Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Incidence of exercise‐induced arterial hypoxemia in prepubescent females

Due to the recent discovery of exercise‐induced arterial hypoxemia (EIAH) in healthy active women with normal levels of peak oxygen uptake (${\rm V'}_{{\rm O}_{\rm 2} {\rm peak}}$), this study examined the incidence of EIAH in prepubescent females. Nineteen healthy, active, prepubescent females (${\rm \overline X}$ ± SD: age = 11.1 ± 1.6 years; height = 145.8 ± 9.1 cm; weight = 35.6 ± 7.0 kg) performed a progressive maximal exercise test on an electronically braked cycle ergometer starting at 0 W and increasing power by 15 W · min−1. During this test, expired gases, heart rate (HR), and percent arterial oxyhemoglobin saturation (%SaO2) were measured.
A Screening Approach for Classroom Acoustics Using Web-Based Listening Tests and Subjective Ratings

Background Perception of speech is crucial in school where speech is the main mode of communication. The aim of the study was to evaluate whether a web based approach including listening tests and questionnaires could be used as a screening tool for poor classroom acoustics. The prime focus was the relation between pupils’ comprehension of speech, the classroom acoustics and their description of the acoustic qualities of the classroom. Methodology/Principal Findings In total, 1106 pupils aged 13-19, from 59 classes and 38 schools in Sweden participated in a listening study using Hagerman’s sentences administered via Internet. Four listening conditions were applied: high and low background noise level and positions close and far away from the loudspeaker. The pupils described the acoustic quality of the classroom and teachers provided information on the physical features of the classroom using questionnaires. Conclusions/Significance In 69% of the classes, at least three pupils described the sound environment as adverse and in 88% of the classes one or more pupil reported often having difficulties concentrating due to noise. The pupils’ comprehension of speech was strongly influenced by the background noise level (p<0.001) and distance to the loudspeakers (p<0.001). Of the physical classroom features, presence of suspended acoustic panels (p<0.05) and length of the classroom (p<0.01) predicted speech comprehension. Of the pupils’ descriptions of acoustic qualities, clattery significantly (p<0.05) predicted speech comprehension. Clattery was furthermore associated to difficulties understanding each other, while the description noisy was associated to concentration difficulties. The majority of classrooms do not seem to have an optimal sound environment. The pupil’s descriptions of acoustic qualities and listening tests can be one way of predicting sound conditions in the classroom.
STUDIES ON THE MECHANISM OF ACTION OF RILEY VIRUS

A study was made of the replication of Riley virus in various tissue cultures. It was observed that Riley virus replicated in primary mouse embryo cultures for 8 to 12 days. As they aged primary cultures became less susceptible to Riley virus infection, and subcultured cells were not susceptible. Suspensions of virus, in the absence of cells, were inactivated at 36.5°C. Serial passage by transfer of supernatant fluids to fresh embryo cultures was not successful. Replication of the virus was more active in mouse embryo liver cultures than in the cultures of the embryo minus the livers. In cultures of mouse macrophages, the supernatants remained infective throughout the life of the cultures (21 days). The virus was passed 23 times through fresh macrophage cultures over a period of 80 days, during which the original inoculum (106.0 ID 50/ml) was theoretically diluted to 10–14. The possibility that the cells of the RES are involved in Riley virus replication is discussed.
The Psychometric Properties of the Learning Style Inventory and the Learning Style Questionnaire: Two Normative Measures of Learning Styles

David Kolb has provided a detailed, useful and widely accepted theory of experiential learning and learning styles. He developed the Learning Styles Inventory (LSI) to assess four learning abilities and four learning styles. Kolb's work is viewed favourably for establishing the existence of individual differences in learning styles, but the major criticism against his work is focused on his method of measuring learning styles and more specifically on the psychometric properties of the LSI. The LSI is an ipsative instrument and the limitations placed on the statistical analysis of data of ipsative measures makes it inappropriate for reliability and validity evaluation of the instrument. In this study the psychometric properties of two normative measures of learning styles, a normative version of the LSI (referred to as the LSI-Likert) and the Learning Style Questionnaire (LSQ), are investigated. A review of the literature on the LSI is presented and the development of normative versions of the LSI is reviewed. First-year university students registered for either a science or human sciences degree completed the two normative instruments. The internal reliability of the four learning ability scales was determined using alpha coefficient. The internal reliability of the LSI-Likert and LSQ was found to be relatively high. The presence of a response bias for both instruments was suspected. It appeared that the LSI-Likert was more successful than the LSQ in differentiating learning abilities and styles in the sample used. Item factor analysis demonstrated two bipolar factors in line with Kolb's theory for the LSQ. The four-factor solution for the LSI-Likert produced four factors which to some extent represented the four learning abilities.
Empirical Mode Decomposition Based Classification of Focal and Non-focal Seizure EEG Signals

The electroencephalogram (EEG) signals are commonly used signals for detection of epileptic seizures. In this paper, we present a new method for classification of two classes of EEG signals namely focal and non-focal EEG signals. The proposed method uses the sample entropies and variances of the intrinsic mode functions (IMFs) obtained by empirical mode decomposition (EMD) of EEG signals. The average sample entropy (ASE) of IMFs and average variance of instantaneous frequencies (AVIF) of IMFs for separate EEG signals have been used as features for classification of focal and non-focal EEG signals. These two parameters have been used as an input feature set to the least square support vector machine (LS-SVM) classifier. The experimental results for various IMFs of focal and non-focal EEG signals have been included to show the effectiveness of the proposed method. The proposed method has provided promising classification accuracy for classification of focal and non-focal seizure EEG signals when radial basis function (RBF) has been employed as a kernel with LS-SVM classifier.
Vibration exposure, smoking, and vascular dysfunction

OBJECTIVES Vibration white finger (VWF), also known as “occupational Raynaud's phenomenon”, is marked by arterial hyperresponsiveness and vasoconstriction during cold stimulation. The impact of tobacco use, and by extension stopping smoking, on the long term course of the disease has been inconclusively characterised. The objectives of this study included assessment of the impact of tobacco use on symptoms and on objective tests in shipyard workers exposed to vibration, and in gauging the natural history of the disorder after stopping exposure and changing smoking patterns. METHODS In a cross sectional investigation, 601 current and former users of pneumatic tools were evaluated subjectively for cold related vascular symptoms, and tested by cold challenge plethysmography. There was follow up and subsequent testing of 199 members of the severely effected subgroup of smokers and non-smokers, many of whom had stopped smoking in the interval between tests. Effects of smoking and stopping smoking on symptoms and plethsymographic results were assessed. RESULTS Symptoms and measured abnormal vascular responses related to cold were more severe in smokers than in non-smokers. Follow up of 199 severely effected members of the cohort, all removed from exposure for 2 years, indicated that smokers were almost twice as likely to have more severe vasospasm (test finger/control finger systolic blood pressure% (FSBP%) <30) than were non-smokers (−32.2% v 17.4%). 53 Subjects who stopped smoking during the interval between tests improved, and were indistinguishable from non-smokers similarly exposed to vibration. Additional physiological benefits of stopping smoking were still apparent at further follow up examination, 1 year later. Improvements evident on plethysmography were not accompanied by improvements in symptoms, which were unaffected by smoking. CONCLUSIONS Smoking seems to delay physiological improvement in response to cold challenge in workers with VWF, after the end of exposure to vibration. Symptoms were less likely to improve over time than digital blood pressure, and were less affected by smoking.
Waveguide lasers operating at 1084 nm in neodymium-diffused lithium niobate

The authors report the demonstration of waveguide lasers in lithium niobate into which the active element neodymium has been introduced by thermal diffusion. The waveguides were fabricated using conventional Ti indiffusion and optical feedback was provided by the polished endfaces alone. The absorbed power threshold of one waveguide laser was estimated at 13+or-3 mW for pumping at 814 nm, and its slope efficiency in terms of total lasing output as a function of absorbed pump power was estimated to be 55+or-8%. Laser output powers in excess of 100 mW were observed. <<ETX>>
Measuring and modelling the redshift evolution of clustering: the Hubble Deep Field North

ABSTRA C T The evolution of galaxy clustering from za 0t oz . 4:5 is analysed using the angular correlation function and the photometric redshift distribution of galaxies brighter than IAB < 28:5 in the Hubble Deep Field North. The reliability of the photometric redshift estimates is discussed on the basis of the available spectroscopic redshifts, comparing different codes and investigating the effects of photometric errors. The redshift bins in which the clustering properties are measured are then optimized to take into account the uncertainties of the photometric redshifts. The results show that the comoving correlation length r0 has a small decrease in the range 0 & z & 1 followed by an increase at higher z. We compare these results with the theoretical predictions of a variety of cosmological models belonging to the general class of Cold Dark Matter scenarios, including Einstein‐de Sitter models, an open model and a flat model with non-zero cosmological constant. Comparison with the expected mass clustering evolution indicates that the observed high-redshift galaxies are biased tracers of the dark matter with an effective bias b strongly increasing with redshift. Assuming an Einstein‐de Sitter universe, we obtain b . 2: 5a tz . 2 and b . 5a tz . 4. These results support theoretical scenarios of biased galaxy formation in which the galaxies observed at high redshift are preferentially located in more massive haloes. Moreover, they suggest that the usual parameterization of the clustering evolution as jOr; zUajOr; 0UO1 1 zU 2O31eU is not a good description for any value of e . Comparison of the clustering amplitudes that we measured at z . 3 with those reported by Adelberger et al. and Giavalisco et al., based on a different selection, suggests that the clustering depends on the abundance of the objects: more abundant objects are less clustered, as expected in the paradigm of hierarchical galaxy formation. The strong clustering and high bias measured at z . 3 are consistent with the expected density of massive haloes predicted in the frame of the various cosmologies considered here. At z . 4, the strong clustering observed in the Hubble Deep Field requires a significant fraction of massive haloes to be already formed by that epoch. This feature could be a discriminant test for the cosmological parameters if confirmed by future observations.
Islam, Liberalism and Human Rights: Implications for International Relations

This timely book, newly revised for this edition, addresses the question of human rights in the international context, focusing in particular on the interaction between human rights as a value and norm in international relations and Islam as a constituent of political culture in particular societies. Katerina Dalacoura's argument proceeds at two levels. Firstly, it reaches a consistent normative position on the question of human rights. Secondly, the theoretical argument is reinforced through a detailed study both of the precepts of Islam and the role of Islam in the political process of 20th century Egypt and Tunisia. Dalacoura demonstrates that the interpretation of Islam in relation to human rights principles is not static, but is subject to reformulation.
The EuroPolis deliberative poll

This special issue focuses on EuroPolis, a unique experiment in ‘deliberative democracy’ at the European level convened in Brussels soon before the 2009 European Parliamentary Elections. A European wide random sample of the 27 member countries at the time was gathered to deliberate about two key issues--climate change and immigration as well as its voting intentions. The articles in the special issue focus on this Deliberative Poll, both quantitatively and qualitatively to assess what it tells us about ambitious versions of a ‘European wide public sphere. ’ Can the citizens of Europe deliberate together across all the barriers of language and nationality? Can there be a credible process of European wide ‘public will formation’ about substantive policy issues and about voting?
Starting and Staying on Course: Influences of Pre-service and Initial Placement on Beginning Teachers

In this thesis I consider experiences of two beginning teachers during their pre-service year at the Faculty of Education at the University of Toronto and the early years of their teaching careers as they move from student teacher to professional teacher. In particular, I use narratives I created about each woman along with my own to identify the factors which influenced the success of this transition such as the nature of the first teaching positions held, the types of supports and assistance experienced during this transitional phase, and the personal experiences brought to the enterprise of becoming a teacher. Additionally, I look for any changes in their beliefs about teaching from those held as teacher-candidates to those that evolved during the initial years in the classroom and what influence, if any, these professional environments had on such shifts in thinking.In this study I use a narrative inquiry approach in which my own story is placed along side those of my two participants. By doing so, I acknowledge the close relationship between the primary investigator and the study subjects that is inherent in this qualitative method. My data sources for the narratives I created include written material in the form of journals, interview transcripts, practice teaching reports, and personal narratives produced by and about my participants during the time under study.In my concluding chapter, I make suggestions for changes both to the ways in which teacher-candidates are instructed as they begin to learn the intricacies of the art of teaching and to the conditions under which many of these new members of the profession begin their careers. There are many avenues for future research that I did not pursue in this study and some of these are outlined in my conclusions.
User Training for Pattern Recognition-Based Myoelectric Prostheses: Improving Phantom Limb Movement Consistency and Distinguishability

We assessed the ability of four transradial amputees to control a virtual prosthesis capable of nine classes of movement both before and after a two-week training period. Subjects attended eight one-on-one training sessions that focused on improving the consistency and distinguishability of their hand and wrist movements using visual biofeedback from a virtual prosthesis. The virtual environment facilitated the precise quantification of three prosthesis control measures. During a final evaluation, the subject population saw an average increase in movement completion percentage from 70.8% to 99.0%, an average improvement in normalized movement completion time from 1.47 to 1.13, and an average increase in movement classifier accuracy from 77.5% to 94.4% (p<;0.001). Additionally, all four subjects were reevaluated after eight elapsed hours without retraining the classifier, and all subjects demonstrated minimal decreases in performance. Our analysis of the underlying sources of improvement for each subject examined the sizes and separation of high-dimensional data clusters and revealed that each subject formed a unique and effective strategy for improving the consistency and/or distinguishability of his or her phantom limb movements. This is the first longitudinal study designed to examine the effects of user training in the implementation of pattern recognition-based myoelectric prostheses.
Comparative study of frying to other cooking techniques influence on the nutritive value

Frying is one of the oldest methods of food preparation. It improves the sensory quality of food by formation of aroma compounds, attractive colour, crust and texture. Undesirable changes involved are loss of nutritive quality e.g. due to degradation of heat - susceptible vitamins. The influence of common frying methods (frying in an oven, in a pan deep frying) on cooking time and nutritive value of vegetables, potatoes, meat, poultry and fish is described and compared to other cooking methods (boiling, steaming, stewing). Frying of vegetables, potatoes and breaded meat, poultry and fish, no matter whether in a pan or by deep - frying, is associated with fat uptake (2 - 14 g per 100 g of raw food) while non - breaded high fat food of animal origin loses fat during frying (2 - 30%). Data suggest that the fat quantity absorbed during frying increases up to a saturation limit which depends on the kind of food and on the amount of panade. Deep - fried meat, poultry and fish usually absorb less fat than meat, poultry and fish fried in a pan. The kind of fat had no essential influence on fat uptake. After frying of vegetable food and of breaded meat, poultry and fish, the content of protein, carbohydrates and minerals was nearly fully retained while boiling and steaming reduced the mineral content by 25-50%. In the majority of cases frying including deep frying also retained the vitamins B 1 , B 2 , B 6 and C better than boiling, steaming and stewing.
Arpeggio : metadata indexing in a structured peer-to-peer network

Peer-to-peer networks require an efficient means for performing searches for files by metadata keywords. Unfortunately, current methods usually sacrifice either scalability or recall. Arpeggio is a peer-to-peer file-sharing network that uses the Chord lookup primitive as a basis for constructing a distributed keyword-set index, augmented with index-side filtering, to address this problem. We introduce index gateways, a technique for minimizing index maintenance overhead. Arpeggio also includes a content distribution system for finding source peers for a file; we present a novel system that uses Chord subrings to track live source peers without the cost of inserting the data itself into the network, and supports postfetching : using information in the index to improve the availability of rare files. The result is a system that provides efficient query operations with the scalability and reliability advantages of full decentralization. We use analysis and simulation results to show that our indexing system has reasonable storage and bandwidth costs, and improves load distribution. Thesis Supervisor: David R. Karger Title: Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Examination of cognitive absorption influencing the intention to use a virtual community

Virtual communities have been considered as the most effective means of establishing new social relationships through Internet-based technology. Despite their importance to numerous Internet users, little attention has been paid to whether intrinsic motivations have a significant effect on user intention to use the virtual community. Using the virtual community as the target technology, this study extends the technology acceptance model (TAM) to examine the influences of cognitive absorption (defined as a state of deep involvement with the virtual community) on user beliefs (specifically, perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use) and behavioural intentions. Based on a survey of 172 community members, this study uses a structural equation modelling approach to investigate the research model. The results showed that cognitive absorption significantly affects behavioural intention through perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use of the virtual community. Finally, this study discusses the implications of these findings and offers directions for future research.
Utility of mood profiles in identifying risk of eating disorders among adolescent rowers

[Abstract]: The study assessed the utility of the Brunel Mood Scale (BRUMS) in discriminating between adolescent rowers who were at risk of developing eating disorders and those who were not. Adolescent rowers (N = 111) participating in scholastic rowing competitions completed the BRUMS, the Eating Attitudes Test (EAT) and the Body Shape Questionnaire (BSQ). Risk was indicated by scores above 20 on the EAT or BSQ. Participants were grouped by gender (female = 48, male = 63) and risk status (at risk = 18, not at risk = 93). A 2 x 2 MANOVA of mood responses showed no interaction effect but significant main effects for gender and risk status. Scores for depression, confusion, tension and anger were significantly higher among those at risk. Discriminant function analysis showed that in 75.6% of cases, the risk status of participants was correctly classified from these four mood dimensions. Mood responses could better identify lack of risk than risk. Risk was associated with body shape perceptions rather than eating attitudes. Results were consistent with previous findings among elite rowers, suggesting that mood profiles may provide non-transparent indicators of risk of eating disorders at both junior and senior levels of the sport.