Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Cell Sheet Stiffness Sensing without taking out from culture liquid

Stiffness could be an important index for evaluating the vitality of cell sheet. This paper challenges the measurement of stiffness of transparent cell sheet in culture liquid without taking it out from petri dish. The system is composed of a micro air nozzle for supplying an air jet and a regular reflective type laser sensor for measuring the the deformation of transparent cell sheet. This system is called as Cell Sheet Stiffness Sensing system (CS3 system). When an air jet is given to a cell sheet in culture liquid, it pushes away the liquid toward the outer direction at initial phase and reaches the surface of cell sheet. Without any switching motion, the air jet continuously imparts a force to the surface of cell sheet so that the sensor can measure the stiffness of the cell sheet.
Hospital consumer assessment of healthcare providers and systems scores relating to pain following the incorporation of clinical pharmacists into patient education prior to joint replacement surgery

Background: Pharmacist involvement has been shown to improve various aspects of patient care. Patients undergoing knee and hip replacement surgery generally experience post-operative pain and discomfort. Pain control can impact patient satisfaction, as reported by the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) survey. Objective: The current pilot study aims to measure the potential impact that incorporating pharmacists into preoperative patient education programs has on the response to select HCAHPS questions. Methods: Patient responses to two select HCAHPS questions related to pain were recorded for a year prior to pharmacist involvement in a comprehensive preoperative patient education program (2012) and a year after pharmacists became actively involved (2013). Results: In all reporting surgical patients, there was a modest 3.68% improvement in mean scores reflecting patient’s feelings that hospital staff did “everything they could” to attend to their pain (mean2012=3.66, SD=0.63 versus mean2013=3.80, SD=0.43, p=0.018, Mann-Whitney U test). There was a non-significant 2.98% improvement in scores reflecting the level that pain was “well controlled” (mean2012=3.54, SD=0.651 versus mean2013=3.65, SD=0.554, p=0.069, Mann-Whitney U test) in surgical patients. Conclusion: The results suggest comprehensive pharmacist involvement in patient education prior to joint replacement surgery may impact HCAHPS scores related to pain control. While the observed potential improvements were modest, the current results justify larger, multi-institution prospective studies to better elucidate the impact pharmacists can have on pain management in patients undergoing joint replacement.
Treatment of acute myeloid leukemia: state-of-the-art and future directions.

Despite major recent advances in the understanding of the molecular biology of the disease, the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in adults remains challenging. For the 75% of AML patients older than 60 years, currently available treatments produce significant toxicity with poor overall response rates and survival. In younger patients, standard regimens using cytarabine and an anthracycline for induction followed by some form of intensive postremission therapy can produce response rates of 70% with 5-year relapse-free survival rates of 25% to 40%. Chromosomal analyses define three prognostic categories with favorable, intermediate, and unfavorable risk. In older adults, AML appears to be an intrinsically resistant disorder of proximal pluripotent hematopoietic stem cells. A variety of targeted therapies currently in development include modulators of MDR1-mediated drug resistance, immunotherapeutics, angiogenesis inhibitors, proapoptotic antisense oligonucleotides, and specific small molecule inhibitors of tyrosine kinase and farnesyltransferase. For example, oral farnesyltransferase inhibitors have demonstrated activity and tolerability in patients with refractory AML and are now in phase II testing. Such targeted therapeutics offer the promise of novel antileukemic activity combined with an improved therapeutic index.
Variation in Malaria Endemicity in Relation to Microenvironmental Conditions in the Admiralty Islands, Papua New Guinea

For 197 adults and adolescents in four villages of three small islands in the Admiralty Islands, Papua New Guinea, antimalarial antibody titers were examined using the indirect fluorescent antibody test (IFAT) and malaria parasites were detected by the microtiter plate hybridisation (MPH) method using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique. The parasite rate (either Plasmodium falciparum or P. vivax, or both) averaged 39.2 %, varying from 31.1 % to 44.8 % among the four villages due to natural and artificial microenvironmental conditions related to breeding sites of mosquitoes (Anopheles farauti). The lack of flat zones owing to geomorphological formation contributed to the lowest parasite rate in the extremely small island. However, human-modified environments such as a wet-land (naturally formed but artificially reformed) and an open well played significant roles in other inter-village differences. The present findings imply significant roles of microenvironment in diversified malaria prevalence and suggest some ways of mitigation of malarial hazards. Asia Pac J Public Health 2001; 13(2): 85-90
Considering a teaching framework to support the development of transferable skills in engineering undergraduate students

The work in this thesis focuses upon research conducted in four departments of chemical engineering within Higher Education, in the UK. The work was carried out on the back of identified concerns which arose whilst working on a HEFCE-funded project which aimed to disseminate good practice for enhancing transferable skills teaching within engineering curricula. Evaluation data from the HEFCE-funded project suggested discrepancies between students' perceptions of skills development and those of academic practitioners. The purpose of this research was to establish exactly how students developed their transferable skills and addressed the question: what is the pattern through which undergraduate chemical engineering students in Higher Education effectively develop their transferable skills? Case study and grounded theory approaches were used in this research. In addition to understanding students' perceptions of developing skills, it was necessary to use that understanding to generate a framework which could adequately support the development of these skills. Research findings suggest that students learn differently at different levels of their undergraduate studies and that mode of assessment and student motivation in learning are recognised factors which influence student perceptions. It was possible to propose a theoretical model of curriculum development which could be used by academic practitioners in Higher Education to enhance skills development in undergraduates. It is recommended that the model be tested in other vocationally-orientated disciplines, for its impact value in light of recent Government initiated changes. The thesis contributes to the skills debate by: identifying contributory factors which support students' development of skills, highlighting issues for both students and academic practitioners involved with skills development, and proposing a framework of teaching which supports students' perceptions of learning.
Preventing alcohol problems and improving drinking habits among employees: An evaluation of alcohol education.

BACKGROUND In a municipality in Sweden there was a concern about the high alcohol consumption among its residents. An alcohol education program was provided to all those employed by the municipality. OBJECTIVE To investigate whether a day-long alcohol education program provided to all employed by a Swedish municipality had an effect on alcohol consumption among employees and specifically among employees with low and higher levels of consumption respectively. METHODS A quasi-experimental evaluation using pre-test and post-test questionnaires was performed. The municipality's employees were divided in one intervention group (n: 124) and one control group (n: 139). ANOVA with repeated measures was performed on AUDIT-score and on three separate AUDIT-items: frequency of drinking, frequency of binge drinking, and typical amount consumed per drinking occasion. RESULTS No significant effect on alcohol consumption was identified for the intervention group as a whole. Stratified analyses showed the intervention had a significant effect on reducing the frequency of binge drinking among those with the highest consumption. CONCLUSIONS Compared to many other studies on alcohol education, some results on behaviour were found when performing stratified analyses. The employees with the highest alcohol consumption, although not labelled high consumers, reduced the frequency of binge drinking. It is difficult to speculate whether these results can be generalized to other working populations. The results have to be compared with more direct methods of reaching risk consumers, such as screening and brief interventions. Knowledge about alcohol and the associated risks of alcohol consumption might facilitate the willingness to seek help sooner.
PRE-DECISION INFORMATION AND PARTICIPATIVE MANAGEMENT CONTROL-SYSTEMS

In this paper we examine a two-person agency model in which decisionmaking responsibilities have been delegated to a subordinate who has better information than the superior. ' We first study the welfare effects of allowing the subordinate to participate in the management control process. We then study the welfare effects of varying the amount of the subordinate's private information in the presence of such a participative management control system. Many commonly used management control procedures involve participation. These include: bottom-up budgeting, management by objectives, and participative standard-setting. Each of these procedures allows the subordinate to negotiate with the superior over the design of the former's performance evaluation system and payment schedule. For example, the subordinate can negotiate over the standards or budget against which his actual performance will be compared. Thus, participation is a negotiation process. In a participative setting each individual chooses his negotiation strategy based on his own information. If, as we assume in this paper, the subordinate has better information than the superior, the subordinate may choose a strategy which reveals some of his private information.
Dynamic Bayesian learning and optimization in portfolio choice models

We develop two dynamic Bayesian portfolio allocation models that address questions of learning and model uncertainty by taking model-specific shortcomings into account.In our first model, we formulate a multi-period portfolio choice problem in which the investor is uncertain about parameters of the model, can learn these parameters over time from observing asset returns, but is also concerned about robustness. To address these concerns, we introduce an objective function which can be regarded as a Bayesian version of relative regret. The optimal portfolio is characterized and shown to involve a ``tilted'' posterior, where the tilting is defined in terms of a family of stochastic benchmarks. We have found this model to perform at least as well as a benchmark given the true market parameters, while outperforming it when the market assets have the same trend.Our next model extends the Black-Litterman portfolio choice model by taking several potential errors into account. We extend Black-Litterman to multiple periods, which allows for us to take into account the pairs of expert forecasts and the realized return. By doing so, we can then perform inference on these experts and discover whether they may have any bias for or against any specific assets. We can also perform similar inference on the market equilibrium distribution, which is typically represented by the capital asset pricing model (CAPM). The result is a model that is analytically intractable but may be solved numerically via Gibbs sampling. Controlled tests show our model performs favorably when Black-Litterman's model assumptions about the market equilibrium and expert views are violated. Backtests shed light on the model's ability to account for CAPM's shortcomings.
Metaphorizing as Embodied Interactivity: What Gesturing and Film Viewing Can Tell Us About an Ecological View on Metaphor

ABSTRACT Ecological-cognition approaches share the overall assumption that cognition is enacted, extended, embedded, and embodied. In this article, these basic assumptions are illustrated and critically evaluated from the point of view of gesture and film studies. In a theoretical introduction, the idea of metaphorizing as embodied interactivity is developed and connected with these basic assumptions of an ecological cognition approach to metaphor. Four case studies illustrate how metaphoricity in face-to-face contexts and in film viewing is enacted, extended, embedded, and embodied. Examples from gesturing face-to-face and a case study of a television news report serve to illustrate how metaphors in these ecologies have important common characteristics: they emerge from metaphorizing as embodied interactivity.
Biochemical and functional characterization of high‐affinity urotensin II receptors in rat cortical astrocytes

The urotensin II (UII) gene is primarily expressed in the central nervous system, but the functions of UII in the brain remain elusive. Here, we show that cultured rat astrocytes constitutively express the UII receptor (UT). Saturation and competition experiments performed with iodinated rat UII ([125I]rUII) revealed the presence of high‐ and low‐affinity binding sites on astrocytes. Human UII (hUII) and the two highly active agonists hUII4‐11 and [3‐iodo‐Tyr9]hUII4‐11 were also very potent in displacing [125I]rUII from its binding sites, whereas the non‐cyclic analogue [Ser5,10]hUII4‐11 and somatostatin‐14 could only displace [125I]rUII binding at micromolar concentrations. Reciprocally, rUII failed to compete with [125I‐Tyr0,D‐Trp8]somatostatin‐14 binding on astrocytes. Exposure of cultured astrocytes to rUII stimulated [3H]inositol incorporation and increased intracellular Ca2+ concentration in a dose‐dependent manner. The stimulatory effect of rUII on polyphosphoinositide turnover was abolished by the phospholipase C inhibitor U73122, but only reduced by 56% by pertussis toxin. The GTP analogue Gpp(NH)p caused its own biphasic displacement of [125I]rUII binding and provoked an affinity shift of the competition curve of rUII. Pertussis toxin shifted the competition curve towards a single lower affinity state. Taken together, these data demonstrate that rat astrocytes express high‐ and low‐affinity UII binding sites coupled to G proteins, the high‐affinity receptor exhibiting the same pharmacological and functional characteristics as UT.
The use of Sections 2 and 3 of the Mental Health Act (1983) with older people: A prospective study

The use of the UK Mental Health Act (MHA) is under scrutiny with older people, especially in those with dementia and other organic mental disorder. Whilst research into use of the MHA with this group has been sparse, the small body of existing research suggests that the MHA is applied differently to older adults (i.e. those over 65 years). This multi-centre study identified all MHA assessments conducted over a prospective three-month period, and obtained detailed data on the circumstances behind assessment. The findings highlighted that older people assessed under the MHA tend to exhibit different behaviour patterns, circumstances and core characteristics to those under 65; older people were more likely to be detained because of self neglect and physical illness and also more often had a diagnosis of an organic mental disorder. Younger people were unlikely to have a diagnosis of organic mental disorder and were more likely to be judged as a risk to other people. Risk of suicide was particularly highlighted with the under 65 age group. Implications for legislative reform are discussed.
Nonparametric Estimator for the Time of a Step Change in the Trend of Random Walk Models with Drift

Living systems tend to have non‐normal behaviors, are autocorrelated, exhibit patterns of growth or decrement, and achieve states of dynamic equilibrium, making them hard to manage. One way to manage and improve these complex systems is by identifying assignable causes of variation whenever they occur, and control charts are one of the most known tool for those situations. However, in the presence of sustained changes, control charts are not capable of telling the initial moment of a change. This paper proposes a nonparametric estimator capable of dealing with non‐normal observations heterocedastic over time. The median test is used to estimate the time of a step change in Shewhart Control Charts using a relatively successful approach based on a binary segmentation approach. Furthermore, an application is developed to deal with changes on the trend of processes fitting a random walk with drift. Performance is evaluated with extensive Monte Carlo simulations, and results are compared with the maximum likelihood estimator for normal series of independent observations. Results showed acceptable performance when normality is not met and robustness under heterocedasticity. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Life on the edge: gastrointestinal parasites from the forest edge and interior primate groups

Humans are responsible for massive changes to primate habitats, and one unanticipated consequence of these alterations may be changes in host–parasite interactions. Edges are a ubiquitous aspect of human disturbance to forest landscapes. Here we examine how changes associated with the creation of edges in Kibale National Park, Uganda, alter the parasite community that is supported by two species of African colobines: the endangered red colobus (Piliocolobus tephrosceles) and the black‐and‐white colobus (Colobus guereza). An analysis of 822 fecal samples from edge and forest interior groups revealed no difference in the richness of parasite communities (i.e., the number of parasite species recovered from the host's fecal sample). However, for both species the proportion of individuals with multiple infections was greater in edge than forest interior groups. The prevalence of specific parasites also varied between edge and forest interior groups. Oesophagostomum sp. , a potentially deleterious parasite, was 7.4 times more prevalent in red colobus on the edge than in those in the forest interior, and Entamoeba coli was four times more prevalent in red colobus on the edge than in animals from the forest interior. Environmental contamination with parasites (measured as parasite eggs/gm feces) by red colobus from the edge and forest interior differed in a similar fashion to prevalence for red colobus, but it did not differ for black‐and‐white colobus. For example, egg counts of Oesophagostomum sp. were 10 times higher in red colobus from the edge than in those from the interior. The less severe infections in the black‐and‐white colobus relative to the red colobus may reflect the fact that black‐and‐white colobus raid agricultural crops while red colobus do not. This nutritional gain may facilitate a more effective immune response to parasites by the black‐and‐white colobus. The fact that animals on the edge are likely not nutritionally stressed raises an intriguing question as to what facilitates the elevated infections in edge animals. We speculate that interactions with humans may be linked to the observed patterns of infections, and hence that understanding the ecology of infectious diseases in nonhuman primates is of paramount importance for conservation and potentially for human‐health planning. Am. J. Primatol. 68:397–409, 2006. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
A 0.7V 4.1mW 850Mbps/ch inductive-coupling transceiver with adaptive pulse width controller in 65nm CMOS

This paper presents a pulse-based inductive-coupling transceiver with adaptive pulse width controller for high-speed wireless proximity communication. Adaptive pulse width controller uses 20 phase clocks generated by a multi-phase digitally-controlled-array-oscillator and prevents the pulse width fluctuation under PVT variation at ultra-low power supply voltage. Pulse generation and its width detection are carried out by the identical multi-phase oscillator, which reduces the circuit area. The test chip implemented in 65nm-CMOS has achieved data rate of 850Mb/s/ch at 0.7V supply voltage and power consumption of 4.1mW.
The 10-Year Course of Alcoholics Anonymous Participation and Long-Term Outcomes: A Follow-Up Study of Outpatient Subjects in Project MATCH

This study investigates the 10-year course and impact of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA)-related helping (AAH), step-work, and meeting attendance on long-term outcomes. Data were derived from 226 treatment-seeking alcoholics recruited from an outpatient site in Project MATCH and followed for 10 years post treatment. Alcohol consumption, AA participation, and other-oriented behavior were assessed at baseline, end of the 3-month treatment period, and 1, 3, and 10 years post treatment. Controlling for explanatory baseline and time-varying variables, results showed significant direct effects of AAH and meeting attendance on reduced alcohol outcomes and a direct effect of AAH on improved other-oriented interest.
Surrogate Mothers

The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand the experiences of Taiwanese aboriginal grandmothers when raising their grandchildren. Adopting a phenomenological approach, interviews were conducted with 15 Taiwanese aboriginal grandmothers who served as primary caregiver to a grandchild or grandchildren. Data were analyzed using Giorgi’s phenomenological method. Four themes emerged from the data analysis, reflecting the parenting experience of grandmothers: using aged bodies to do energetic work: represented the physical effects of raising grandchildren; conflicting emotions: reflected the psychological effects of raising grandchildren; lifelong and privative obligation: described the cultural and societal beliefs of raising grandchildren; and coping strategies for raising grandchildren outlined methods the grandmothers used to cope with parenting their grandchildren. The results of this study offers insights into surrogate parenting within an underresearched group in Taiwan and will enable health care providers to be more aware of the physical, emotional, and social effects of the role of grandparent parenting.
Evaluation of HIV-1 p24 Antigenemia and Level of CD8+CD38+ T cells as Surrogate Markers of HIV-1 RNA Viral Load in HIV-1-Infected Patients in Dakar, Senegal

Summary: Alternative, affordable, and simple assays to monitor antiretroviral therapy (ART) in resource-poor settings are needed. We have evaluated and compared a heat-denatured (HD) HIV p24 amplified enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay from Perkin-Elmer and CD38+CD8+ T-cell levels, determined by flow cytometry, for their capacity to predict viral load (VL) in HIV-1-infected patients from Senegal. Median fluorescence intensity (MFI) of CD38 expression on memory (CD45RO+) CD8+ T cells correlated better with RNA VL than HD p24 antigenemia (R = 0.576, P < 0.0001 vs R = 0.548, P < 0.0001). MFI of CD38 expression on memory CD8+ T cells could predict detectable RNA VL (VL = 2.6 log10) with a sensitivity of 87% and a specificity of 74%. A comparable sensitivity (89%) could be reached for HD p24 assay, but only to predict RNA VL of more than 5 logs, which might lead to unacceptable delays in clinical decision making. The clinical use of the HD p24 assay to monitor ART in Senegal would require more comparative data about the kinetics of p24 antigen and HIV RNA in peripheral blood as well as further evaluation regarding its sensitivity toward subtype A and CRF02. MFI of CD38 expression on memory CD8+ T cells appeared to be a better alternative to monitor ART in HIV-infected patients from Senegal.