Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Reexamination of London, England, mortality in relation to exposure to acidic aerosols during 1963-1972 winters.

Air pollution epidemiology since the 1950s has been able to demonstrate that increases in daily mortality in London, England, were associated with elevated concentrations of index air pollutants, i.e., British Smoke (BS) and sulfur dioxide (SO2). In this work, we reanalyze that portion of the 1958-1972 winter mortality-pollution record for which daily direct acid aerosol measurements were made at a central site in London (St. Bartholomew's Medical College). The purposes of these exploratory analyses are to examine the dataset for indications of a relationship between acid aerosol pollution and human mortality and to compare any noted associations with those for other pollution variables. It is found that the log of acid aerosol concentrations is more strongly associated with raw total mortality in bivariate analyses than is BS or SO2, despite the fact that acid data are available from only one central site (versus seven disperse sites for BS and SO2). The logarithmic nature of the exposure side of the H2SO4-mortality relationship implies a saturation model of pollution effects, possibly due to multiday pollution harvesting influences on a susceptible subpopulation. Moreover, mortality-pollution cross-correlation analyses indicate that mortality effects usually follow pollution in time, supporting a causal relationship between the two. The apparent advantage of H2SO4 over BS in predicting total raw mortality is consistent with the hypothesis that it is the portion of particulate mass of greater health significance and may also allow the development of London mortality results which are more easily transferable to other environments than is the case for existing BS results.
How women's college student involvement contributes to their career aspirations and navigation in technology startup organizations

ii SIGNATURE PAGE iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iv TABLE OF CONTENTS vi LIST OF TABLES viii LIST OF FIGURES ix CHAPTER I: THE RESEARCH PROBLEM Statement of the Problem 1 Background and Need for the Study 4 Purpose of the Study 8 Theoretical Rationale 9 Research Questions 12 Limitations of the Study 13 Significance of the Study 15 Definition of Terms 17 Summary 19 CHAPTER II: REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE Restatement of the Problem 21 Overview 21 Women in Higher Education 22 Women and Career Success 37 Summary 58 Conclusion 59 CHAPTER III: METHODOLOGY Restatement of the Purpose 62 Restatement of the Research Questions 62 Research Design 63 Population and Sample 64 Research Setting 66 Interview Protocol 67 Procedures 67 Data Analysis 69 Researcher Background and Bias 70 Ethical Considerations 74
Effect of Socioeconomic Status on Weight Change Patterns in Adolescents

Introduction Although socioeconomic differences in prevalence of obesity are well documented, whether patterns of weight gain during key periods of growth and development differ among youth from different socioeconomic backgrounds is unknown. This study examines socioeconomic disparities in overweight status and 5-year weight gain among adolescents. Methods Project EAT (Eating Among Teens)-II followed a socioeconomically and ethnically diverse sample of 2,516 adolescents from 1999 through 2004. Mixed-model regression analyses examined longitudinal trends in overweight status as a function of socioeconomic status (SES). Results Girls and boys in the low-SES category were more likely to be overweight than were those in the high-SES category. Boys in the high-SES category showed a significant decrease (P = .006) in overweight prevalence between 1999 and 2004, whereas boys in the low- and middle-SES categories showed no significant change. Girls in the low-SES category showed a significant 5-year increase (P = .004) in overweight prevalence compared with a stable prevalence of overweight among girls in the middle- and high-SES categories. Conclusion Our data show continued and, in some cases, increasing socioeconomic disparities in risk for overweight. Youth from low-SES backgrounds are at increased risk for overweight and are more likely to remain overweight (boys) or become overweight (girls). Designing obesity prevention and treatment interventions that reach and address the unique needs of youth and families from less-advantaged socioeconomic backgrounds is a public health priority.
RATES AND DELAY TIMES OF TYPE Ia SUPERNOVAE

We analyze the evolution of binary stars to calculate synthetic rates and delay times of the most promising Type Ia Supernovae (SNe Ia) progenitors. We present and discuss evolutionary scenarios in which a white dwarf (WD) reaches the Chandrasekhar mass and potentially explodes in a SNe Ia. We consider Double Degenerate (DDS; merger of two WDs), Single Degenerate (SDS; WD accreting from H-rich companion), and AM Canum Venaticorum (AM CVn; WD accreting from He-rich companion) scenarios. The results are presented for two different star formation histories: burst (elliptical-like galaxies) and continuous (spiral-like galaxies). It is found that delay times for the DDS in our standard model (with common envelope efficiency αCE = 1) follow a power-law distribution. For the SDS we note a wide range of delay times, while AM CVn progenitors produce a short burst of SNe Ia at early times. The DDS median delay time falls between ∼0.5 and 1 Gyr; the SDS between ∼2 and 3 Gyr; and the AM CVn between ∼0.8 and 0.6 Gyr depending on the assumed αCE. For a Milky-Way-like (MW-like) galaxy, we estimate the rates of SNe Ia arising from different progenitors as: ∼10−4 yr−1 for the SDS and AM CVn, and ∼10−3 yr−1 for the DDS. We point out that only the rates for two merging carbon–oxygen WDs, the only systems found in the DDS, are consistent with the observed rates for typical MW-like spirals. We also note that DDS progenitors are the dominant population in elliptical galaxies. The fact that the delay time distribution for the DDS follows a power law implies more SNe Ia (per unit mass) in young rather than in aged populations. Our results do not exclude other scenarios, but strongly indicate that the DDS is the dominant channel generating SNe Ia in spiral galaxies, at least in the framework of our adopted evolutionary models. Since it is believed that WD mergers cannot produce a thermonuclear explosion given the current understanding of accreting WDs, either the evolutionary calculations along with accretion physics are incorrect, or the explosion calculations are inaccurate and need to be revisited.
The Fundamental Theorem of Asset Pricing under Proportional Transaction Costs in Finite Discrete Time

We prove a version of the Fundamental Theorem of Asset Pricing, which applies to Kabanov's modeling of foreign exchange markets under transaction costs. The financial market is described by a d×d matrix‐valued stochastic process (Πt)Tt=0 specifying the mutual bid and ask prices between d assets. We introduce the notion of “robust no arbitrage,” which is a version of the no‐arbitrage concept, robust with respect to small changes of the bid‐ask spreads of (Πt)Tt=0. The main theorem states that the bid‐ask process (Πt)Tt=0 satisfies the robust no‐arbitrage condition iff it admits a strictly consistent pricing system. This result extends the theorems of Harrison‐Pliska and Kabanov‐Stricker pertaining to the case of finite Ω, as well as the theorem of Dalang, Morton, and Willinger and Kabanov, Rásonyi, and Stricker, pertaining to the case of general Ω. An example of a 5 × 5‐dimensional process (Πt)2t=0 shows that, in this theorem, the robust no‐arbitrage condition cannot be replaced by the so‐called strict no‐arbitrage condition, thus answering negatively a question raised by Kabanov, Rásonyi, and Stricker.
Automated detection of solar eruptions

Observation of the solar atmosphere reveals a wide range of motions, from small scale jets and spicules to global-scale coronal mass ejections (CMEs). Identifying and characterizing these motions are essential to advancing our understanding of the drivers of space weather. Both automated and visual identifications are currently used in identifying Coronal Mass Ejections. To date, eruptions near the solar surface, which may be precursors to CMEs, have been identified primarily by visual inspection. Here we report on Eruption Patrol (EP): a software module that is designed to automatically identify eruptions from data collected by the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly on the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO/AIA). We describe the method underlying the module and compare its results to previous identifications found in the Heliophysics Event Knowledgebase. EP identifies eruptions events that are consistent with those found by human annotations, but in a significantly more consistent and quantitative manner. Eruptions are found to be distributed within 15 Mm of the solar surface. They possess peak speeds ranging from 4 to 100 km/s and display a power-law probability distribution over that range. These characteristics are consistent with previous observations of prominences.
Multimodality Image Registration by Gradient Enhanced Generalized Clustering

Multimodality image registration is a powerful technique that allows images from different modalities to be compared on a pixel-bypixel basis. Recently, algorithms based on maximizing the mutual information (MI) between voxel intensities of images have gained wide acceptance because they generally have good accuracy and do not require implicit assumptions about the image intensities. However, some problems have been noted with MI. Occasionally, it is sensitive to the size and shape of the image background and the amount of overlap between the images. Problems with MI can be better appreciated in the generalized clustering framework, which has been shown to incorporate several important voxel-similarity-based algorithms. In this framework, each pair of corresponding voxels in the overlap region of the images is assigned a matching score. MI assigns a score in the form log(P12/P1P2), based on the joint intensity histogram. The term (P12/P1P2) compares the probability of observing the voxel intensities together in the image (P12) to the probability of observing them together by chance (P1P2). This ratio is converted to a score by the log function. The total score is normalized by the overlap volume to obtain the match metric of MI. In the context of the present framework, problems with MI can be readily seen. Firstly, background voxels can influence the registration significantly (due to their sheer number) since the match metric is calculated as the average score from all the voxels. Secondly, when the overlap region is small, the match metric can be skewed easily by a few voxels with high matching scores, leading to overestimation. The aim of this work was to overcome these problems by specifically designing a match metric that  placed more emphasis on "complex voxels" (i.e. those with more image structure);  would not overestimate the match metric for small overlap. Different choices for the match metric, interpolation and optimization schemes were examined systematically to optimize registration robustness. We present the best choices found.
Routing protocol enhancements for power state engineering of green network elements

A routing protocol is enhanced to advertise the power state of node interfaces for wavelength switched optical networks to allow tuning the power consumption according to the data traffic demands. By engineering the different power states, GMPLS controlled nodes are configured to preserve the QoS of incoming traffic volumes such as reliability as well as the constraints of carrier grade networks, such as stability and operation costs. For variable incoming traffic reference models, more than half of the total power consumption required for an European optical networks without any power saving capabilities can be saved from powering the optoelectronic interfaces column.
PRELIMINARY RESULTS OF THE WATER FLOW MODELING IN AN ACID DRAINAGE GENERATING WASTE ROCK PILE LOCATED AT THE URANIUM MINING SITE OF POÇOS DE CALDAS - BRAZIL 1

The first uranium production center in Brazil began operation in 1982. After 13 years of a non-continuous operation, the mining activities were suspended definitively. Uranium was extracted by open pit mining. Operations gave rise to approximately 12.4×10 6 m 3 of waste rock, while the mill process generated a volume of approximately 2.39×10 6 m 3 of tailings. Regardless the fact that some studies developed in this area exist, a well defined plan of action, aimed at the remediation and rehabilitation of the site, has not been implemented yet. The main sources of pollutants to the environment are the tailings dam, the waste rock piles and the open pit. Pyrite oxidation was found to be the driving force in the leaching of metal and radionuclides into environment. It was estimated that acid drainage generation will last for 600 and 200 years from the waste rock and tailings respectively. Accurate prediction of the release rate of metal and radionuclides from these sources and their transport in the subsurface is a critical factor to the assessment of environmental impact and to the development of effective remediation strategies. In prevailing practice, the source term is evaluated using the dissolution rate of waste form and the solubility of radionuclides. The fate of pollutants is addressed by the use of Kd-based ''reactive'' transport models. This standard practice has obvious shortcomings, mainly because it can not produce a realistic representation of the system under study. The alternative to overcome these shortages is using more sophisticate models that could represent real complex problems. Reactive transport codes are powerful tools in the evaluation of coupled thermal-hydrological-chemical processes and in the prediction of the long-term performance of remediation strategies. The difference between the predictions from these two approaches can be as high as several orders of magnitude. Generally, conventional approaches produce predicted values higher than the measured ones. On the other hand, the use of reactive transport model requires a good knowledge of the simulated hydrogeochemical system, along with the choice of appropriated algorithms that can represent the most important processes.
Discrepancy between financial disclosures of authors of clinical practice guidelines and reports by industry

Abstract There is a substantial effort to increase the accuracy of conflicts of interest (COI) reporting, and reduce the influence of COI between physicians and industry, especially as it relates to clinical practice guidelines. We used the newly implemented Open Payments dataset to evaluate the accuracy of COI disclosures of authors of clinical practice guidelines that were either newly published or revised within 2014 and were included in the National Guideline Clearinghouse (NGC) website (maintained by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services). Authors were considered as having inaccurate COI disclosure if they had not reported all companies from which they had received funds >$5000 in the 12 months preceding the guideline's publication. We identified 223 guidelines that were either newly published (109/223; 48.9%) or revised (114/223; 51.1%) within 2014 and were included in the NGC website. Among the 1329 guideline authors with available Open Payments data, 523 received >$5000 from at least 1 healthcare-associated entity. However, only 56 out of the 523 authors (10.7%) were found to have accurate COI disclosure. The percentage of authors with accurate COI disclosure in revised guidelines was significantly lower than in newly published guidelines (6.8% vs 14.3%; P < 0.01) and was also found to differ between specialties. Furthermore, authors were less likely to inaccurately disclose “research payments” (37/49, 75.5%) compared to “general payments” (488/559, 87.3%, P = 0.02) as well as “other/associated research funding” (430/506, 85.0%, P = 0.08). No statistically significant association was detected between funding amount and disclosure accuracy. The majority of guideline authors lacked significant COIs, but among authors that received significant funds from at least 1 healthcare-associated entity the frequency of accurate disclosure was low. These findings indicate that the current process of disclosing COIs may be suboptimal and a proactive approach should be adopted in order to minimize COI reporting discrepancies. Furthermore, every effort should be undertaken to ensure the completeness and accuracy of the data recorded in the Open Payments database.
Why Societies Need Dissent

This book discusses social influences on individual behavior and the risk of error stemming from conformity. Special attention is given to three phenomena: individual conformity to erroneous positions held by group members; informational and reputational cascades; and group polarization, by which individuals end up in a more extreme position in line with their predeliberation tendencies. Applications include legal precedent; terrorism; the effects of largely unenforced law; jury behavior; judicial behavior on panels; free speech; and affirmative action. New data, discussing how judicial votes are affected by judicial colleagues, attests to the pervasiveness of conformity and group polarization. Taken as a whole, the evidence suggests the importance of individual disclosure and dissent to prevent errors by a wide range of social groups.
Highly Accurate Diagnosis of Pleural Tuberculosis by Immunological Analysis of the Pleural Effusion

Pleural TB is notoriously difficult to diagnose due to its paucibacillary nature yet it is the most common cause of pleural effusions in TB endemic countries such as The Gambia. We identified both cellular and soluble biomarkers in the pleural fluid that allowed highly accurate diagnosis of pleural TB compared to peripheral blood markers. Multi-plex cytokine analysis on unstimulated pleural fluid showed that IP-10 resulted in a positive likelihood ratio (LR) of 9.6 versus 2.8 for IFN-γ; a combination of IP-10, IL-6 and IL-10 resulted in an AUC of 0.96 and positive LR of 10. A striking finding was the significantly higher proportion of PPD-specific IFN-γ+TNF-α+ cell population (PPD-IGTA) in the pleural fluid compared to peripheral blood of TB subjects. Presence of this pleural PPD-IGTA population resulted in 95% correct classification of pleural TB disease with a sensitivity of 95% and specificity of 100%. These data suggest that analysis of the site of infection provides superior diagnostic accuracy compared to peripheral blood for pleural TB, likely due to the sequestration of effector cells at this acute stage of disease.
The Shape of the Red Giant Branch Bump as a Diagnostic of Partial Mixing Processes in Low-Mass Stars

We suggest the use of the shape of the red giant branch (RGB) bump in metal-rich globular clusters as a diagnostic of partial mixing processes between the base of the convective envelope and the H-burning shell. The bump located along the differential luminosity function of cluster RGB stars is a key observable to constrain the H-profile inside these structures. In fact, standard evolutionary models that account for complete mixing in the convective unstable layers and radiative equilibrium in the innermost regions do predict that the first dredge-up produces a very sharp H-discontinuity at the bottom of the convective region. Interestingly enough, we found that both atomic diffusion and a moderate convective overshooting at the base of the convective region marginally affects the shape of the RGB bump in the differential luminosity function (LF). As a consequence, we performed several numerical experiments to estimate whether plausible assumptions concerning the smoothing of the H-discontinuity due to the possible occurrence of extra mixing below the convective boundary affect the shape of the RGB bump. We found that the difference between the shape of RGB bump predicted by standard and by smoothed models can be detected if the H-discontinuity is smoothed over an envelope region whose thickness is equal or larger than 0.5 pressure scale heights. Finally, we briefly discuss the comparison between theoretical predictions and empirical data in metal-rich, reddening-free galactic globular clusters (GGCs) to constrain the sharpness of the H-profile inside RGB stars.
Heat Flow Derivatives and Minimum Mean-Square Error in Gaussian Noise

We connect recent developments on Gaussian noise estimation and the Minimum Mean-Square Error to earlier results on entropy and Fisher information heat flow expansion. In particular, the derivatives of the Minimum mean-square error with respect to the noise parameter are related to the heat flow derivatives of the Fisher information and a special Lie algebra structure on iterated gradients. The results lead in particular to a partial answer to the Minimum mean-square error conjecture.
Intravenous Tissue Plasminogen Activator for Acute Ischemic Stroke: A Canadian Hospital’s Experience

Background and Purpose In the United States, tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) was approved for treatment of acute ischemic stroke in 1996. Its use has only recently been approved in Canada. We sought to evaluate the safety, feasibility, and efficacy of treatment in a Canadian hospital setting. Methods A combined retrospective and prospective review is presented of 46 consecutive patients treated with intravenous tPA at our hospital with a treatment protocol similar to that of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) trial. Results Symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage at 36 hours occurred in 1 patient (2.2%). The median time to treat was 165 minutes, with a median “door-to-needle” time of 84 minutes. Compared with patients presenting initially at our hospital, patients transferred from another institution for tPA therapy were treated closer to the 3-hour time window (mean 173 versus 148 minutes, P <0.001) but had a shorter door-to-needle time (43 versus 102 minutes, P <0.001). For every 10 minutes closer to the 3-hour time window that any patient arrived at the hospital, 7 minutes was saved in the door-to-needle time (correlation coefficient 0.9, P <0.001). Patient outcome did not differ from that in the NINDS trial (P >0.75). Conclusions Our safety and patient outcome data compare favorably with NINDS and Phase IV data. Although a 3-hour treatment window was feasible, the median door-to-needle time lengthened as more treatment time was available and the door-to-needle time was beyond recommended standards. This review has prompted changes in our community to improve treatment efficiency.
Organizational Readiness for Evidence-Based Practice

Objective: This study explored factors that affect the adoption or rejection of evidence-based practice (EBP) changes and differences in nurse manager and staff nurse perceptions about those factors. Background: Roger's Diffusion of Innovations Theory explains relevant organizational strategies for guiding practice change. Methods: The primary author developed the Evidence-Based Practice Changes Survey consisting of 12 items, completed by 92 nurses at a level 1 trauma center. Results: Top barriers to EBP were insufficient time, lack of staff, and not having the right equipment and supplies. Top reasons to adopt EBP were having personal interest in the practice change, avoiding risk of negative consequences to the patient, and personally valuing the evidence. Several statistically significant differences emerged for demographic variables. Conclusion: Planning for EBP change must address barriers and facilitators to practice change and emphasize the benefit for patients and value of the practice change to nurses.