Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Prognostic value of pretreatment prognostic nutritional index is superior to neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio for survival in patients with neuroendocrine tumors

Purpose: The immune-nutritional factors neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet to lymphocyte ratio (PLR) and prognostic nutritional index (PNI) are prognostic factors for various types of cancer. This study aimed to explore the clinical significance of the immune-nutritional factors in neuroendocrine tumors (NETs). Methods: We retrospectively reviewed patients diagnosed with GEP-NENs or PNETs between January, 2005 and December, 2014 in the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University. The associations between clinicopathological parameters and immune-nutritional factors were assessed via Chi-squared (χ2) test. The prognostic significance of immunenutritional biomarkers was determined by both univariate and multivariate Cox survival analysis. Results: In total, 259 patients were enrolled in this study. The pretreatment NLR was significantly associated with distant metastasis and PNI was significantly connected with age, histological grade, TNM stage, lymphatic metastasis and distant metastasis. Univariate analyses showed that overall survival of patients with NETs was significantly associated with histological grade (P<0.001), TNM stage (P<0.001), lymphatic metastasis (P<0.001), distant metastasis (P<0.001), NLR (P<0.001), PLR (P=0.001) and PNI (P<0.001), separately. The Kaplan-Meier survival curves revealed that patients with lower NLR (<2.8), PLR (<142) as well as higher PNI (≥46) had better prognosis. Multivariate analysis exhibited that the NLR (HR, 0.397; 95.0% CI, 0.278-0.568; P<0.001) and PNI (HR, 3.122; 95.0% CI, 2.177-4.478; P<0.001) remained independently associated with the survival time. Subsequent subgroup analysis identified that both lower NLR and higher PNI could predict better prognosis separately in GEP-NEN subgroup and PNET subgroup. Conclusions: Our data suggested that the pretreatment NLR and PLR can be useful prognostic biomarkers for survival in patients with NETs and the PNI was superior to NLR.
Computer Usage among Secondary School Teachers of Aizawl District, Mizoram

The present study tries to find out how secondary school teachers of Aizawl district, Mizoram used different devices of Information and Communication Technology (ICT). A sample of 800 secondary school teachers were taken. The present study revealed that more than 80% of the teachers had computer at home and at school. A high percentage (70-74%) of the Secondary School teachers of Aizawl District are able to copy files to and from CD, per drives etc., move files within a computer and are able to print documents, pictures, graphs etc. Only 29% of the teachers used ICT during classroom teaching and majority of the teachers used computer for preparing themselves for teaching and browse internet for activities. Unavailability of facilities is the highest (69%) reason for not using ICT during classroom teaching by the teachers.
Investigating Knowledge Management Enablers Affecting Knowledge Management Success in Middle East and North Africa

This study investigates the relationship between Knowledge Management Enablers KMEs, and Knowledge Management Success (KMS)in the Middle East and North Africa, MENA, region. Data was collected through an online self-administered questionnaire from 251 respondents representing professional managers and employees working in several industries/business sectors in the MENA region. The findings of this research proved the existence of a relationship between KMEs such as organizational culture, organizational structure, Information Technology (IT) support, and KMS. It also highlighted that job satisfaction can be considered as a KME as it has a positive impact on KMS. The organizational culture has a full mediating effect on the relationship between job satisfaction and KMS, and a partial mediating effect between organizational structure and IT support on one side and KMS on the other side. Also, gender and age have no moderating effect on the relationship between organizational culture and KMS. The study concluded that the business sector and the geographical region have no moderating effect on the relationship between IT support and KMS.
The Effectiveness of Different Types of Verbal Feedback on Learning Complex Movement Tasks

Purpose. The purpose of the study was to assess the effectiveness of different types of verbal feedback in the learning of a complex movement task. Methods. Twenty university students took part in a six-week training course learning how to correctly execute the vertical jump. The participants were randomly assigned to one of three groups: Group E&P received verbal feedback on errors made during movement execution and on how to improve, Group P obtained verbal feedback only when they correctly performed the task, and Group E was provided with verbal feedback only when an error was made. Performance was measured on three separate occasions, before the training course (pre-training), one day after (post-training) and seven days after completing the course (retention) by executing the vertical jump in front of three gymnastic judges who scored their performance on a scale of 1 to 10. Jump kinematics were also measured pre-training and post-training by recording landing force and flight time on a force platform. Results. Post-hoc comparison indicated that a significant improvement in performance was observed only in the group receiving verbal feedback on errors (E). Judges’ scores received in post-training were significantly higher than those measured pre-training (10.3 %; p < 0.0003) and further increased to 14.4 % in the retention test (p < 0.0001). Judges’ scores for the groups receiving verbal feedback on errors and correctness (E&P) and only correctness (P) improved insignificantly. Conclusions. Providing too much verbal feedback when learning the vertical jump turned out to be less effective than providing limited verbal feedback only when errors were made.
Examining the Influence of Technology and Project-Supported Thinking Journey on Achievement

The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of the technology and project-supported Thinking Journey on 11th grade high school students’ achievements in the subject of electricity units. The participants were 68 high school 11th grade students from two different science classes. Control and experimental groups were selected at random. The data collection tools were the Electricity Achievement Test consisting of 39 multiple-choice questions and a semi-structured interview form. In the study, the experimental group was taught using the technology and project-supported Thinking Journey while the control group was taught using teachercentered teaching methods. The Electricity Achievement Test was applied as pre-test and post-test to both experimental and control groups. The data were analyzed with independent group t-tests. Findings suggest that a significant difference was found between the experimental and control group students’ Electricity Achievement post-test mean scores in favor of the experimental group with respect to sub-dimensions of Bloom’s taxonomy. According to the analysis of the interviews, the experimental group students reported their satisfaction with the applications in the study.
Xylene/Chloroform Free Microwave Tissue Processing and Staining a Non-hazardous and Time Effective Alternative

Introduction: Tissue processing using xylene/chloroform has been employed in histopathology reporting for the past 100 years. Microwave technique has not only reduced the processing time from 1 day to one hour but also doesn’t use xylene/chloroform and has been found to be on par with conventional processing. Xylene is expensive and detrimental to human health. The present study replaces chloroform with isopropanolol in tissue processing and xylene with liquid dish wash solution (LDW) in staining which is not only cheap but also non bio hazardous. Aim: To assess the efficacy of xylene free processing (microwave) and staining versus conventional tissueprocessing and hematoxylin and eosin are staining. Materials and methods: Two Tissue bits from 15 consecutively submitted samples at RL Jalappa Hospital after 1st Jan 2015 each of breast, cervix, lymph node, fat, thyroid, skin, alimentary tract, muscle, salivary gland, liver and kidney were taken and one was processed and stained using conventional method, other using xylene/chloroform free processing and conventional staining and other with both xylene/chloroform free processing and staining. The 495 sections were evaluated and scored by two pathologists independently for nuclear staining, cytoplasmic staining, uniformity, clarity and crispness. Results: In the samples evaluated xylene free processing and staining seems to be on par with conventional xylene processed and stained sections terms of nuclear and cytoplasmic detail, clarity and crispness. However Xylene cleared sections showed slightly better uniform staining (p value->0.05) Conclusion: Xylene/chloroform free processing and staining is not only a rapid but also safe alternative to conventional processing and staining using xylene. However more extensive studies need to be done on other types of tissues for validation
Improved gasification of rice husks for optimized biochar production in a top lit updraft gasifier

Biochar is a solid material obtained from the carbonization of biomass. If properly produced, it is useful for soil application to enrich plant values. Rice husk (RH) waste, an abundant agricultural by-product, was gasified in a top-lit updraft Belonio rice husk gasifier with a biochar yield of 29.0% ± 1.9%. The equivalence ratio (ER) for optimum biochar production was identified and its effect on biochar properties such as pH, volatile matter (VM), fixed carbon (FC) and ash content (AC), electricity consumption, biochar yield, specific gasification rate (SGR) as well as reactor temperature investigated and statistically analyzed. As ER increased from 0.292 ± 0.005 to 0.442 ± 0.016, the SGR decreased from 85.4 ± 4.5 kg/(m2hr) to 51.6 ± 2.4 kg/(m2hr) whereas reactor temperature increased linearly with ER. The original VM content of RH was found to be 76.1% ± 1.2% and decreased with increasing ER from 14.1% ± 0.2% to 10.6% ± 0.3%. The original FC and AC of 5.49% ± 0.22% and 9.10% ± 1.23% increased with ER from 50.5% ± 0.7% to 51.3% ± 0.4% and 33.7% ± 0.4% to 36.7% ± 0.1% respectively. The biochar pH at low, medium and high ER was 9.36 ± 0.11, 9.64 ± 0.03 and 9.42 ± 0.01, respectively. Results revealed a significant change in biochar yield and proximate values as ER changes from low to high.
Is it Proper to Assess Pulmonary Functions from Chest Measurements?

This study attempted to correlate chest expansion with pulmonary function values. Height, weight, biacromial breadth and chest expansion at 2 sites, axilla (A) & xiphoid (X) were measured in 59 male & 48 female medical students in the age group of 17 to 21 years. Pulmonary functions were measured using a computerized spirometer. A significant positive correlation between FVC, FEV0.5, FEV1, FEF25%, FEF50% and biacromial breadth was seen in males whereas a significant positive correlation between FVC, FEF25%, FEF50% and unexpanded (UE) as well as expanded (E) chest measurements in males was inferred from the observations. A significant positive correlation between PEFR & biacromial breadth as well as expanded & unexpanded chest measurements was evident in females. FEF25%-75%, the most sensitive parameter indicating early airway obstruction has no correlation with chest expansion in both males & females. These results prove the need to review the practice of depending upon routine chest measurements as a determinant of lung function.
Older, online and first: Recommendations for retention and success

The university student population in Australia contains increasing numbers of older students returning to learning after a significant gap in their educational journey. Many are choosing to enrol online to combine their studies with other time-consuming responsibilities. This article examines the nature of this online student experience with a focus on those aged 25 and over who are the first in their families to embark on university studies. Drawing on interviews conducted with both staff and students operating in this virtual space, as well as other related research and literature, this article offers recommendations to higher education institutions and educators on ways to improve retention and ongoing participation of this cohort.
GLOBAL GAMES WITH STRATEGIC SUBSTITUTES

This paper proves an equilibrium selection result for a class of games with strategic substitutes. Specifically, for a general class of binary action, N-player games, we prove that each such game has a unique equilibrium strategy profile. Using a global game approach first introduced by Carlsson and van Damme (1993), recent selection results apply to games with strategic complementarities. The present paper uses the same approach but removes the assumption of perfect symmetry in the dominance region of the players' payo.s. Instead we assume that players are ordered such that asymmetric dominance regions overlapped sequentially. This allow us to extend selection results to a class of games with strategic substitutes.
Volatile Organic Compound Emissions From Soil Following Wetting Events

Dynamics of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions following the wetting of dry soil have been widely studied in field and laboratory settings. Nonmethane volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are also emitted from soil following a rain event and are evident from the characteristic smell of wet soil. Few studies have documented VOC emissions before and after soil rewetting. Soil emissions were studied using a dynamic flux chamber system purged with VOC‐free air, with identification and quantification of emissions performed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. All soils exhibited a rewetting‐induced pulse of VOC emissions, with VOC emissions 14 times higher (on average) in the few hours after rewetting compared to moist soils 2 days after rewetting. This VOC rewetting pulse mirrored the CO2 rewetting pulse (the so‐called “Birch Effect”) but was shorter in duration. Average VOC emissions were 5.0 ± 2.0% of CO2 emissions (molar C equivalent) and increased with increasing soil organic matter content (ρ = 0.40, ρ = 0.99 with one soil excluded). The amounts and types of VOCs varied with time since rewetting and across the five studied soil types, though acetone and small hydrocarbons were the dominant compounds emitted from all soils. Some of the VOCs emitted are likely important mediators of microbial activities and relevant to atmospheric chemical dynamics. Soil VOC emissions, similar to CO2 emissions, are strongly affected by rewetting events, and it is important to consider these rewetting dynamics when modeling soil and ecosystem VOC emissions and understand their relevance to terrestrial ecosystem functioning and atmospheric processes.
Effect of natural resources extraction on energy consumption and carbon dioxide emission in Ghana

Even though many studies have attempted to understand the drivers of carbon dioxide emission and energy consumption to help tackle environmental issues, not much has been done to estimate the effect of natural resources extraction on these two variables. This study analyzes the long run environmental effect of natural resources extraction in Ghana under the Stochastic Impacts by Regression on Population, Affluence and Technology model for the period of 1971-2013. Estimation results indicate that income, urbanization, and extraction of natural resources contribute to Ghana’s environmental problems of rising carbon emission and energy consumption. However, international trade is found to reduce carbon emission. The implications from the results are discussed and the paper recommends among other things the need to strictly enforce laws regulating extractive activities in the country to ensure safe environment; and also to raise tariff and non-tariff barriers on products that do not promote friendly environment and vice versa.
Gorilla Nutrition . In : Management of Gorillas in Captivity : Husbandry Manual , Gorilla Species Survival Plan

Mountain gorillas are primarily folivores (Harcourt & Fossey, 1977; Watts, 1984). Their diets consist primarily of foliage of herbs and vines, with leaves making up 68% of intake, stem 25%, pith 2.5%, epithelium from roots 1.4% and the remaining 4% from bark, roots, flowers and fruit. The western lowland gorilla apparently consumes more fruit (Tutin and Fernandez, 1993; Williamson, 1990; Nishihara, 1992); however, green plant material remains the majority of the diet. Calvert (1985) concluded that, of the plant species consumed by western lowland gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) in Cameroon, 23% of the species were vines, 38% herbs, 24% saplings, and 15% trees. Western lowland gorillas in Gabon consume slightly different proportions of food than do mountain gorillas, with leaves and stems accounting for twice the intake of fruit (Tutin and Fernandez, 1993). Tutin also reports that many fruits consumed overlap with that of common chimpanzees occupying the same range. Gorillas seem to shift their food intake according to seasonal variations and food availability (Tutin and Fernandez, 1993; Nishihara, 1992). Calvert (1985) found no evidence of animal matter being either consumed or found in the feces. The eastern lowland gorilla diet appears to be closer to that of the western lowland gorilla than that of the mountain gorilla, but little literature exists.
Fouling membrane in an anaerobic membrane bioreactor treating municipal wastewater

An anaerobic membrane reactor (AnMBR) treating municipal wastewater was evaluated. The experiments were performed using a pilot-scale up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket reactor with a submerged tubular ultrafiltration membrane at a hydraulic retention time of 8 hours. The system worked at an intermittent filtration mode (4 min on/1 min off) with and without nitrogen gas bubbling during the relaxation time (IF4NP and IF4P, respectively). The chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal achieved by the AnMBR was 68.6% and 87.9% for IF4P and IF4NP. Nitrogen bubbling also improved the filtration performance, as the elapsed time to reach 40 kPa for IF4NP and IF4P were 443 and 108 hours, respectively. Results show that intermittent filtration combined with nitrogen bubbling during the period of relaxation was an effective operation strategy in order to minimize membrane fouling and to increase COD removal.
Intraoperative ultrasound use in intracranial lesion surgery: An initial institution experience?

1 Hasan Emre Aydın1, İsmail Kaya1, Nevin Aydın2, Ceren Kızmazoğlu4, Orhan Kalemci3, Tayfun Aydın4 1Department of Neurosurgery, Dumlupınar University, Medical Faculty, Kutahya, 2Department of Radiological, Dumlupınar Univesity, Medical Faculty, Kutahya, 3Department of Neurosurgery, Dokuz Eylül University, Medical Faculty, Izmir, 4Department of Anesthesia and Reanimation, Dumlupınar University, Medical Faculty, Kutahya, Turkey Ultrasound use in intracranial lesion Intraoperative ultrasound use in intracranial lesion surgery: An initial institution experience
Differing Effects of Cattle Grazing on Native and Alien Plants

Abstract: Habitat managers use cattle grazing to reduce alien plant cover and promote native species in California grasslands and elsewhere in the western United States. We tested the effectiveness of grazing as a restoration method by examining the effects of herbivory on native and alien plants. At Carrizo Plain National Monument, California, we surveyed native and alien species cover in adjacent grazed and ungrazed areas. We also established experimental plots in which plants were clipped or mulch (dead biomass) was removed. In addition, we clipped plants grown in pots and plants in the field that grew with and without competitors. Native species were negatively affected by clipping in 1999, 2000, and 2001, whereas alien species were unaffected. In the experimental field plots, the European annual forb Erodium cicutarium compensated in growth and reproduction following simulated herbivory. In contrast, growth and reproduction of the native perennial bunchgrass Poa secunda were reduced 1 year after clipping. In pots, E. cicutarium overcompensated and grasses undercompensated. In the field, European grasses were unaffected by the removal of competitors. It is unclear by what mechanism E. cicutarium was able to compensate, but the ability may be related to its basal rosette growth form and indeterminately growing inflorescences. The native California grassland community assembled in the absence of grazing herds, whereas invasive European species have been exposed to grazing for centuries. It may be that these invaders have adaptations that better enable them to recover from grazing. In the grassland we studied, the strategy of livestock grazing for restoration is counterproductive. It harms native species and promotes alien plant growth.
Comparative Evaluation of CD 4 / CD 8 Ratio and Absolute Eosinophil Count in Chronic Periodontitis Patients versus Healthy Subjects-A Clinico-Biochemical Study

10.21276/sajb.2017. 5.12. 10 Abstract: Periodontal disease results from an interaction between the host’s defense mechanisms and the microorganisms that constitute the dental plaque biofilm. Therefore, the progression and severity of the disease are strongly modulated by dysfunctions in cellular immune responses, particularly, T cell responses. These dysfunctions can be reflected through blood parameters such as CD4:CD8 ratio, absolute eosinophil count and complete blood count, measurement of which can provide insight into the disease process. The aim of the present study is to comparatively evaluate the differences in CD4:CD8 ratio in the peripheral blood, absolute eosinophil count and complete blood picture in healthy subjects and chronic periodontitis patients. 10 subjects with clinically healthy periodontium and 10 patients with moderate to severe chronic periodontitis were recruited from the outpatient department of Periodontics, Sri Sai College of Dental Surgery, Vikarabad. Following a comprehensive periodontal examination, 5 mL of non-fasting blood was obtained by venipuncture from each participating subject. Blood samples was processed and analyzed for values of CD 4: CD 8 ratio, absolute eosinophil count, and a complete blood picture that includes Hemoglobin, RBC count, MCV, MCH, MCHC, Total WBC count, Differential leukocyte count, and platelet count. Results were evaluated with appropriate statistical analysis. The mean values of CD8 counts were higher in test group. The mean values of CD3, CD4, CD4/CD8 ratio, and AEC were higher in control group. Although there were differences in the mean values, the difference was not statistically significant. The immune responses that contribute to the pathogenesis of periodontal diseases are complex and variable. Many of these responses may be restricted to the site of infection. Smaller sample size of the present study, warrants further studies with larger samples to confirm the results of the present study.