Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Liver Damage Associated with Polygonum multiflorum Thunb.: A Systematic Review of Case Reports and Case Series

Objective. To summarize the characteristics and analysis of relevant factors and to give references for prevention and further study of liver damage associated with Polygonum multiflorum Thunb. (HSW), we provide a systematic review of case reports and case series about liver damage associated with HSW. Methods. An extensive search of 6 medical databases was performed up to June 2014. Case reports and case series involving liver damage associated with HSW were included. Results. This review covers a total of 450 cases in 76 articles. HSW types included raw and processed HSW decoction pieces and many Chinese patent medicines that contain HSW. Symptoms of liver damage occur mostly a month or so after taking the medicine, mainly including jaundice, fatigue, anorexia, and yellow or tawny urine. Of the 450 patients, two cases who received liver transplantation and seven who died, the remaining 441 cases recovered or had liver function improvement after discontinuing HSW products and conservative care. Conclusion. HSW causes liver toxicity and may cause liver damage in different degrees and even lead to death; most of them are much related to long-term and overdose of drugs. Liver damage associated with HSW is reversible, and, after active treatment, the majority can be cured. People should be alert to liver damage when taking HSW preparations.
Monthly Arctic Sea Ice Signatures for use in Passive Microwave Algorithms December 1998

The present report describes the determination of a set of monthly tiepoints for use in sea ice retrieval by passive microwave radiometry. From archived DMSP F-13 SSM/I data from 1996 and 1997 as well as surface temperatures from the NCEP reanalysis, emissivities are computed and analysed on a 250x250 km grid. The results are sets of monthly tiepoints for First Year ice and Open Water extracted over the Arctic Ocean, the Baffin Bay and the Bal-tic as well as a set of monthly tiepoints for Multi Year ice valid for the Arctic Ocean. The tiepoints cover the 19V, 19H, 37V, 37H, 85V and 85H channels. The tiepoints over open water are found from Radiative Transfer simulations to be consistent with water vapour and wind climatology. Due to this and the use of emissivity the tiepoints support the use of auxiliary data to eliminate surface temperature and atmospheric influences. Geographical differences between the Arctic and the Baffin Bay are small for the 19 and 37 GHz channels. The differences at 85 GHz in specific and between the Baltic and the Arctic in general are substantial. In the two year data set interannual variation in emissivity is largest in the summer months over Multi Year ice (up to 0.06) while typical differences are 0.01. The analysis reveals large variations in the 85 GHz signature over Multi Year ice, that complicate ice type determination by the use of these channels.
Extending modern SAT solvers for models enumeration

In this paper, we address the problem of enumerating all models of a Boolean formula in conjunctive normal form (CNF). We propose an extension of Conflict Driven Clause Learning (CDCL) based SAT solvers to deal with this fundamental problem. Then, we provide an experimental evaluation of our proposed SAT model enumeration algorithms on both satisfiable SAT instances taken from the last SAT challenge and on instances from the SAT-based encoding of sequence mining problems.
Junction-aware extraction and regularization of urban road networks in high-resolution SAR images

A general processing framework for urban road network extraction in high-resolution synthetic aperture radar images is proposed. It is based on novel multiscale detection of street candidates, followed by optimization using a Markov random field description of the road network. The latter step, in the path of recent technical literature, is enriched by the inclusion of a priori knowledge about road junctions and the automatic choice of most of the involved parameters. Advantages over existing and previous extraction and optimization procedures are proved by comparison using data from different sensors and locations
Why Ergodic Theory Does Not Explain the Success of Equilibrium Statistical Mechanics

We argue that, contrary to some analyses in the philosophy of science literature, ergodic theory falls short in explaining the success of classical equilibrium statistical mechanics. Our claim is based on the observations that dynamical systems for which statistical mechanics works are most likely not ergodic, and that ergodicity is both too strong and too weak a condition for the required explanation: one needs only ergodic-like behaviour for the finite set of observables that matter, but the behaviour must ensure that the approach to equilibrium for these observables is on the appropriate time-scale.
Liposome Reconstitution and Modulation of Recombinant Prenylated Human Rac1 by GEFs, GDI1 and Pak1

Small Rho GTPases are well known to regulate a variety of cellular processes by acting as molecular switches. The regulatory function of Rho GTPases is critically dependent on their posttranslational modification at the carboxyl terminus by isoprenylation and association with proper cellular membranes. Despite numerous studies, the mechanisms of recycling and functional integration of Rho GTPases at the biological membranes are largely unclear. In this study, prenylated human Rac1, a prominent member of the Rho family, was purified in large amount from baculovirus-infected Spodoptera frugiperda insect cells using a systematic detergent screening. In contrast to non-prenylated human Rac1 purified from Escherichia coli, prenylated Rac1 from insect cells was able to associate with synthetic liposomes and to bind Rho-specific guanine nucleotide dissociation inhibitor 1 (GDI1). Subsequent liposome reconstitution experiments revealed that GDI1 efficiently extracts Rac1 from liposomes preferentially in the inactive GDP-bound state. The extraction was prevented when Rac1 was activated to its GTP-bound state by Rac-specific guanine nucleotide exchange factors (GEFs), such as Vav2, Dbl, Tiam1, P-Rex1 and TrioN, and bound by the downstream effector Pak1. We found that dissociation of Rac1-GDP from its complex with GDI1 strongly correlated with two distinct activities of especially Dbl and Tiam1, including liposome association and the GDP/GTP exchange. Taken together, our results provided first detailed insights into the advantages of the in vitro liposome-based reconstitution system to study both the integration of the signal transducing protein complexes and the mechanisms of regulation and signaling of small GTPases at biological membranes.
Seagrass nurseries contribute to coral reef fish populations

We here provide strong evidence that seagrass beds act as nurseries providing fish to adult populations of a coral reef fish. We studied this habitat connectivity by tracing life history movements of the Caribbean reef fish Ocyurus chrysurus (yellowtail snapper). Carbon‐ and nitrogen‐stable isotope variations in muscle tissue and otoliths (ear bones) record former food sources and show that 98% of the O. chrysurus reef population has likely passed through seagrass nurseries as juveniles during their first 2 yr of life. Our findings indicate a significant degree of habitat connectivity and stress; in order to conserve healthy reefs and sustainable fisheries of O. chrysurus, marine protected areas and fisheries reserves that traditionally focus on protecting only the coral reef habitat should be expanded to include seagrass nurseries.
Errors and mistakes: evaluating the accuracy of social judgment.

Laboratory research on "error" in social judgment has largely supplanted research that addresses accuracy issues more directly. Moreover, this research attracts a great deal of attention because of what many take to be its dismal implications for the accuracy of human social reasoning. These implications are illusory, however, because an error is not the same thing as a "mistake. " An error is a judgment of an experimental stimulus that departs from a model of the judgment process. If this model is normative, then the error can be said to represent an incorrect judgment. A mistake, by contrast, is an incorrect judgment of a real-world stimulus and therefore more difficult to determine. Although errors can be highly informative about the process of judgment in general, they are not necessarily relevant to the content or accuracy of particular judgments, because errors in a laboratory may not be mistakes with respect to a broader, more realistic frame of reference and the processes that produce such errors might lead to correct decisions and adaptive outcomes in real life. Several examples are described in this article. Accuracy issues cannot be addressed by research that concentrates on demonstrating error in relation to artificial stimuli, but only by research that uses external, realistic criteria for accuracy. These criteria might include the degree to which judgments agree with each other and yield valid predictions of behavior. The accuracy of human social judgment is a topic of obvious interest and importance. It is only natural to wonder to what degree the judgments we make of the personalities of ourselves and others might be right or wrong, and to desire to improve our accuracy. Nonpsychologists are often surprised and disappointed, therefore, when they begin to take psychology courses and discover that the field has largely foresworn interest in the accuracy issue. The discipline's early, direct interest in accuracy (e.g., Estes, 1938; Taft, 1955; Vernon, 1933) was all but completely stifled some years ago by the publication of a series of methodological critiques by Cronbach (1955), Hastorf and Bender (1952), and others. As a result, according to one authoritative textbook:
On Bayesian Analyses and Finite Mixture Models for Proportions

We adopt a Bayesian approach to the analysis of six data sets recording foetal control mortality in mouse litters. We illustrate how a variety of diierent models may be considered, using Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) simulation techniques, and compare the results with the corresponding maximum likelihood analyses. We present an auxiliary variable method for determining the probability that any particular data cell is assigned to a given component in a mixture and we illustrate the value of this approach as a means of interpreting the model parameter representing the overall weight given to any particular component in terms of the observations. Finally, we show how the Bayesian approach provides a natural and unique perspective on the model selection problem via reversible jump MCMC and illustrate how probabilities associated with each of the diierent models may be calculated for each data set. In terms of estimation we show how, by averaging over the diierent models, we obtain reliable and robust inference for any statistic of interest.
Estimating Receptive Fields from Responses to Natural Stimuli with Asymmetric Intensity Distributions

The reasons for using natural stimuli to study sensory function are quickly mounting, as recent studies have revealed important differences in neural responses to natural and artificial stimuli. However, natural stimuli typically contain strong correlations and are spherically asymmetric (i.e. stimulus intensities are not symmetrically distributed around the mean), and these statistical complexities can bias receptive field (RF) estimates when standard techniques such as spike-triggered averaging or reverse correlation are used. While a number of approaches have been developed to explicitly correct the bias due to stimulus correlations, there is no complementary technique to correct the bias due to stimulus asymmetries. Here, we develop a method for RF estimation that corrects reverse correlation RF estimates for the spherical asymmetries present in natural stimuli. Using simulated neural responses, we demonstrate how stimulus asymmetries can bias reverse-correlation RF estimates (even for uncorrelated stimuli) and illustrate how this bias can be removed by explicit correction. We demonstrate the utility of the asymmetry correction method under experimental conditions by estimating RFs from the responses of retinal ganglion cells to natural stimuli and using these RFs to predict responses to novel stimuli.
Role of Organizational Citizenship Behavior (OCB), Perception of Justice and Job Satisfaction on Employee Performance

This study aims to investigate the role of organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) on employee performance through perception of justice and job satisfaction of employees. Sample for the present study consisted of 309 employees working in Baitul Maal Wat Tamwil (BMT) of Central Java. Result of regression analysis indicated that perception of justice was positively and significantly related to job satisfaction and organizational citizenship behavior (OCB), whereas job satisfaction was found to be related positively and significantly with organizational citizenship behavior (OCB). Then, also perception of justice, job satisfaction, and organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) were found to be related positively and significantly with employee performance. Based on these results, it can be interpreted that perception of justice, job satisfaction, and organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) are valuable components of an organization. These components can become important factors to improve employee and organizational performance. Theoretical and practical implications of the result are discussed.
Designing Deep Convolutional Neural Networks for Continuous Object Orientation Estimation

Deep Convolutional Neural Networks (DCNN) have been proven to be effective for various computer vision problems. In this work, we demonstrate its effectiveness on a continuous object orientation estimation task, which requires prediction of 0 to 360 degrees orientation of the objects. We do so by proposing and comparing three continuous orientation prediction approaches designed for the DCNNs. The first two approaches work by representing an orientation as a point on a unit circle and minimizing either L2 loss or angular difference loss. The third method works by first converting the continuous orientation estimation task into a set of discrete orientation estimation tasks and then converting the discrete orientation outputs back to the continuous orientation using a mean-shift algorithm. By evaluating on a vehicle orientation estimation task and a pedestrian orientation estimation task, we demonstrate that the discretization-based approach not only works better than the other two approaches but also achieves state-of-the-art performance. We also demonstrate that finding an appropriate feature representation is critical to achieve a good performance when adapting a DCNN trained for an image recognition task.
Psychometric Properties of the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support Within Hispanic College Students

The purpose of the current study was to investigate the psychometric properties of the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS) within a sample of Hispanic college students. The sample of 223 Hispanic or Latino/a college students consisting of 142 women (65%) and 79 men (35%) was recruited from a Hispanic serving institution in the southern United States. The results of factor analysis confirmed the three-subscale structure of the MSPSS: family, friend, and a significant other.
The visually-evoked auditory response

In synaesthesia a sensation in one modality triggers a consciously perceived sensation in another sensory modality or cognitive domain. In this thesis we investigate auditory sensation that are induced by dynamic visual stimuli, akin to hearing-motion synaesthesia (Saenz and Koch, 2008). We term this the Visually-Evoked Auditory Response (vEAR). We first establish the prevalence of vEAR in a random sample, with questionnaire responses indicating a higher prevalence (as many as 1 in 5) than canonical synaesthesias. We report that those who experience vEAR showed better performance compared to controls when discriminating between ‘Morse-code’ style rhythmic sequences in the visual domain, as did Saenz and Koch (2008). We also demonstrate that vEAR is perceptually real enough to interfere with hearing real world sounds. We then demonstrate that in control subjects Transcranial Alternating Current Stimulation (TACS), when applied over the temporal versus the occipital lobes, impairs auditory versus visual sequence discrimination respectively. However, temporal TACS improved visual and occipital TACS improved auditory sequence discrimination performance. This suggests the presence of normally-occurring mutual alpha-mediated competitive inhibition of the two cortices. This TACS effect was not seen in individuals with vEAR, indicating that their auditory and visual cortices are able to cooperate to perform the task despite disruption from TACS. Finally, we investigate the types of visual stimuli that best evoke vEAR, and the types of people who tend to experience it. We conducted a large online survey in which respondents rated the amount of vEAR evoked by a series of silent videos depicting types of motion. The predictiveness of a real-world sound was identified as a major contributor to ratings in all respondents, while motion energy (raw changes in light over space and time) specifically influenced ratings in those who experience vEAR. We also report demographic and trait questions relating to auditory perception that predict higher ratings, including the frequency one experiences music imagery in their head, or whether they have tinnitus or types of synaesthesia. We conclude that vEAR results from both high and low-level connectivity between the visual and auditory cortices and an atypical inhibition of these connections.
Increased risk of mortality in the elderly population with late-stage chronic kidney disease: a cohort study in Taiwan.

BACKGROUND Taiwan has the world's highest incidence and second highest prevalence of end-stage renal disease (ESRD), particularly in older age groups. However, the transition from chronic kidney disease (CKD) to death or ESRD remains unclear. This study aimed to investigate the impact of late-stage CKD on all-cause and cause-specific mortality by identifying the CKD population. METHODS This was an observational cohort study (n = 35 529), mean age 75.7 years (SD = 5.3), of participants in the Elderly Health Examination Program (EHEP) in Kaohsiung City, Taiwan, between 2002 and 2004. Estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) was calculated by the simplified modified diet in renal disease equation. Proportional hazard ratios (HR) of mortality associated with late-stage CKD were assessed by Cox regression. RESULTS The crude prevalence rate of CKD stages 3-5 was 39.4%; 1840 participants (5.18%) died within 2-year follow-up, a mortality rate of 20.3 per 1000 person-years overall and 16.4 per 1000 person-years in the reference group. Higher HR for all-cause and cause-specific mortality were found in the groups with decreased eGFR. Compared with the reference group (eGFR > 60 mL/min/1.73 m(2)), adjusted HR for all-cause mortality were 1.5, 2.1 and 2.6 for groups with eGFR 30-44, 15-29 and < 15 mL/min/ 1.73 m(2), respectively (P < 0.001). Higher HR of mortality due to cardiovascular or renal diseases were also significantly associated with decreased eGFR (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION Late-stage CKD is a significant risk factor for mortality, especially due to cardiovascular and renal diseases, in elderly Taiwanese. Given the higher prevalence rate of late-stage CKD in the study area, CKD patient mortality was relatively lower, which might reflect underestimation of renal function for patients at early stages of CKD, or partly explain the high ESRD population.
The acute brain response to levodopa heralds dyskinesias in Parkinson disease

In Parkinson disease (PD), long‐term treatment with the dopamine precursor levodopa gradually induces involuntary “dyskinesia” movements. The neural mechanisms underlying the emergence of levodopa‐induced dyskinesias in vivo are still poorly understood. Here, we applied functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to map the emergence of peak‐of‐dose dyskinesias in patients with PD.
The gradual threshold model of ambivalence: relating the positive and negative bases of attitudes to subjective ambivalence.

This research examined the relationship between the measured (Study 1) and manipulated (Studies 2 and 3) positive and negative bases of attitudes and the psychological experience of attitudinal ambivalence. On the basis of these studies, the gradual threshold model of ambivalence (GTM) was advanced. The GTM holds that: (a) ambivalence increases in a negatively accelerating manner as the number of conflicting reactions (whichever of the positive or negative reactions are fewer in number) increases, (b) ambivalence is a negative function of the extent of dominant reactions, and (c) as the number of conflicting reactions increases, the impact of dominant reactions on ambivalence gradually decreases such that at some level of conflicting reactions (i.e, the threshold), the number of dominant reactions no longer has an impact on subjective ambivalence.
PENGARUH AKUNTABILITAS DAN KOMPETENSI TERHADAP KUALITAS AUDIT(Survei Terhadap 5 Kantor Akuntan Publik di Kota Bandung)

ABSTRAK Penelitian ini berjudul “Pengaruh Akuntabilitas dan Kompetensi terhadap Kualitas audit”. Tujuan dari penelitian ini adalah untuk mengetahui akuntabilitas, kompetensi dan kualitas audit pada 5 Kantor Akuntan Publik di Bandung. Selain itu, untuk mengetahui seberapa besar pengaruh akuntabilitas dan kompetensi secara parsial dan simultan terhadap kualitas audit. Pendekatan penelitian yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini adalah metode deskriptif dan asosiatif dengan menggunakan data primer. Populasi pada penelitian ini adalah auditor pada 5 Kantor Akuntan Publik di Bandung. Teknik sampling yang digunakan adalah probability sampling dengan teknik yang diambil yaitu proportionate stratified random sampling. Sampel penelitian yang digunakan adalah 40 orang auditor dengan sumber data yang diperoleh melalui pengisian kuesioner. Analisis statistik yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini adalah uji asumsi klasik, analisis regresi, korelasi, pengujian hipotesis dengan menggunakan uji t dan uji f serta analisis keofisien determinasi parsial dan simultan. Berdasarkan hasil penelitian yang dilakukan dapat diketahui bahwa akuntabilitas dan kompetensii secara parsial berpengaruh terhadap kualitas audit. Besarnya pengaruh akuntabilitas terhadap kualitas audit 70,5 % dan pengaruh kompetensi terhadap kualitas audit 89,9 %. Secara simultan akuntabilitas dan kompetensi berpengaruh terhadap kualitas audit, dan besar pengaruhnya sebesar 90,3 % . Sedangkan sisanya yaitu sebesar 9,7% merupakan pengaruh faktor lain di luar kedua variabel independen yang sedang diteliti antara lain independensi, due professional care, pengalaman. Kata Kunci:
Enhancing Sexual Health, Self-Identity and Wellbeing among Men Who Have Sex With Men: A Guide for Practitioners

By analysing research into links between low psychological wellbeing and sexual risk-taking behaviours that occur in men who have sex with men (MSM), this book demonstrates what impact social and psychological interventions could have on MSM at risk of poor sexual outcomes. At the heart of the book is Identity Process Theory, co-developed by the author, a social psychological theory of identity construction, threat and coping. The book considers the emerging debates in MSM's health, such as the use of Grindr and 'chemsex', and also explores the socio-structural factors, such as homophobia and stigma, that threaten the self-identity of MSM. The book offers principles and techniques from this theory that can be used as an effective intervention and therapeutic model with MSM to build more positive identities and reduce sexual risk-taking.