Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Adaptive Management and Scale in a Flood-Pulsed Ecosystem—the Case of the Okavango Delta Management Plan, Botswana

Abstract The flood pulse, as the main driver of Botswana's Okavango Delta system, creates variable responses in terms of its biophysical, socio-economic aspects which presents challenges for its management. This, along with the perturbation caused by substantially increased human impacts in the last few decades, has led to the initiation of a systematic framework for management, the Okavango Delta Management Plan (ODMP). This paper analyses the extent to which the ODMP accommodates adaptive management principles in its implementation, and focuses on the scale aspects of institutional arrangements, still founded on administrative, not social-ecological, boundaries. Specifically, we examine the hierarchy of decision-making and highlight the challenges associated with scale mismatch. Centralized sectoral decision-making has prevented the ODMP being adopted as all parties’ responsibility. Scale effects compound this, because decision-making at the national level challenges the implementing district level's efforts at transdisciplinary responses. Nevertheless, capacity-building on the ground means that district officers are increasingly adopting integrated, collaborative responses to management issues.
Variations of overt and covert language practices of educators in the North West Province: Case study of the use of Setswana and Sesotho at primary and secondary schools

This article presents overt and covert language practices of educators at primary and secondary schools, with special emphasis on the use of Setswana and Sesotho in three districts in the North West province of South Africa. Field research was conducted during which 990 out of 1 060 questionnaires were collected from participating educators during the third school term of 2013. Based on this broad data collection, the article attempts to identify mismatches or congruences between the overt (official language policy) and covert (daily language practice) of educators at school. Significant regional differences between the researched districts and between the researched language groups became evident. Language practices are determined by the regional circumstances as well as the linguistic setting. Consequently, the use of Setswana and Sesotho differs widely regarding sex, the overall linguistic setting at a school and the general language setting in the researched districts.
The relationship of preventable opportunistic infections, HIV-1 RNA, and CD4 Cell counts to chronic mortality.

BACKGROUND Both HIV-1 RNA and absolute CD4 cell counts have been identified as important predictors of HIV-1 disease progression and mortality. The independent impact of opportunistic infections on the risk of chronic mortality, defined as death beyond 30 days of an opportunistic infection, has not been studied when controlling for HIV-1 RNA. Our objective was to determine the relationship between a history of any of five preventable opportunistic infections (Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia, Mycobacterium avium complex, toxoplasmosis, cytomegalovirus, and candida esophagitis) and chronic mortality. METHODS Using the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study (MACS) public use data set of 2193 HIV-infected men in four U.S. cities, we employed a Cox regression model to estimate the impact of a history of preventable opportunistic infection on chronic mortality while controlling for maximum HIV-1 RNA, CD4 cell count, use of antiretroviral drugs, and age. FINDINGS The chronic mortality rate among individuals with a history of preventable opportunistic infection was 66.7 per 100 person-years compared with 2.3 per 100 person-years for those without a history of preventable opportunistic infection (RR = 28.4, 95% CI: 24.7-32.8). In the adjusted analysis, the relative hazard of death for those with a history of preventable opportunistic infections was 7.0 (5.8-8.3), whereas antiretroviral therapy was associated with a decreased risk of death (0.37 [0.30-0.44]). We found no association between maximum HIV-1 RNA and chronic mortality. There was statistically significant effect modification between preventable opportunistic infections and CD4 cell count (p <.0001). INTERPRETATION Preventable opportunistic infections cause not only short-term mortality in HIV-1 disease but appear to have a major impact on chronic mortality.
Ideology and the origins of the Cold War, 1917–1962

Russia’s Great October Socialist Revolution of 1917 triggered a confrontation between the Soviet Union and the United States that would last much of the twentieth century. In its early years, each side aimed to transform the other. American–Soviet conflict became global only in the 1940s, at which point it shaped the international system and every nation in it. In addition to competition over markets or territories, this new form of struggle – the Cold War – was at its root a battle of ideas: American liberalism vs. Soviet Communism. The ideologies animating the Cold War had centuries-long pedigrees, emerging by the early twentieth century as powerful and compelling visions for social change. These ideologies – explicit ideas and implicit assumptions that provided frameworks for understanding the world and defining action in it – were not antithetical to material interests, but often shaped the way foreign-policy officials understood such interests. Ideologies were lenses that focused, and just as often distorted, understandings of external events and thus the actions taken in response. Ideologies in conflict and in common Though American leaders typically proclaimed their immunity from ideological temptations, this self-perception ignored a rich tradition of American thought and policy that developed, defined, and acted upon a clear set of ideological premises. The foreign policy of the United States, like so much else in that country, drew on a long tradition of liberalism originating in the ideas of John Locke. As the etymology suggests, Lockean liberalism was, its core, a theory of liberty, one that viewed liberty as defined for the individual, based in law, and rooted in property. The Declaration Independence paraphrased Locke in proclaiming human beings “endowed by their Creator” with rights to “life, liberty and [where Locke had emphasized property] the pursuit of happiness. ” Liberty could be protected only by a system of laws in a polity guaranteeing popular sovereignty. A government, furthermore, should provide only formal freedoms (protecting the rights of property and participation), not substantive ones (equality of condition).
Synchronized brain network underlying postural tremor in Wilson's disease

Common neurological manifestation of Wilson's disease (WD) is a postural tremor of the upper extremities. Recently, the primary sensorimotor cortex (S1/M1) has been shown to be involved in WD postural tremor generation. However, neuropathological changes in WD are mostly observed in subcortical structures. We therefore aimed to investigate whether S1/M1 may be functionally interconnected with other brain areas. In five WD patients, we used magnetoencephalography and surface electromyography (EMG) to record simultaneously cerebral neuronal activity and muscular activity during sustained posture of the right forearm. As demonstrated previously, the strongest coupling to tremor EMG was observed in the contralateral S1/M1. This area was taken as reference in order to identify and localize cerebro–cerebral coherence at tremor frequency and its first harmonic. The analysis revealed significant coherence within an oscillatory network including S1/M1, higher cortical motor areas (premotor cortex, PM; supplementary motor area, SMA), posterior parietal cortex (PPC) and thalamus contralateral as well as the cerebellum ipsilateral to the tremor forearm. Flow of information was mainly of bidirectional nature. Taken together, our results indicate that WD postural tremor is generated within a synchronized cerebello–thalamo–cortical network, comprising S1/M1, higher cortical motor areas (SMA, PM), and PPC. © 2006 Movement Disorder Society
Movement and Mind: A Functional Imaging Study of Perception and Interpretation of Complex Intentional Movement Patterns

We report a functional neuroimaging study with positron emission tomography (PET) in which six healthy adult volunteers were scanned while watching silent computer-presented animations. The characters in the animations were simple geometrical shapes whose movement patterns selectively evoked mental state attribution or simple action description. Results showed increased activation in association with mental state attribution in four main regions: medial prefrontal cortex, temporoparietal junction (superior temporal sulcus), basal temporal regions (fusiform gyrus and temporal poles adjacent to the amygdala), and extrastriate cortex (occipital gyrus). Previous imaging studies have implicated these regions in self-monitoring, in the perception of biological motion, and in the attribution of mental states using verbal stimuli or visual depictions of the human form. We suggest that these regions form a network for processing information about intentions, and speculate that the ability to make inferences about other people's mental states evolved from the ability to make inferences about other creatures' actions.
Specific in vitro toxicity of crude and refined petroleum products. 1. Aryl hydrocarbon receptor—mediated responses

The present study is the first in a series reporting on in vitro toxic potencies of oils. The objective was to determine whether 11 crude oils and refined products activate the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) in a dioxin receptor‐mediated luciferase assay. Cells were exposed for 6 and 24 h to different oil concentrations to screen for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon‐like or dioxin‐like activity. Moreover, cytotoxicity of the oils was determined using rat hepatoma cells. Except for one crude oil, none of the oils appeared cytotoxic up to 100 mg/L, but all oils activated the AhR. Strong AhR induction was observed for most oils after 6 h, and responses decreased after 24 h, indicating the presence of metabolizable agonists. However, several oils still caused high responses after 24 h, also demonstrating the presence of persistent agonists. The potencies (calculated based on comparisons of concentrations at which 50% of the maximal effect was observed) of oils were found to be approximately 40 to 106 times lower than the potency of the assay's standards benzo[a]pyrene and 2,3,7,8‐tetrachlorodibenzo‐p‐dioxin. However, considering that oils contain thousands of chemicals, the potencies of petrochemical agonists may be very high. Among the most potent oils were bunker and crude oils. Induction up to 200% as compared to the maximum induction caused by benzo[a]pyrene was observed for these oils. Such supermaximal responses suggest mixture effects that may not be receptor‐mediated. Experiments in which oils were tested in combination with the standards demonstrated that oils acted via an antagonistic or additive mode. The results of the present study may help improve risk assessment of petroleum products and judge the necessity or priority of oil spill cleanup activities.
Intake and sources of phylloquinone (vitamin K1) in 4-year-old British children: comparison between 1950 and the 1990s

Abstract Objective To compare dietary intake and sources of phylloquinone (vitamin K1) in 4-year-old British children between 1950 and the 1990s, and report their variation by sociodemographic factors. Design Nationally representative samples of 4-year-olds from the longitudinal Medical Research Council National Survey of Health and Development (NSHD) (1950) and the cross-sectional National Diet and Nutrition Surveys (NDNS, 1992/93 and 1997). Setting Great Britain. Subjects Subjects were 4599 children born on 3–9 March 1946 (NSHD) and 307 children in the 1990s (NDNS). Results Geometric mean dietary phylloquinone intake was significantly higher in 1950 (39 μg day−1, 95% confidence interval (CI) 37, 40) compared with the 1990s (24 μg day−1, 95% CI 22, 25) (P < 0.001). This difference remained when intake was expressed per MJ energy intake and per kilogram body weight, and after accounting for sex, region and occupational social class of the family. In 1950, phylloquinone intake in Scotland was significantly lower than in the rest of Britain. By the 1990s these regional differences had disappeared. Food sources of phylloquinone intake changed significantly between 1950 and the 1990s, with fats and oils contributing more and vegetables less, although vegetables contributed most (60% and 48%, respectively) to phylloquinone intake in both surveys. Conclusions Phylloquinone intakes of children have decreased significantly since 1950. With the suggested need for adequate phylloquinone intake for optimal development and maintenance of bone and the cardiovascular system, the substantially lower phylloquinone intakes reported in children of the 1990s, compared with 1950, may have implications for the health of these two systems in later adulthood.
Multiple molecular pathways for fitness recovery of an RNA virus debilitated by operation of Muller's ratchet.

Repeated bottleneck passages of RNA viruses result in fitness losses due to accumulation of deleterious mutations. We have analysed the molecular events underlying fitness recovery of a highly debilitated foot- and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) clone, upon serial passage in BHK-21 cells. The debilitated clone included an unusual, internal polyadenylate extension preceding the second functional AUG initiation codon, and a number of additional mutations scattered throughout the genome. Comparison of entire genomic nucleotide sequences in the course of passaging documented that loss of the internal polyadenylate was the first event in the process of fitness recovery. Further increases of fitness were associated with very few true reversions and with the accumulation of additional mutations affecting non-coding and coding regions. Remarkably, four biological subclones of the same debilitated FMDV clone gained fitness through three separate molecular pathways regarding correction of the internal polyadenylate: (i) a true reversion to yield the wild-type sequence at the second functional AUG; (ii) a shortening of the internal polyadenylate tract; or (iii) a deletion of 69 residues spanning the site of the polyadenylate extension. The results document that an RNA virus can find multiple pathways to reach alternative high fitness peaks on the fitness landscape.
Tobacco Promotion in the Pacific: The Current State of Tobacco Promotion Bans and Options for Accelerating Progress

Tobacco consumption is a major contributor to the burden of chronic noncommunicable disease within the Pacific region. Low and lower-middle income countries are acutely vulnerable to exploitation by the tobacco industry as they often lack the resources and capacity to implement protective tobacco control policies. The Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, which has been signed by 14 Pacific Island Countries and Territories, was introduced in 2004 to guide the priorities for tobacco control policy implementation. Legislation, tobacco industry documents, and peer-reviewed journals were evaluated to assess the current status of tobacco advertising bans of the 8 low and lower-middle income countries within the Pacific region. Results identified that of the 8 Pacific countries reviewed, 3 had comprehensive tobacco advertising bans that prohibit tobacco advertisements in 5 to 7 forms of media, and the remaining 5 countries have weak tobacco advertising bans that provide no protection for youth against tobacco advertising. This research reveals the need for resources to support the introduction of effective policies around tobacco advertising in the low and lower-middle income countries within the Pacific region.
MULTIMODAL IMAGING IN DEFEROXAMINE RETINOPATHY

Purpose: To describe macular lesions in patients with deferoxamine (DFO) retinopathy, and to follow their clinical course using multimodal imaging. Methods: The authors retrospectively reviewed charts and multimodal imaging of 20 patients with &bgr;-thalassemia diagnosed with DFO retinopathy (40 eyes) after a minimum of 10 years of DFO treatment. Imaging included fundus photography, near-infrared reflectance and fundus autofluorescence imaging on confocal laser scanning ophthalmoscope, and spectral domain optical coherence tomography. Results: Mean age of the 20 patients was 45 years, and mean duration of subcutaneous DFO therapy was 32 years (range, 20–52 years). Ten patients (50%) showed different types of pattern dystrophy–like fundus changes, including butterfly shaped–like (n = 3), fundus flavimaculatus–like (n = 3), fundus pulverulentus–like (n = 3), and vitelliform-like (n = 1) changes. Ten patients (50%) presented only minimal changes in the macula; these patients were significantly younger than patients presenting other patterns (P = 0.023). Confocal laser scanning ophthalmoscope and spectral domain optical coherence tomography showed that these abnormalities were more diverse and widespread than expected by ophthalmoscopy. Abnormal fundus autofluorescence and/or near-infrared reflectance signals corresponded to accumulation of material located within the outer retina or in the Bruch membrane–retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) complex on spectral domain optical coherence tomography. Follow-up examinations during a 40-month period revealed progressive development of RPE atrophy in areas of pattern dystrophy–like changes. Conclusion: DFO retinopathy included a variety of pattern dystrophy–like changes or minimal changes affecting the RPE–Bruch membrane–photoreceptor complex. Multimodal imaging demonstrated that fundus changes were more diverse and widespread than expected from ophthalmoscopy. Consistently with previous histologic description of DFO retinopathy, multimodal imaging confirmed that photoreceptor outer-derived retinoids, various fluorophores, and RPE displacement or clumping are involved in DFO retinopathy, finally leading to frank RPE atrophy in most cases of pattern dystrophy–like changes.
Obesity and risk of myocardial infarction in a sample of European males. Waist to-hip-ratio presents information bias of the real risk of abdominal obesity

Background: Obesity is a coronary risk factor associated to myocardial infarction although waist to-hip-ratio has shown higher predictive power. Objective: The aim of this study was a Receiver Operating Characteristic anthropometric analysis in infarcted males to identify the strength of association for simple measurements, obesity and indicators such as, waist to-hip-ratios, waist to-height-ratios and conicity index. Methods:Case-control study of myocardial infarction in European males. One hundred and twelve cases and 112 controls aged 30-74 years were enrolled. We measured weight, height, waist circumference, umbilical waist circumference and hip circumference. We calculated various anthropometric indicators. We obtained the areas under the ROC curves, the odds ratio and correlations for measurements and anthropometric indicators. Results: Body mass index [AUC: 0.686, 95% CI (0.616-0.755); OR: 3.3], waist circumference [AUC: 0.734, 95% CI (0.668-0.800); OR: 5.7], height [AUC: 0.623, 95% CI (0.550-0.696); OR: 2.3], hip circumference [AUC: 0.555, 95% CI (0.479-0.631); OR: 1], waist to-hip-ratio [AUC: 0.796, 95% CI (0.737-0.855); OR: 9.9], umbilical waist to-hip-ratio [AUC: 0.830, 95% CI (0.729-0.847); OR: 5.5], umbilical waist to-height-ratio [AUC: 0.788, 95% CI (0.729-0.847); OR: 7.5], conicity index [AUC: 0.795; 95% CI (0.738-0.853); OR: 9]. The correlations for waist to-height-ratios and conicity index were strong (all r ≥ 0.85; p < 0.001). Conclusions: Waist and height are measurements of associated independent risk. Hip circumference does no show discriminatory power. Obesity and waist-ratios are associated to myocardial infarction with different strength. Between other indicators, general obesity is more weakly associated. Waist to-hip-ratios present the best ROC curves but it occur information bias of their predictive power of risk. Umbilical waist to-height-ratio and conicity index present high discriminatory power and the best anthropometric risk correlations that support its use for the identification of obesity as risk factor associated to myocardial infarction and in all strategies for coronary health promotion.
Changes in health care use and costs after a break in Medicaid coverage among persons with depression.

OBJECTIVE The objective of this study was to assess changes in individual beneficiaries' utilization and expenditures that occur when individuals with depression, who often require maintenance treatment, return to Medicaid after a period of interrupted Medicaid coverage. METHODS Data from 1999 to 2002 Florida Medicaid claims from and eligibility files for beneficiaries with depression whose coverage was interrupted (N=1,946) were used to assess individual changes in the number of inpatient episodes, length of inpatient stay, emergency department visits, and total Medicaid expenditures between the three-month period immediately before and the three-month period immediately after an interruption in coverage. Multivariate analyses were used to assess how beneficiary characteristics are associated with changes in utilization and expenditures. RESULTS The number of inpatient episodes increased by . 054 episode (p<.001), the length of inpatient stay increased by . 32 day (p<.001), the number of emergency department visits increased by . 57 visit (p<.001), and total Medicaid expenditures increased by 430 dollars (p<.001) in the three-month period after an interruption in coverage of more than one month. Individuals with depression who qualified for Medicaid because of a disability had a greater likelihood of experiencing higher expenditures after an interruption than individuals who were not disabled. CONCLUSIONS Utilization of emergency and inpatient services and Medicaid expenditures significantly increased for beneficiaries with depression when they returned to Medicaid after experiencing a temporary loss in coverage, especially for beneficiaries with a documented disability. These findings point to the need for further research to assess the impact of interruptions in Medicaid.
Impact of Nodal Level Distribution on Survival in Oral Cavity Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Objective Regional lymph node metastasis is an important prognostic factor in squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck, decreasing survival by up to 50%. Oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma (OC-SCCa) most commonly spreads to levels I, II, and III. Study Design Retrospective analysis of a population-based tumor registry. Setting Academic medical center. Subjects and Methods The Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database was queried for cases of OC-SCCa from 2004 to 2011 (22,973 cases). Resulting data including patient demographics, clinicopathological features, topographical distribution of nodal metastasis, and survival based on lymph node level involvement were analyzed. Results In total, 8281 patients were identified with OC-SCCa who underwent neck dissection. Level I, closely followed by levels II and III, represented the most commonly involved nodal basins. The 5-year disease-specific survival (DSS) for patients with only level I, II, or III was 42.0% compared with 30.6% for the level IV group (P < .0001) and 26.4% for the level V group (P < .0001). Surgery with adjuvant radiotherapy improved 5-year DSS for patients with level I to III, level IV, and level V neck disease compared with surgery alone (50.7% vs 48.6%, P = .0109; 39.9% vs 23.2%, P < .0001; and 33.3% vs 9.1%, P = .0005, for levels I-III, IV, and V, respectively). Conclusion Oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma most commonly involves nodal levels I, II, and III. Involvement of nodal level IV or V portends a worse prognosis than patients with only level I to III disease, and multimodality therapy should be considered for these patients.