Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Clinical clerkship timing revisited: Support for non-uniform sequencing

Background: The logistical necessity of students taking required clinical clerkship rotations in non-uniform sequences may have significant consequences on performance. Aims: To investigate (1) the impact of previous clinical clerkship experience and the national licensing examination (USMLE Step 1) rankings on end-of-clerkship overall skills assessments and (2) the effect of clinical clerkship order on end-of-year objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) performance. Method: The core clinical phase of UCLA consists at six clinical clerkships during a 48-week continuum. The clerkships are structured in two different tracks with different rotation order. Clinical performance scores were analyzed for 124 year-3 students in the two different tracks. Results: Performance, as reviewed on a standardized clinical clerkship evaluation form by faculty and residents, improved significantly across the clinical year, regardless of track suggesting an accumulated advantage of previous experiences. There were no significant differences between tracks on the OSCE. Conclusions: Overall clinical skills are more directly impacted by the time-of-year and not order whereas knowledge of specific specialties may be impacted by the order rotations that are taken. While this may not be obvious to students, perhaps we should share these results for their use in tracking their personal growth in clinical skills.
CD4 T cells integrate signals delivered during successive DC encounters in vivo

The cellular mode of T cell priming in vivo remains to be characterized fully. We investigated the fate of T cell–dendritic cell (DC) interactions in the late phase of T cell activation in the lymph node. In general, CD4 T cells detach from DCs before undergoing cell division. Using a new approach to track the history of antigen (Ag)-recognition events, we demonstrated that activated/divided T cells reengage different DCs in an Ag-specific manner. Two-photon imaging of intact lymph nodes suggested that T cells could establish prolonged interactions with DCs at multiple stages during the activation process. Importantly, signals that are delivered during subsequent DC contacts are integrated by the T cell and promote sustained IL-2Rα expression and IFN-γ production. Thus, repeated encounters with Ag-bearing DCs can occur in vivo and modulate CD4 T cell differentiation programs.
The Oxford Handbook of Bayesian Econometrics

Bayesian econometric methods have enjoyed an increase in popularity in recent years. Econometricians, empirical economists, and policymakers are increasingly making use of Bayesian methods. This handbook is a single source for researchers and policymakers wanting to learn about Bayesian methods in specialized fields, and for graduate students seeking to make the final step from textbook learning to the research frontier. It contains contributions by leading Bayesians on the latest developments in their specific fields of expertise. The volume provides broad coverage of the application of Bayesian econometrics in the major fields of economics and related disciplines, including macroeconomics, microeconomics, finance, and marketing. It reviews the state of the art in Bayesian econometric methodology, with chapters on posterior simulation and Markov chain Monte Carlo methods, Bayesian nonparametric techniques, and the specialized tools used by Bayesian time series econometricians such as state space models and particle filtering. It also includes chapters on Bayesian principles and methodology. Contributors to this volume - Greg Allenby, Ohio State University Gary Chamberlain, Harvard University Siddhartha Chib, Washington University in St Louis Marco Del Negro, Federal Reserve Bank of New York John Geweke, University of Technology Sydney Paolo Giordani, Swedish Central Bank. Jim Griffin, University of Kent Eric Jacquier, HEC Montreal Robert Kohn, University of New South Wales Gary Koop, University of Strathclyde Mingliang Li, State University of New York at Buffalo Michael Pitt, University of Warwick Dale J. Poirier, University of California, Irvine Nicholas G. Polson, Booth School of Business, University of Chicago Fernando Pontificia, Universidad Catolica de Chile Peter E. Rossi, UCLA Anderson School of Management Frank Schorfheide, University of Pennsylvania Mark F.J. Steel, University of Warwick Justin Tobias, Purdue University Herman van Dijk, Erasmus University Rotterdam
Pathways to substance-related disorder: a structural model approach exploring the influence of temperament, character, and childhood adversity in a national cohort of prisoners.

AIMS Using Cloninger's model of personality, we aimed to specify the relative influence of the more biologically determined variables, temperament and character and more environmentally driven influence, childhood adversity in the development of addiction; and to compare patterns found among alcoholics with those found among drug addicts. METHODS We studied a group of prisoners, at a high risk of substance abuse and past history of childhood adversity. Using a stratified random strategy we selected (i) 23 prisons among the different types of prison in France, (ii) 998 prisoners. Each prisoner was assessed by two psychiatrists--one junior, using a structured interview (MINI 5 plus), and one senior, completing the procedure with an open clinical interview. At the end of the interview the clinicians met and agreed on a list of diagnoses. Cloninger's Temperament and Character Inventory was used to measure personality. Structural equations models, which have been advocated to disentangle the respective influence of complex risk factors, were used. RESULTS The "novelty seeking" temperament was a crucial vulnerability factor, for both alcoholics and drug addicts, in the same proportion. Character and childhood adversity played a significant part only in the development of drug abuse. CONCLUSIONS In a prison population, a common biological loaded factor, novelty seeking is found both at the core of alcohol- and drug-related disorder whereas environmentally loaded factors play a greater role in drug problems.
An illustrated key to the genera and subgenera of the Recent azooxanthellate Scleractinia (Cnidaria, Anthozoa), with an attached glossary

Abstract The 120 presently recognized genera and seven subgenera of the azooxanthellate Scleractinia are keyed using gross morphological characters of the corallum. All genera are illustrated with calicular and side views of coralla. All termes used in the key are defined in an illustrated glossary. A table of all species-level keys, both comprehensive and faunistic, is provided covering the last 40 years.
Management of osteoarthritis (OA) with an unsupervised home based exercise programme and/or patient administered assessment tools. A cluster randomised controlled trial with a 2×2 factorial design

Background: Diary recording of pain and disabling activities in osteoarthritis (OA) is widely recommended, but, to our knowledge, its impact on symptoms has not been investigated. Exercise programmes have been shown to be effective when patients are closely supervised by nurses or physiotherapists; however, data are lacking on the efficacy of an unsupervised home based exercise regimen in patients with OA. Objectives: To evaluate the clinical efficacy of patient administered assessment tools and an unsupervised home based exercise programme alone or in combination in patients with OA. Methods: The study was a 24 week, open cluster randomised controlled trial with a factorial design. Rheumatologists (n = 867) were assigned to four groups according to the treatment given: standardised tools (ST; n = 220), exercises (EX; n = 213), both tools and exercises (ST+EX; n = 213), or usual care (n = 221). Each rheumatologist was to enrol four patients who met the American College of Rheumatology criteria for OA (three with knee OA, one with hip OA). "Tools" consisted of weekly recording of pain and disabling activities in a diary. A home based exercise programme was performed daily at least four times per week with the aid of videotape and booklet. In addition to exercise and asessment, all patients received 12.5 mg or 25 mg of the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug rofecoxib once daily. Outcome variables were: pain (measured on a visual analogue scale, 0–100); Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index, function subscale (0–100); and patient assessment of the quality of care (0–100). Results: Overall, 2957 patients with OA (2216 knee, 741 hip) were included. After 24 weeks, both pain and function improved in the ST, EX, ST+EX, and usual care groups (mean (SD) −17 (27), −20 (29), −15 (27), −19 (29); and −11 (19), −12 (19), −10 (19), −11 (20), respectively), without significant differences between groups. However, patients in the EX and ST+EX groups were more likely to agree that their rheumatologist had done his best to preserve their functional and physical activities. Conclusion: Although patients’ assessments favoured the exercise programme, results from this study failed to demonstrate a short term symptomatic effect of the two non-pharmacological treatments (weekly recording of condition and exercise) in patients with OA concurrently receiving nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.
Estilos de crianza en la adolescencia y su relación con el comportamiento prosocial: Their realtion with prosocial behavior

El trabajo muestra dos estudios realizados con adolescentes espanoles cuyo objetivo es estudiar la relacion entre los estilos de crianza, el comportamiento prosocial y la empatia, la agresividad, la inestabilidad emocional y la ira desde un doble planteamiento: en uno de los estudios (N = 531) la evaluacion de los estilos de crianza la realiza la madre y en el otro (N = 782), los adolescentes. Los resultados indican que cuando es la madre quien evalua los estilos de crianza, estos alcanzan menor poder predictor en el comportamiento prosocial. La evaluacion positiva del hijo/a, el apoyo emocional junto con la coherencia en la aplicacion de las normas es el estilo de crianza mas relacionado positivamente con la empatia y con el comportamiento prosocial.
Underdetermined blind separation and tracking of moving sources based ONDOA-HMM

This paper deals with the problem of the underdetermined blind separation and tracking of moving sources. In practical situations, sound sources such as human speakers can move freely and so blind separation algorithms must be designed to track the temporal changes of the impulse responses. We propose solving this problem through the posterior inference of the parameters in a generative model of an observed multichannel signal, formulated under the assumption of the sparsity of time-frequency components of speech and the continuity of speakers' movements. Specifically, we describe a generative model of mixture signals by incorporating a generative model of a time-varying frequency array response for each source, described using a path-restricted hidden Markov model (HMM). Each hidden state of the present HMM represents the direction of arrival (DOA) of each source, and so we call it a “DOA-HMM. ” Through the posterior inference of the overall generative model, we can simultaneously track the DOAs of sources, separate source signals and perform permutation alignment. The experiment showed that the proposed algorithm provided a 6.20 dB improvement compared with the conventional method in terms of the signal-to-interference ratio.
Representatively memorable: sampling the right phrase set to get the text entry experiment right

In text entry experiments, memorability is a desired property of the phrases used as stimuli. Unfortunately, to date there is no automated method to achieve this effect. As a result, researchers have to use either manually curated English-only phrase sets or sampling procedures that do not guarantee phrases being memorable. In response to this need, we present a novel sampling method based on two core ideas: a multiple regression model over language-independent features, and the statistical analysis of the corpus from which phrases will be drawn. Our results show that researchers can finally use a method to successfully curate their own stimuli targeting potentially any language or domain. The source code as well as our phrase sets are publicly available.
Glutamatergic synaptic plasticity in the mesocorticolimbic system in addiction

Addictive drugs remodel the brain’s reward circuitry, the mesocorticolimbic dopamine (DA) system, by inducing widespread adaptations of glutamatergic synapses. This drug-induced synaptic plasticity is thought to contribute to both the development and the persistence of addiction. This review highlights the synaptic modifications that are induced by in vivo exposure to addictive drugs and describes how these drug-induced synaptic changes may contribute to the different components of addictive behavior, such as compulsive drug use despite negative consequences and relapse. Initially, exposure to an addictive drug induces synaptic changes in the ventral tegmental area (VTA). This drug-induced synaptic potentiation in the VTA subsequently triggers synaptic changes in downstream areas of the mesocorticolimbic system, such as the nucleus accumbens (NAc) and the prefrontal cortex (PFC), with further drug exposure. These glutamatergic synaptic alterations are then thought to mediate many of the behavioral symptoms that characterize addiction. The later stages of glutamatergic synaptic plasticity in the NAc and in particular in the PFC play a role in maintaining addiction and drive relapse to drug-taking induced by drug-associated cues. Remodeling of PFC glutamatergic circuits can persist into adulthood, causing a lasting vulnerability to relapse. We will discuss how these neurobiological changes produced by drugs of abuse may provide novel targets for potential treatment strategies for addiction.
Obesity and Age at Diagnosis of Endometrial Cancer

OBJECTIVE: Obesity is an established risk factor for development of endometrial cancer. We hypothesized that obesity might also be associated with an earlier age at endometrial cancer diagnosis, because mechanisms that drive the obesity–endometrial cancer association might also accelerate tumorigenesis. METHODS: A retrospective chart review was conducted of all cases of endometrial cancer diagnosed from 1999 to 2009 at a large medical center in New York City. The association of body mass index (BMI) with age at endometrial cancer diagnosis, comorbidities, stage, grade, and radiation treatment was examined using analysis of variance and linear regression. Overall survival by BMI category was assessed using Kaplan-Meier method and the log-rank test. RESULTS: A total of 985 cases of endometrial cancer were identified. The mean age at endometrial cancer diagnosis was 67.1 years (±11.9 standard deviation) in women with a normal BMI, whereas it was 56.3 years (±10.3 standard deviation) in women with a BMI greater than 50. Age at diagnosis of endometrioid-type cancer decreased linearly with increasing BMI (y=67.89–1.86x, R2=0.049, P<.001). This association persisted after multivariable adjustment (R2=0.181, P<.02). A linear association between BMI and age of nonendometrioid cancers was not found (P=.12). There were no differences in overall survival by BMI category. CONCLUSIONS: Obesity is associated with earlier age at diagnosis of endometrioid-type endometrial cancers. Similar associations were not, however, observed with nonendometrioid cancers, consistent with different pathways of tumorigenesis. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: II
Treatment of osteochondral injuries with platelet gel

OBJECTIVES: Treatments for injured articular cartilage have not advanced to the point that efficient regeneration is possible. However, there has been an increase in the use of platelet-rich plasma for the treatment of several orthopedic disorders, including chondral injuries. Our hypothesis is that the treatment of chondral injuries with platelet gel results in higher-quality repair tissue after 180 days compared with chondral injuries not treated with gel. METHODS: A controlled experimental laboratory study was performed on 30 male rabbits to evaluate osteochondral injury repair after treatment with or without platelet gel. Osteochondral injuries were surgically induced in both knees of each rabbit at the medial femoral condyle. The left knee injury was filled with the platelet gel, and the right knee was not treated. Microscopic analysis of both knee samples was performed after 180 days using a histological grading scale. RESULTS: The only histological evaluation criterion that was not significantly different between treatments was metachromasia. The group that was treated with platelet gel exhibited superior results in all other criteria (cell morphology, surface regularity, chondral thickness and repair tissue integration) and in the total score. CONCLUSION: The repair tissue was histologically superior after 180 days in the study group treated with platelet gel compared with the group of untreated injuries.
Aspects of Process in an ESL Critical Pedagogy Teacher.

* The second and foreign language (S/FL) education literature has featured a number of discussions of the content of critical pedagogy (Crawford-Lange, 1981; Pennycook, 1990a, 1990b, 1994), though there are few accounts of the processes involved in implementing it in a S/FL teacher education context (but see Auerbach & Wallerstein, 1987). In this brief account of our use of these ideas in S/FL teacher education, we would like to raise the profile of critical pedagogy in ESL/EFL a little higher and provide some suggestions particularly related to classroom processes that we hope will be of use to others working in this area. ' Critical pedagogy is an approach to teaching and curriculum informed by critical social theory that "seeks to understand and critique the historical and sociopolitical context of schooling and to develop pedagogical practices that aim not only to change the nature of schooling, but also the wider society" (Pennycook, 1990b, p. 24). 2 A key distinction is made (originally by Freire, 1970) between two types of
Effects of grazing intensity and the use of veterinary medical products on dung beetle biodiversity in the sub-mountainous landscape of Central Italy

Grazing extensification and intensification are among the main problems affecting European grasslands. We analyze the impact of grazing intensity (low and moderate) and the use of veterinary medical products (VMPs) on the dung beetle community in the province of Pesaro-Urbino (Italy). Grazing intensity is a key factor in explaining the diversity of dung beetles. In the case of the alpha diversity component, sites with a low level of grazing activity—related in a previous step to the subsequent abandonment of traditional farming—is characterized by a loss of species richness (q = 0) and a reduction in alpha diversity at the levels q = 1 and q = 2. In the case of beta diversity, sites with a different grazing intensity show remarkable differences in terms of the composition of their species assemblages. The use of VMPs is another important factor in explaining changes in dung beetle diversity. In sites with a traditional use of VMPs, a significant loss of species richness and biomass is observed, as is a notable effect on beta diversity. In addition, the absence of indicator species in sites with a historical use of VMPs corroborates the hypothesis that these substances have a ubiquitous effect on dung beetles. However, the interaction between grazing activity and VMPs when it comes to explaining changes in dung beetle diversity is less significant (or is not significant) than the main effects (each factor separately) for alpha diversity, biomass and species composition. This may be explained if we consider that both factors affect the various species differently. In other words, the reduction in dung availability affects several larger species more than it does very small species, although this does not imply that the former are more susceptible to injury caused by the ingestion of dung contaminated with VMPs. Finally, in order to prevent negative consequences for dung beetle diversity, we propose the maintenance of a moderate grazing intensity and the rational use of VMPs. It is our view that organic management can prevent excessive extensification while providing an economic stimulus to the sector. Simultaneously, it can also prevent the abuse of VMPs.
Environmental Factors Influencing Relapse Behavior among Adolescent Opiate Users in Kerman (A Province in Iran)

This study explores the importance of the environmental factors on drug use and its effects on relapse. In this respect, the effects of peer groups and availability of drug are discussed in this research. Environmental factors have played a crucial role in both male adolescents drug use and relapse and could increase the likelihood of their becoming addicted to drugs and relapse (Taylor, Lioyd, & Warheit, 2006). An individual can have a variety of environments such as the family, community, school and friends, within each the risk of addiction and relapse might develop (Genetic science learning center, 2008). Furthermore, the adolescents have an influential need to spend more time with their surrounding environment; i.e. more time with peers and less with their families (Bezuidenhout & Joubert, 2003). Nearly 60% of Iran population is under the 25 and spending more time with friends is a prior preference among this young people. Also the adolescents‟ tendency toward using drugs is eased and reinforced with their availability since Iran is neighboring Afghanistan, a country of the greatest poppy and natural drugs with an annual production rate of almost 3000 tons (Farjad, 2000). Thus, one can assume that environmental factors play an important role in increasing the possibility of relapse after treatment. Therefore, this study considers two factors: peer groups and availability of drugs. The objective of this study is to examine the effects of environmental factors on relapse behavior among male adolescent opiate users in Kerman. In this research 226 adolescents between the ages of 13 to 20 were selected based on ten rehabilitation centers to answer the face to face interview questionnaire. Results indicated that there were significant relationships between these factors with relapse in adolescents. The study proposes some suggestions in order to prevent relapse after treatment in adolescents.