Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Convex Relaxations and Approximations of Chance-Constrained AC-OPF Problems

This paper deals with the impact of linear approximations for the unknown nonconvex confidence region of chance-constrained ac optimal power flow problems. Such approximations are required for the formulation of tractable chance constraints. In this context, we introduce the first formulation of a chance-constrained second-order cone (SOC) OPF. The proposed formulation provides convergence guarantees due to its convexity, while it demonstrates high computational efficiency. Combined with an ac feasibility recovery, it is able to identify better solutions than chance-constrained nonconvex ac-OPF formulations. To the best of our knowledge, this paper is the first to perform a rigorous analysis of the ac feasibility recovery procedures for robust SOC-OPF problems. We identify the issues that arise from the linear approximations, and by using a reformulation of the quadratic chance constraints, we introduce new parameters able to reshape the approximation of the confidence region. We demonstrate our method on the IEEE 118-bus system.
Applicability of Motivational Interviewing for Chronic Disease Management in Primary Care Following a Web-Based E-Learning Course: Cross-Sectional Study

Background Motivational interviewing (MI) is an established communication method for enhancing intrinsic motivation for changing health behavior. E-learning can reduce the cost and time involved in providing continuing education and can be easily integrated into individual working arrangements and the daily routines of medical professionals. Thus, a Web-based course was devised to familiarize health professionals with different levels of education and expertise with MI techniques for patients with chronic conditions. Objective The aim of this study was to report participants’ opinion on the practicality of MI (as learned in the course) in daily practice, stratified by the level of education. Methods Participants (N=607) of the MI Web-based training course evaluated the course over 18 months, using a self-administered questionnaire. The evaluation was analyzed descriptively and stratified for the level of education (medical students, physicians in specialist training [PSTs], and general practitioners [GPs]). Results Participants rated the applicability of the skills and knowledge gained by the course as positive (medical students: 94% [79/84] good; PSTs: 88.6% [109/123] excellent; and GPs: 51.3% [182/355] excellent). When asked whether they envisage the use of MI in the future, 79% (67/84) of the students stated to a certain extent, 88.6% (109/123) of the PSTs stated to a great extent, and 38.6% (137/355) of GPs stated to a great extent. Participants acknowledged an improvement of communication skills such as inviting (medical students: 85% [72/84]; PSTs: 90.2% [111/123]; GPs: 37.2% [132/355]) and encouraging (medical students: 81% [68/84]; PSTs: 45.5% [56/123]; GPs: 36.3% [129/355]) patients to talk about behavior change and conveying respect for patient’s choices (medical students: 72% [61/84]; PSTs: 50.0% [61/123]; GPs: 23.4% [83/355]). Conclusions Participants confirmed the practicality of MI. However, the extent to which the practicality of MI was acknowledged as well as its expected benefits depended on the individual’s level of education/expertise.
Potential of Automated Writing Evaluation Feedback.

This paper presents an empirical evaluation of automated writing evaluation (AWE) feedback used for L2 academic writing teaching and learning. It introduces the Intelligent Academic Discourse Evaluator (IADE), a new web-based AWE program that analyzes the introduction section to research articles and generates immediate, individualized, and discipline-specific feedback. The purpose of the study was to investigate the potential of IADE’s feedback. A mixed-methods approach with a concurrent transformative strategy was employed. Quantitative data consisted of responses to Likert-scale, yes/no, and open-ended survey questions; automated and human scores for first and final drafts; and pre-/posttest scores. Qualitative data contained students’ first and final drafts as well as transcripts of think-aloud protocols and Camtasia computer screen recordings, observations, and semistructured interviews. The findings indicate that IADE’s colorcoded and numerical feedback possesses potential for facilitating language learning, a claim supported by evidence of focus on discourse form, noticing of negative evidence, improved rhetorical quality of writing, and increased learning gains.
Oral vancomycin prophylaxis during systemic antibiotic exposure to prevent Clostridiodes difficile infection relapses

Abstract Objective: To determine whether oral vancomycin prophylaxis accompanying systemic antibiotics reduces the risk of relapse in patients with history of Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI). Design: Retrospective cohort study. Patients: Adult inpatients with a history of CDI who received systemic antibiotics in either of 2 hospitals between January 2009 and June 2015. Methods: We compared relapse rates in patients who started oral vancomycin concurrently with systemic antibiotics (exposed group) versus those who did not. We assessed for CDI relapse by toxin or nucleic acid testing at 90 days. We used inverse probability weighting and machine learning to adjust for confounders, to estimate propensity for treatment, and to calculate odds ratios for CDI relapse. We performed secondary analyses limited to toxin-positive relapses, patients with 1 versus >1 prior CDI episodes, and patients who received oral vancomycin on each antibiotic day. Results: CDI relapse occurred within 90 days in 19 of 193 exposed patients (9.8%) versus 53 of 567 unexposed patients (9.4%; unadjusted odds ratio [OR], 1.06; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.60–1.81; adjusted OR, 0.63; 95% CI, 0.35–1.14). CDI relapses at 90 days were less frequent in exposed patients with only 1 prior episode of CDI (OR, 0.42; 95% CI, 0.19–0.93) but not in those with >1 prior episode (OR, 1.19; 95% CI, 0.42–3.33). Our findings were consistent with a lack of benefit of oral vancomycin when restricting results to toxin-positive relapses and to patients who received vancomycin each antibiotic day. Conclusions: Prophylactic oral vancomycin was not consistently associated with reduced risk of CDI relapse among hospitalized patients receiving systemic antibiotics. However, patients with only 1 prior CDI episode may benefit.
Distribution of trace elements in muscle and organs of Tilapia, oreochromis niloticus from lakes Awassa and Ziway, Ethiopia

Samples of Tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus , were collected from Lakes Awassa and Ziway during December 2002–March 2003. The moisture content of freeze-dried organs (muscle, bone, gill and liver) collected from six sites ranged between 76.0 and 80.7% (m/m). An optimal procedure required 12 mL of tertiary mixture consisting of HNO 3 , HClO 4 , and H 2 O 2 to mineralize powdered samples in open refluxed digestion vessels: 1.0 g bone or muscle, 0.5 g gill or liver. The concentrations of 8 elements in muscle, bone, gill and liver determined by flame atomic absorption spectrophotometer varied, respectively, (mg element/kg dry mass): Cd 0.44–1.43, 4.58–4.93, 2.20–2.85, and 1.08–1.90; Co 2.47–3.59, 17.1–18.9, 8.28–10.1, and 10.2–13.0; Cu 1.68–4.95, 6.65–7.58, 7.08–8.58, and 602–797; Fe 18.7–53.0, 81.9–94.3, 120–196, and 635–7139; Mn 1.03–6.78, 23.1–146, 26.1–107, and 8.80–24.5; Ni 7.80–15.9, 64.1–71.0, 34.8–42.4, and 14.1–21.3; Pb 1.65–2.69, 39.5–42.3, 17.1–23.1, and 2.20–3.37; Zn 34.6–38.6, 61.9–78.8, 82.3–97.1, and 85.6–115.9. Results revealed organ specific distribution of trace metals in Tilapia , which has been discussed in terms of physiological role in fish and/or the likely influence of anthropogenic origin on lakes. Application of the statistical t -test on trace elements data further showed significant difference between the two lakes, which could be attributed to anthropogenic influences. KEY WORDS: Tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus , Distribution of trace elements in fish, Water pollution, Lake Awassa, Lake Ziway Bull. Chem. Soc. Ethiop. 2004 , 18(2), 119-130.
Cannabinoids and the gastrointestinal tract

The enteric nervous system of several species, including the mouse, rat, guinea pig and humans, contains cannabinoid CB1receptors that depress gastrointestinal motility, mainly by inhibiting ongoing contractile transmitter release. Signs of this depressant effect are, in the whole organism, delayed gastric emptying and inhibition of the transit of non-absorbable markers through the small intestine and, in isolated strips of ileal tissue, inhibition of evoked acetylcholine release, peristalsis, and cholinergic and non-adrenergic non-cholinergic (NANC) contractions of longitudinal or circular smooth muscle. These are contractions evoked electrically or by agents that are thought to stimulate contractile transmitter release either in tissue taken from morphine pretreated animals (naloxone) or in unpretreated tissue (γ-aminobutyric acid and 5-hydroxytryptamine). The inhibitory effects of cannabinoid receptor agonists on gastric emptying and intestinal transit are mediated to some extent by CB1 receptors in the brain as well as by enteric CB1 receptors. Gastric acid secretion is also inhibited in response to CB1 receptor activation, although the detailed underlying mechanism has yet to be elucidated. Cannabinoid receptor agonists delay gastric emptying in humans as well as in rodents and probably also inhibit human gastric acid secretion. Cannabinoid pretreatment induces tolerance to the inhibitory effects of cannabinoid receptor agonists on gastrointestinal motility. Findings that the CB1 selective antagonist/inverse agonist SR141716A produces in vivo and in vitro signs of increased motility of rodent small intestine probably reflect the presence in the enteric nervous system of a population of CB1 receptors that are precoupled to their effector mechanisms. SR141716A has been reported not to behave in this manner in the myenteric plexus-longitudinal muscle preparation (MPLM) of human ileum unless this has first been rendered cannabinoid tolerant. Nor has it been found to induce “withdrawal” contractions in cannabinoid tolerant guinea pig ileal MPLM. Further research is required to investigate the role both of endogenous cannabinoid receptor agonists and of non-CB1 cannabinoid receptors in the gastrointestinal tract. The extent to which the effects on gastrointestinal function of cannabinoid receptor agonists or antagonists/inverse agonists can be exploited therapeutically has yet to be investigated as has the extent to which these drugs can provoke unwanted effects in the gastrointestinal tract when used for other therapeutic purposes.
Information Sharing to Promote Risky Health Behavior on Social Media

A large number of posts promoting risky health behavior are posted on social media, but not all posts are widely disseminated. Disseminated information is more likely to influence social media users as users may not be exposed to non-disseminated posts. Thus, this study focuses on principal characteristics of disseminated Twitter posts that attract individuals who promote smoking behavior. After collecting 6,432 tweets and analyzing highly disseminated and non-disseminated Tweets, this study found that Tweets expressing emotional support were observed more than expected among the pro-smoking group and less than expected among the anti-smoking group. Affective tone was also found to be an important factor in Tweet dissemination both in pro- and anti-smoking groups. Interestingly, in the pro-smoking group, Tweets having a negative tone were disseminated more than those having a positive tone. This paper concludes with the discussion of theoretical and practical implications of the current findings.
Escape from water or remain quiescent? Lotus tenuis changes its strategy depending on depth of submergence.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS Two main strategies that allow plants to cope with soil waterlogging or deeper submergence are: (1) escaping by means of upward shoot elongation or (2) remaining quiescent underwater. This study investigates these strategies in Lotus tenuis, a forage legume of increasing importance in areas prone to soil waterlogging, shallow submergence or complete submergence. METHODS Plants of L. tenuis were subjected for 30 d to well-drained (control), waterlogged (water-saturated soil), partially submerged (6 cm water depth) and completely submerged conditions. Plant responses assessed were tissue porosity, shoot number and length, biomass and utilization of water-soluble carbohydrates (WSCs) and starch in the crown. KEY RESULTS Lotus tenuis adjusted its strategy depending on the depth of submergence. Root growth of partially submerged plants ceased and carbon allocation prioritized shoot lengthening (32 cm vs. 24.5 cm under other treatments), without depleting carbohydrate reserves to sustain the faster growth. These plants also developed more shoot and root porosity. In contrast, completely submerged plants became quiescent, with no associated biomass accumulation, new shoot production or shoot elongation. In addition, tissue porosity was not enhanced. The survival of completely submerged plants is attributed to consumption of WSCs and starch reserves from crowns (concentrations 50-75 % less than in other treatments). CONCLUSIONS The forage legume L. tenuis has the flexibility either to escape from partial submergence by elongating its shoot more vigorously to avoid becoming totally submerged or to adopt a non-elongating quiescent strategy when completely immersed that is based on utilizing stored reserves. The possession of these alternative survival strategies helps to explain the success of L. tenuis in environments subjected to unpredictable flooding depths.
Extract of Plantago asiatica L. Seeds Ameliorates Hypertension in Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats by Inhibition of Angiotensin Converting Enzyme

Plantago asiatica L. seeds is a common folk medicine with a long history of medical use in China because of its antipyretic, diuretic, and expectorant properties. It has been applied to treat hypertension clinically due to its diuresis, however, its efficacy and mechanisms on anti-hypertension has not been reported yet to our knowledge. In this study, we investigated the antihypertensive effect and underlying mechanisms of P. asiatica L. seeds extract (PASE) in spontaneously hypertensive rat (SHR). Male SHRs were treated with 2.5 mg/kg of fosinopril (FOS) and 400 mg/kg of PASE orally per day for once or 12 weeks. SHR or Wistar-Kyoto rats (WKY) receiving vehicle (distilled water) was used as control. The results demonstrated systolic, diastolic, and mean blood pressures (SBP, DBP, and MBP) were significantly lowered after single and long-term intragastric administration of PASE. The cardiac and aortic index and collagen accumulation were improved in the PASE group compared with the SHRs group. Meanwhile, PASE treatment remarkably reduced urine total protein, the ratio of serum urea nitrogen to serum creatinine, and increased serum potassium. The levels of serum angiotensin I (Ang I), angiotensin II (Ang II), the ratio of Ang II to Ang I, and aldosterone (ALD) were lowered after treatment of PASE. Besides, PASE and its major active constituents of phenylethanoid glycosides, including isoacteoside, plantamajoside and acteoside, were found to effectively inhibit angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) activation in vitro. These findings suggest that PASE has the antihypertensive effect that may involve a mechanism of ACE inhibition and simultaneously protect organ damage against hypertension.
Characterisation and antimicrobial activity of active polypropylene films containing oregano essential oil and Allium extract to be used in packaging for meat products

ABSTRACT Cooked ham is more prone to spoilage than other meat products, making preservation a key step in its commercialisation. One of the most promising preservation strategies is the use of active packaging. Oregano essential oil (OEO) and Proallium® (an Allium extract) have previously been shown to be useful in polylactic acid (PLA)-active films for ready-to-eat salads. The present work aims to study the suitability of polypropylene (PP) films containing OEO and Proallium® in the preservation of cooked ham. Concerning the technological features of the studied material, no significant changes in the mechanical or optical properties of PP films containing the active substances were recorded in comparison to the PP film without extracts. However, films containing both active substances were more flexible than the control film and less strong, highlighting the plasticisation effect of the natural extracts. Moreover, physical properties changed when active substances were added to the film. Incorporation of 4% Proallium® affected the transparency of the film to a higher extent compared to 8% OEO, undergoing decreases in transparency of 40% and 45%, respectively. Moreover, only the film containing the highest amount of OEO (8%) significantly decreased the thickness. Both active substances showed antibacterial properties; however, Proallium®-active films seemed to be more effective against Brochothrix thermosphacta than PP films containing OEO, with all percentages of Proallium® killing the bacterial population present in the ham after 60 days. In addition, materials containing the lowest Proallium® content exhibited higher acceptability by consumers in the sensory analyses with 63–100% willing to purchase, better even than the control package (56–89%). In fact, 2% of Proallium® obtained the best results in the odour study performed by the panellists.
Seismology of contracting and expanding coronal loops using damping of kink oscillations by mode coupling

Aims. We extend recently developed seismological methods to analyse oscillating loops which feature a large initial shift in the equilibrium position and investigate additional observational signatures related to the loop environment and oscillation driver. Methods. We model the motion of coronal loops as a kink oscillation damped by mode coupling, accounting for any change in loop length and the possible presence of parallel harmonics in addition to the fundamental mode. We apply our model to a loop which rapidly contracts due to a post-flare implosion (SOL2012-03-09) and a loop with a large lateral displacement (SOL2012-10-20). Results. The seismological method is used to calculate plasma parameters of the oscillating loops including the transverse density profile, magnetic field strength, and phase mixing timescale. For SOL2012-03-09 the period of oscillation has a linear correlation with the contracting motion and suggests the kink speed remains constant during the oscillation. The implosion excitation mechanism is found to be associated with an absence of additional parallel harmonics. Conclusions. The improved Bayesian analysis of the coronal loop motion allows for accurate seismology of plasma parameters, and the evolution of the period of oscillation compared with the background trend can be used to distinguish between loop motions in the plane of the loop and those perpendicular to it. The seismologically inferred kink speed and density contrast imply sub-Alfvenic ( M A = 0.16 ± 0.03) propagation of the magnetic reconfiguration associated with the implosion, as opposed to triggering by a wave propagating at the Alfven speed.
Adaptive Detection and Localization Exploiting the IEEE 802.11ad Standard

In this work, we exploit the sector level sweep of the IEEE 802.11ad communication standard to implement an opportunistic radar at mmWaves and derive an adaptive procedure for detecting multiple echoes and estimating their parameters (namely, amplitude, delay, and Doppler shift). The proposed detector/estimator extracts the prospective echoes one-by-one from the received signal, after removing the interference caused by the previously detected (stronger) reverberations from the environment. Examples are provided to assess the system performance, also in comparison with other detectors/estimators and the Cramér-Rao bounds on the localization accuracy. Results indicate that the proposed method is robust against the interference induced by the imperfect ambiguity function and can achieve a delay resolution approximately equal to the inverse of the signal bandwidth, corresponding to a range offset of about 17 cm. Instead, the Doppler resolution is inherently limited by the short duration of the data packet and, in the most favorable case, is approximately 3.26 KHz, corresponding to a relative radial velocity off-set of about 8.16 m/s for a wavelength of 5 mm.
Programmed Death Ligand 1 (PD-L1) Expression in Epithelial Ovarian Cancer: A Comparison of Type I and Type II Tumors

Objective: To examine the expression of programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1) in type I and type II epithelial ovarian cancers (EOC) and its associations with outcomes. Methods: Records of 132 women with EOC were reviewed. Immunostaining of PD-L1 was performed with formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded specimens. Expression of PD-L1 was classified into four categories (0; 1+; 2+; 3+) according to intensity of expression. Expression of PD-L1 ≥2+ was deemed to be high. Results: Of the 132 women, 75 (56.8%) and 57 (43.2%) women had type I and type II tumors, respectively. Approximately 70% of cases exhibited high PD-L1 expression. There was no significant difference in the rate of high PD-L1 expression between the two EOC types (65.3% versus 59.6%). In type I tumors, high PD-L1 expression was associated with more advanced stages (51.0% versus 34.6%), greater recurrence (46.9% versus 26.9%), and shorter median progression-free survival (27 months versus 62 months) than low expression. In type II tumors, there were no apparent differences between high and low expression of PD-L1 in terms of the percentage of advanced-stage tumors (82.6% versus 79.4%), recurrence (56.5% versus 58.8%), and median progression-free survival (21 months versus 24 months). Conclusion: high PD-L1 expression is associated with worse oncological outcomes in type I EOC. This finding emphasizes the merit of further studies to confirm this promising result and to determine the potential role of PD-L1 blockade therapy in type I EOC.