (mainly WCET and critical instant assumptions) the worst case situations may never arise, thus almost all the time all deadlines are met, only at peak loads some deadlines may be missed, however the behaviour of the system is predicable and bounded This allows building systems which maximise resource usage during normal operation and that resort to a guaranteed and predictable performance degradation specified by the weakly hard constraints should a transient overload arise.
Effects of type 1 diabetes mellitus on cardiac function: a study of monozygotic twins.

OBJECTIVE--To investigate left ventricular size and function in type 1 diabetes and their relation with diabetes duration, glycaemic control, autonomic dysfunction, and complications of diabetes. DESIGN--Cross sectional study using a pulsed wave Doppler echocardiogram to assess left ventricular dimensions, wall thickness, and transmitral blood flow velocity signals. PATIENTS--40 monozygotic twin pairs (23 male, mean age 26 years) discordant for type 1 diabetes and 40 non-diabetic singleton controls with no clinical evidence of cardiac ischaemia. RESULTS--For all Doppler echocardiographic measurements there were strong correlations between monozygotic twins but not between twins and control subjects. Left ventricular dimensions, wall thickness and systolic function, peak E velocity, and the velocity integrals of early left ventricular filling were similar in all three groups. Peak A velocity and the velocity integrals of late ventricular filling (mean (SD)) were greater in diabetic twins (45 (12) v 38 (8) cm/s, P = 0.002; and 32 (11) v 26 (6), P = 0.0002). Diabetic twins had lower E/A ratio (1.59 (0.39) v 1.83 (0.39), P < 0.001), greater atrial filling fraction to total diastolic filling (28 (6) v 25 (5)%, P = 0.002), and prolonged isovolumic relaxation time (72 (12) v 63 (9) ms, P < 0.001). The differences in Doppler findings between diabetic and non-diabetic twins were related to disease duration whereas the prolongation of the isovolumic relaxation time was related to cardiac autonomic dysfunction. CONCLUSIONS--These results show that twins with type 1 diabetes have left ventricular diastolic dysfunction related to diabetes duration and cardiac autonomic dysfunction but not to glycaemic control or microvascular complications. In addition, genetic factors contribute to left ventricular dimension and function.
A Short Introduction to Subjective Well-being: Measurement, Correlates and Policy Uses

Since the emergence of the field over five decades ago, the subjective well-being (SWB; e.g. self-reported happiness or life satisfaction) literature has progressed rapidly. This overview discusses the state of the art in the measurement of SWB, the understanding of the factors determining SWB, and some uses of SWB in policy. Three broad conclusions emerge. First, SWB measures are meaningful in the sense that they are able to provide valid and reliable information on how well people and societies as a whole are doing. Second, a broad range of factors is found to correlate with or be a causal factor in SWB, both at the level of individuals and that of countries. Finally, SWB data can help shape and appraise policy. In several areas our knowledge is still limited, but the most recent and future research promises to secure further the usefulness of SWB research, not least in policy applications.
Acinetobacter seifertii Isolated from China

AbstractClinical infections caused by Acinetobacter spp. have increasing public health concerns because of their global occurrence and ability to acquire multidrug resistance. Acinetobacter calcoaceticus–Acinetobacter baumannii (ACB) complex encompasses A. calcoaceticus, A. baumannii, A. pittii (formerly genomic species 3), and A nosocomial (formerly genomic species 13TU), which are predominantly responsible for clinical pathogenesis in the Acinetobacter genus.In our previous study, a putative novel species isolated from 385 non-A. baumannii spp. strains based on the rpoB gene phylogenetic tree was reported. Here, the putative novel species was identified as A. seifertii based on the whole-genome phylogenetic tree. A. seifertii was recognized as a novel member of the ACB complex and close to A. baumannii and A. nosocomials. Furthermore, we studied the characteristics of 10 A. seifertii isolates, which were distributed widely in 6 provinces in China and mainly caused infections in the elderly or children. To define the taxonomic status and characteristics, the biochemical reactions, antimicrobial susceptibility testing, pulsed field gel electrophoresis (PFGE), multilocus sequence typing (MLST), and whole-genome sequence analysis were performed.The phenotypic characteristics failed to distinguish A. serfertii from other species in the ACB complex. Most of the A. seifertii isolates were susceptible to antibiotics commonly used for nosocomial Acinetobacter spp. infections, but one isolate (strain A362) was resistant to ampicillin/sulbactam, ceftazidime and amikacin. The different patterns of MLST and PFGE suggested that the 10 isolates were not identical and lacked clonal relatedness.Our study reported for the first time the molecular epidemiological and genomic features of widely disseminated A. seifertii in China. These observations could enrich the knowledge of infections caused by non-A. baumannii and may provide a scientific basis for future clinical treatment.