Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Racial and Ethnic Differences in Outcome in Zidovudine-Treated Patients With Advanced HIV Disease

Objectives. —To determine if racial-ethnic differences exist in survival, disease progression, and development of myelosuppression in zidovudine-treated patients with advanced human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) disease. Design. —Prospective observational study. Setting. —Hospital and private clinics in 12 metropolitan centers. Patients. —The study included 754 non-Hispanic white, 165 black, and 106 Hispanic patients with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) or advanced AIDS-related complex (ARC) who received up to 2 years of zidovudine therapy. Outcome Measures. —Survival, development of Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia (PCP), other opportunistic infections, and myelosuppression. Results. —At initiation of zidovudine therapy, Hispanic and particularly black patients had more advanced HIV disease than white patients, as indicated by lower baseline CD4 + counts, hematocrits, and AIDS-defining diagnoses. Black patients with AIDS also had a worse prognosis compared with white and Hispanic patients with AIDS. The product-limit survival rates at 2 years for white, black, and Hispanic patients with AIDS were 40%, 27%, and 39%, respectively (black vs white, P =.01; Hispanic vs white, P =.32, by the log-rank test). The respective proportions of patients who developed PCP at 2 years were 46%, 66%, and 44% (black vs white, P =.0001; Hispanic vs white, P =.86) and for other opportunistic infections the proportions were 56%, 63%, and 63%, respectively (black vs white, P =.03; Hispanic vs white, P =.09). There were no significant racial-ethnic differences in survival or in the development of opportunistic infections for patients with ARC, and there were no differences in the incidence of myelosuppression or dose reduction or suspension for patients with either ARC or AIDS. After adjusting for more advanced HIV disease (mainly low CD4 + counts and hematocrits), black race was no longer a significant independent predictor of survival. Adjustment for racial differences in the use of PCP prophylaxis accounted for most of the excess risk for the development of PCP in black patients compared with white patients with AIDS. Conclusions. —Racial differences in survival and the development of opportunistic infections are mainly due to the more advanced HIV disease in black patients when zidovudine therapy is started and to their less frequent use of PCP prophylaxis. Innovative approaches are needed to ensure more widespread use of and earlier access to zidovudine therapy and PCP prophylaxis. ( JAMA . 1991;266:2713-2718)
Indoor Localization Using Augmented UHF RFID System for the Internet-of-Things

Indoor localization with proximity information in ultra-high-frequency (UHF) radiofrequency-identification (RFID) is widely considered as a potential candidate of locating items in Internet-of-Things (IoT) paradigm. First, the proximity-based methods are less affected by multipath distortion and dynamic changes of the indoor environment compared to the traditional range-based localization methods. The objective of this dissertation is to use tag-to-tag backscattering communication link in augmented UHF RFID system (AURIS) for proximity-based indoor localization solution. Tagto-tag backscattering communication in AURIS has an obvious advantage over the conventional reader-to-tag link for proximity-based indoor localization by keeping both landmark and mobile tags simple and inexpensive. This work is the very first thesis evaluating proximity-based localization solution using tag-to-tag backscattering communication. Our research makes the contributions in terms of phase cancellation effect, the improved mathematical models and localization algorithm. First, we investigate the phase cancellation effect in the tag-to-tag backscattering communication, which has a significant effect on proximity-based localization. We then present a solution to counter such destructive effect by exploiting the spatial diversity of dual antennas. Second, a novel and realistic detection probability model of ST-to-tag detection is proposed. In AURIS, a large set of passive tags are placed at known locations as landmarks, and STs are attached mobile targets of interest. We identify two technical roadblocks of AURIS and existing localization algorithms as false synchronous detection assumption and state evolution model constraints. With the new and more realistic detection probability model we explore the use of particle filtering methodology for localizing ST, which overcomes the aforementioned roadblocks. Last, we propose a landmark-based sequential localization and mapping framework (SQLAM)
PENINGKATAN DOMAIN KOMPETENSI DAN PENGETAHUAN SISWA MELALUI PENERAPAN LEVELS OF INQUIRY DALAM PEMBELAJARAN IPA TERPADU

Abstract The aim of this study was to determine the enhancement of students’ competencies and knowledge domains of scientific literacy after the levels of inquiry on integrated science instruction was implemented on the theme of environmental pollution. This study used pre-experimental research method with one sample pretest-posttest design. Data were collected through scientific literacy test, observation sheet, worksheet, and questionnaire instruments. Wilcoxon Signed Ranks test results showed that there was a statistically significance different between the pretest scores and the posttest scores after implementing levels of inquiry. Significance is shown by both domains of competencies and knowledge aspects studied. Results indicated that the implementation of levels of inquiry in integrated science lesson can enhance students' scientific literacy on competencies and knowledge aspects. It was concluded that implementing the levels of inquiry can help students to practice inquiry skills to enhance their scientific literacy which requires the application of competencies and knowledge they have. In addition, it was also found that the students’ have positive response about using inquiry systematically in science instruction. Keyword s : levels of inquiry; scientific literacy; competencies domain; knowledge domain; integrated science Abstrak Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui peningkatan domain kompetensi dan pengetahuan siswa setelah diterapkannya levels of inquiry pada pembelajaran IPA terpadu tema pencemaran lingkungan. Penelitian ini menggunakan metode penelitian pre-eksperimental dengan desain one-sample pretest posttest design . Instrumen yang digunakan untuk mengumpulkan data adalah tes literasi sains berbentuk pilihan ganda, lembar observasi, dan angket. Hasil analisis data tes literasi sains menggunakan uji Wilcoxon Signed Ranks menunjukkan bahwa terdapat perbedaan yang signifikan antara skor pretes dan skor postes setelah diterapkannya levels of inquiry . Sebagai kesimpulan yaitu penerapan levels of inquiry dapat membantu meningkatkan domain kompetensi dan pengetahuan siswa pada pembelajaran IPA. Hasil penelitian ini juga menunjukkan bahwa siswa mempunyai respon positif terhadap penggunaan inkuiri yang dilakukan secara sistematis dalam pembelajaran IPA. Kata Kunci : levels of inquiry ; literasi sains; domain kompetensi; domain pengetahuan; IPA terpadu Permalink/ DOI: http://dx.doi. org/10.15408/es.v9i1. 1979
Patient-Guided Investigation of the Restoration of Health Following Traumatic Brain Injury

An abstract of the dissertation of Nancy Ann Carney for the Doctor o f Philosophy in Systems Science: Psychology presented May 5, 1998. Title: Patient-Guided Investigation of the Restoration of Health Following Traumatic Brain Injury The development o f emergency department medical interventions and the implementation of fast-transport trauma systems has decreased the rate o f death resulting from traumatic brain injury (TBI). Without corresponding methods for long-term treatment and recovery, the prevalence of people disabled by TBI has increased, creating a growing public health problem. Investigations generated by physicians, rehabilitation programs, and social scientists, which attempt to associate standard measures of injury severity with outcome, leave unexplained variance in long-term functional status for persons with TBI. The purpose of this investigation was to use persons with brain injury and their family members, to guide an analysis of the factors that foster successful recovery from brain injury. Three studies were conducted. In Study #1, the method for observation generated by Kurt Goldstein (1934) was adopted to conduct 20 case studies of persons who sustained brain injury. The Schema of the EsEx Couple (Maynard. 1992) was used to orient the investigation. The EsEx Couple Schema proposes that events in human life must be understood by considering the whole system of Person (Essence) in the Environment (Exchange), and the transactions that flow in a recursive loop from Person to Environment and back. Kurt Goldstein's Laws of Organismic Life (1934), a model consistent with that of the EsEx Couple, was used to evaluate the data. Strong patterns associated family and social networks, autonomy, and perceived self-determination with higher levels of recovery, and were used to generate a Model for Recovery. In Study #2. the Motivational Analysis of Self-Systems Processes (Connell & Wellborn, 1991) was combined with results from Study #1 to generate a Development Model, and to build a survey which was administered to 248 persons with brain injury. Results (1) confirmed the model, indicating factors that contribute to recovery were hypothesized measures o f Social Context, Perception, and Engagement; and (2) established a valid instrument, generated by persons with brain injury and their families, for measuring functional status. In Study #3. results of the survey research were used to return to the case studies to consider where individual lives differ from expected patterns, and why. Deviations from expected patterns were explored to identify how individual differences operate to affect outcome. Recommendations for clinical practice include (1) directing interventions toward family as well as patient, as a method of enhancing the Social Context for the patient, and (2) using careful evaluation of each patient's idiosyncracies to consider individual interventions.
Web Surveys

Web surveys appear to be attaining lower response rates than equivalent mail surveys. One reason may be that there is currently little information on effective strategies for increasing response to Internet-based surveys. Web users are becoming more impatient with high-burden Web interactions. The authors examined the decision to respond to a Web survey by embedding a series of experiments in a survey of students at the University of Michigan. A sample of over 4,500 students was sent an e-mail invitation to participate in a Web survey on affirmative action policies. Methodological experiments included using a progress indicator, automating password entry, varying the timing of reminder notices to nonrespondents, and using a prenotification report of the anticipated survey length. Each of these experiments was designed to vary the burden (perceived or real) of the survey request. Results of these experiments are presented.
Alternative Street Education Program in Davao City

Education plays a vital role in the development of human process. As such, this development transcends in the socio-economic and socio-political progress of our nation. This study aimed to evaluate the Alternative Street Education Program (ASEP) of the City Social Services and Development Office (CSSDO), a linkage education partner of the University of Mindanao in Davao City. The descriptive-evaluative method was utilized using survey questionnaire and interview, employing weighted mean and t-test to six staffs and street educators, and eighty five street children enrolled in the program. Findings showed that out of six street educators, only three of them worked as service providers of the Alternative Street Education Program. The program was under the supervision and management of the CSSDO but is implemented by the Alima Development Center. The budget allocated by the local government of Davao was P52,500.00 annually allotted for the street children’s snacks. The design of the module for the street children was guided by four lessons namely, health education, Value Formation, Group Building, and Socio-Legal Interventions apart from teaching life skills and basic literacy. Furthermore, the respondents agreed that the instructional materials used by the street educators and the Modular Development Program of ASEP was highly effective. The recruitment and selection process, training and development and personality attributes of the street educators were perceived to be highly effective. The budget allocated and the funding sources were perceived as moderately adequate. However, the effectiveness of ASEP in terms of social and intellectual growth of street children and in the coordination with other external resources was perceived as effective. A number of recommendations were underscored including the hiring of additional street educators to efficiently meet the vision, mission and goals of this program. Also, a campaign for education of the street children shall be implemented with the support of the local government of Davao.
Conceptualizations of CİĞER 'Liver-Lung' in Turkish Figurative Expressions

Bu calisma, bir beden bolumu sozcugu olan ‘ciger’in Turkce deyimlerdeki degismeceli kullanimini bilissel dilbilimsel bir acidan incelemektedir. Veriler cesitli deyimler sozluklerinden toplanmis ve icinde ciger sozcugu gecen deyimler, Kavramsal Metafor Kurami (Lakoff ve Johnson, 1980; Kovecses, 2000) cercevesinde incelenmistir. Bulgular, cigerin, her biri farkli alt modeller iceren KIŞI, CANLI BIR VARLIK, DEĞERLI BIR NESNE ve KAP olarak kavramsallastigi bedenlesmis bilissel-kulturel bir model ortaya koymaktadir. Bulgular, ayrica ‘ciger’in, uzuntu, acima, sevgi, korku, duygusallik, hoslanmama/nefret ve mutluluk ifadelerinde siklikla kullanilip DUYGULARIN MERKEZI olarak kodlandigini gostermektedir. Calisma, Turkcede deneyimlerin kavramsallasmasinda metafor, metonimi ve imge semalarinin egemen oldugunu vurgulamakta ve kulturun bedenlesmis bilisin ortaya cikisinda etkili bir rol oynadigi gorusunu desteklemektedir.
Does Privacy Really Matter? An Extended Perspective on Individual Information System Continuance Use

Recent privacy breaches through Facebook demonstrate that these breaches do not always reduce the use of a social media website after a very public breach, in fact, some people use the social media website more. This behavior leads to the question of whether privacy violations influence people’s continued use of Facebook. In this paper, we propose that people have privacy expectations when they use social media websites and when those privacy expectations are not disconfirmed they will be satisfied with the experience and continue using the website. Combining privacy expectations with the expectation disconfirmation theory, we provide a conceptual model to examine privacy-related factors that influence Facebook continuance use.
Responses in human A and C fibres to repeated electrical intradermal stimulation

The responses of A and C fibres to electrical intradermal stimulation were recorded with microelectrodes inserted percutaneously into intact human skin nerves. Unitary discharges deriving from A fibres were often encountered and sometimes even single C unit deflections were identified. When several C fibres responded to the stimulation, a compact time presentation of the filtered and dot-converted spikes improved the discrimination of individual spikes time-locked to the stimulation, so that unitary C elements could often be identified in the treated records even if the signal-to-noise ratio of the original signals was low. Increases in latency or blockings were traced in both A and C unit responses to repeated excitation, but the influence of repeated activation was more pronounced in thin nerve fibres even at low stimulation frequencies. The decreased excitability of thin nerve endings on repetitive stimulation suggests that not only central factors but also excitation failure in peripheral thin nerve fibres might be responsible for the decrease in pain perception experienced during local intense electrical intradermal stimulation at high frequencies.
The accountability of European agencies: legal provisions and ongoing practices

The book ''The Accountability of European Agencies: Legal Provisions and Ongoing Practices '' addresses one of the most relevant yet under- researched topic in current European governance: the accountability of European agencies. European agencies have been created at a rapid pace in recent years, in a multitude of highly pertinent and sensitive fields ranging from pharmaceuticals and food safety to chemicals or aviation safety. These bodies, meant to operate at arm’s length from political control, have real power and their opinions and decisions can have a direct impact on individuals, regulators and member states. Are these bodies held to account or are we faced with the threat of powerful and unaccountable institutional actors? This book investigates how the accountability system of European agencies operates at both the formal level as well as in practice. In doing so, it zooms in on five European agencies: EMEA (the European Medicines Agency), EASA (the European Aviation Safety Agency), OHIM (the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market), Europol and Eurojust. The analysis spans four different accountability regimes: managerial, political, financial and (quasi-)legal, thus examining agency accountability vis-୶is multiple forums such as: management boards, the European Parliament, the Council, the European Court of Auditors, the European Court of Justice etc. It follows a multi-disciplinary approach and is at the cutting edge of public administration and law. Through a systematic analysis of both the law and the practice of agency accountability, the book unravels these complex accountability regimes and pinpoints exactly where failures occur. Whereas agencies are subject to extensive accountability arrangements, underuse is prevalent. Accountability forums often fail to exercise in practice, the formal powers at their disposal vis-୶is agencies. Furthermore, accountability arrangements are frequently poorly designed, thus negatively impacting their effectiveness. More generally, the book also offers insights into aspects of agency governance and design as well as important theoretical insights into the conceptualization and the study of accountability.
Incidence of intrapartum abnormal fetal heart rate pattern

Objectives: To determine the incidence of intrapartum abnormal fetal heart rate (FHR), possible associated factors and pregnancy outcomes. Materials and Methods: A total of 900 low-risk pregnant women were enrolled in this retrospective cohort study. Obstetric, labor and delivery data were collected. Incidence of intrapartum abnormal FHR pattern was determined, according to the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) classification. Comparisons were made between those with and without abnormal FHR pattern to evaluate possible associated factors and pregnancy outcomes. Results: Mean maternal age was 29.1 years, 55.7% were nulliparous, and mean gestational age at delivery was 38.1 weeks. Incidence of abnormal FHR pattern was 30.7% (30.3% and 0.4% in NICHD category II and III, respectively). Among these, 46.6% and 39.7% occurred in active and deceleration phase of labor, respectively. Univariate analysis showed that rate of abnormal FHR pattern was more common among nulliparous women (RR 1.22, 95% CI 1.003-1.5, p = 0.045). Cesarean delivery was required in 28.9% of cases with abnormal FHR pattern. Birth asphyxia was significantly more common among those with abnormal FHR pattern (7.2% vs. 3.7%, p = 0.016). Multivariate analysis demonstrated that only nulliparity was significantly associated with abnormal FHR pattern (adjusted OR 1.35, 95%CI 1.01-1.82, p = 0.045). Conclusion: Incidence of intrapartum abnormal FHR pattern was 30.7% and nulliparity was the only independent associated factor. The condition significantly increased the risk of birth asphyxia.
Inguinal endometriosis: A case report

Inguinal (noncutaneous) endometriosis is an uncommon presentation of endometriosis. It usually presents as a painful, typically right-sided, hernia-like inguinal mass with catamenial exacerbation. Here we report a case of inguinal endometriosis in which fine needle aspiration cytology was instrumental in reaching the diagnosis which was subsequently confirmed on histopathology.
Talking about Quality: Report of a Consultation Process on Quality in Early Childhood Care and Education in Ireland

The development of a National Framework for Quality in early childhood care and education in Ireland is the main focus of the work of the Centre for Early Childhood Development and Education. A central element of the brief for this groundbreaking initiative is that it must have relevance for all settings where children aged birth to six are present. This paper discusses a key step in meeting this challenge. It outlines a process of national consultation to establish baseline perceptions among all stakeholders in relation to the core elements of the framework (defining, assessing and supporting quality). It discusses the rationale for the consultation that is premised upon a belief that the best interests of the child can only be served by policy and practice that has been informed by the consensus arising from the interface of the multiple perspectives that characterise early childhood care and education in Ireland. The findings, distilled from thematic analysis of the data collected from the series of six consultations in six locations, are presented and their implications for the development of a National Framework for Quality discussed.