Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Haptic Collar: Vibrotactile Feedback around the Neck for Guidance Applications

In this paper, we present a Haptic Collar prototype, a neck worn band with vibrotactile actuators for eyes-free haptic navigation. We evaluate the system for guidance applications on over 11 users, analyzing 4 different tactile patterns regarding comfort and ease of understanding as well as the number of actuators to encode 8 directions (4, 6 and 8). Overall, users can recognize the directional signs well (up to 95 % recognition rates for over 528 triggers). We also present a use case applying our prototype for a haptic navigation walk.
Towards a resilience management framework for complex enterprise systems upgrade implementation

ABSTRACT The lack of knowledge of how resilience management supports enterprise system (ES) projects accounts for the failure of firms to leverage their investments in costly ES implementations. Using a structured-pragmatic-situational (SPS) case study research approach, this paper reports on an investigation into the resilience management of a large utility company as it implemented an ES upgrade. Drawing on the literature and on the case study findings, we developed a process-based resilience management framework that involves three strategies (developing situation awareness, demystifying threats, and executing restoration plans) and four organisational capabilities that transform resilience management concepts into practices. We identified the crucial phases of ES upgrade implementation and developed indicators for how different strategies and capabilities of resilience management can assist managers at different stages of an ES upgrade. This research advances the state of existing knowledge by providing specific and verifiable propositions for attaining a state of resilience, the knowledge being grounded in the empirical reality of a case study. Moreover, the framework offers ES practitioners a roadmap to better identify appropriate responses and levels of preparedness.
Impact of student agency on learning performance and learning experience in a flipped classroom

The efficacy of the flipped classroom model largely depends on the specifications of its design and implementation, and one important specification to consider is student agency. With the purpose of prescribing the optimal level of student agency for the flipped classroom, this study conducted a repeated‐measures experimental design to compare the effects of three levels of student agency in an undergraduate flipped course with 43 students. The empirical results revealed that student agency had a significant impact on students' academic performance and perceived learning experience. Moreover, a low level of student agency appeared to induce superior performance and evaluation ratings from the students and counter the influence of personality and self‐study time. The findings are expected to inform the design and implementation of flipped courses and extend our understanding of student‐centred learning to the context of the flipped classroom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Antibodies Determine Virulence in Dengue

Four dengue viruses (DENV) cause syndromes that are self‐limited or severe. The severe syndrome, dengue hemorrhagic fever/dengue shock syndrome (DHF/DSS), characterized by sudden vascular permeability, is not caused by inherently virulent DENV. This syndrome has consistently been observed to accompany dengue infections in individuals circulating heterotypic dengue antibodies at enhancing concentrations. In humans, dengue infections target monocytes/macrophages where, absent neutralization, heterotypic antibodies, perhaps directed at domain I‐II of the envelope protein form immune complexes, attach to Fc receptors, suppress innate immunity, and increase productive infection. Diverse clinical responses to primary infections with different DENV strains do occur and occasionally result in subclinical vascular permeability observed as hypovolemia. The fact that American (AM) genotype DENV 2 produce only mild disease during secondary dengue infections is best explained by the downregulation of disease by DENV 1 antibodies directed at a unique antigenic structure expressed on AM DENV 2.
Evaluation of 12 GWAS-drawn SNPs as biomarkers of rheumatoid arthritis response to TNF inhibitors. A potential SNP association with response to etanercept

Research in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is increasingly focused on the discovery of biomarkers that could enable personalized treatments. The genetic biomarkers associated with the response to TNF inhibitors (TNFi) are among the most studied. They include 12 SNPs exhibiting promising results in the three largest genome-wide association studies (GWAS). However, they still require further validation. With this aim, we assessed their association with response to TNFi in a replication study, and a meta-analysis summarizing all non-redundant data. The replication involved 755 patients with RA that were treated for the first time with a biologic drug, which was either infliximab (n = 397), etanercept (n = 155) or adalimumab (n = 203). Their DNA samples were successfully genotyped with a single-base extension multiplex method. Lamentably, none of the 12 SNPs was associated with response to the TNFi in the replication study (p > 0.05). However, a drug-stratified exploratory analysis revealed a significant association of the NUBPL rs2378945 SNP with a poor response to etanercept (B = -0.50, 95% CI = -0.82, -0.17, p = 0.003). In addition, the meta-analysis reinforced the previous association of three SNPs: rs2378945, rs12142623, and rs4651370. In contrast, five of the remaining SNPs were less associated than before, and the other four SNPs were no longer associated with the response to treatment. In summary, our results highlight the complexity of the pharmacogenetics of TNFi in RA showing that it could involve a drug-specific component and clarifying the status of the 12 GWAS-drawn SNPs.
Match-play movement and metabolic power demands of elite youth, sub-elite and elite senior Australian footballers

Aims Currently minimal research has quantified physical requirement differences in match-play between youth and senior Australian football players. The aim of the current research was to describe and compare the movement profiles and energy cost of youth, sub-elite and elite senior Australian football match-play. Methods Fifty-seven Australian footballers playing in an elite senior 20, sub-elite senior 16 and elite youth competition 21 participated in this study. Distance, speed based indices and metabolic power measures recording via Global Positioning System (GPS) devices were compared across three competition tiers. Kicks and handballs were collected via a commercial statistics provider (Champion Data) and compared across the competition tiers. Results Youth players recorded less field time (elite: ES = 1.37/sub-elite: ES = 1.68), total distance (elite: ES = 1.64 /sub-elite: ES = 1.55) and high speed running (elite: ES = 0.90/sub-elite: ES = 0.26) compared to the elite and sub-elite players. The average energy cost of elite (ES = 2.19) and sub-elite (ES = 1.58) match-play was significantly higher that youth match-play. Conclusions A progressive increase regarding physical demands was evident across AF competition tiers. The findings suggest that sub-elite match-play can provide a viable pathway for youth players to develop physical capacity and technical skills before transitioning to elite senior match-play.
High frequency of vitamin D deficiency in current pregnant Japanese women associated with UV avoidance and hypo-vitamin D diet

Background As a consequence of indoor occupations and reduced exposure to sunlight, concerns have been raised that vitamin D deficiency is widespread in developed countries. Vitamin D is known to be associated with increased risks of morbidity and mortality in various diseases. Objective To investigate the serum vitamin D status and its relation with life-style factors in pregnant Japanese women. Methods Among a cohort for 3,327 pregnant women who participated in an the adjunct study of the Japan Environment and Children's Study during 2011–2013, in which data were obtained on various life-style factors, including both dietary intake of vitamin D and frequency of UV exposure, this study consisted of 1,592 pregnant women, from whom 2,030 serum samples were drawn in Jan, Apr, Jul, and Oct, and the association between serum 25(OH)D level and life-style factors were analyzed using linear mixed models. Results Serum 25(OH)D levels were less than 20ng/mL in 1,486 of 2,030 samples (73.2%). There was an obvious seasonal change, with serum 25(OH)D levels of less than 20 ng/mL in 89.8% and 47.8% of samples in spring (April) and autumn (October), respectively. Both the frequency spent under sunlight and dietary intake of vitamin D were significantly associated with serum 25(OH)D level. An increase in sunlight exposure of more than 15 min for 1 to 2 days per week in non-winter, or dietary intake of 2 μg/day of vitamin D resulted in an elevation of 1 ng/mL in serum 25(OH)D levels. Conclusion These findings indicate that vitamin D deficiency is very severe in Japanese pregnant women, especially those rarely exposed to sunlight. The benefits of UV rays should also be informed of when its risk is alerted, and clinicians should propose the adequate UV exposure level.
What is a Dot-Com Worth? an exploration of the Value Estimates of Information Technology-Based Firms

The dot-com era of the late 1990s produced hundreds of publicly traded organizations whose principle product or service was, in one way or another, tied to information technology. Brokerage houses, venture capitalists, and investors in the secondary markets plunged billions of dollars of capital into tech stocks. For a period of almost five years, dot-coms, bolstered by massive market capitalization, buoyed common stock indices to never-before-seen highs. Many of these information technology-based companies participated in public stock offerings without having concise business plans, workable operating models, or even a hint of profitability. In light of the explosion of the dot-com bubble in the spring of 2001, many analysts and investors asked the same question, “What happened? ” In this study, three forecasting tools, two Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) and a Multiple Linear Regression (MLR), are utilized to approximate the first day closing price of public stocks of Information Technology-Based Firms (ITBFs). Each tool utilizes only quantitative financial data to prepare estimates. A comparative analysis of the estimates provides the foundation from which inferences are drawn regarding 1) the value of the financial data with respect to prediction of first day closing stock price of ITBFs and 2) the relative robustness of the predictive tools used in the study.
The duration aftereffect does not reflect adaptation to perceived duration

Recent studies have provided evidence for a role of duration-tuned channels in the encoding of duration. Duration encoding in these channels is thought to reflect the time between responses to the onset and offset of an event. This notion is in apparent conflict with studies that demonstrate that the perceived duration of an event can vary independently from the time separating its perceived onset and offset. Instead, these studies suggest that duration encoding is sensitive to other temporal aspects of a sensory event. In the current study, we investigated whether duration-tuned channels encode duration based on the time between the on- and offset of an event (onset-offset duration), or if they encode a duration corresponding to the perceived duration of that event. We used a duration illusion to dissociate onset-offset duration and perceived duration and measured whether repeated exposure to illusion-inducing stimuli caused adaptation to the onset-offset duration or the perceived duration of these illusion-inducing stimuli. We report clear evidence for adaptation to the onset-offset duration of illusion-inducing stimuli. This finding supports the notion that duration-tuned mechanisms respond to the time between the onset and offset of an event, without necessarily reflecting the duration perceived, and eventually reported by the participant. Implications for the duration channel model and the mechanisms underlying duration illusions are discussed.
Tripartite motif-containing 15 overexpression in non-small cell lung cancer is associated with poor patient prognoses

Purpose: This study aimed to comprehensively investigate the differential expression and prognostic indicators of the tripartite motif-containing (TRIM) gene family in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Methods: The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) Research Network and three datasets from Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database were used to assess TRIM gene family expression patterns in NSCLC. Quantitative real-time PCR and immunohistochemistry (IHC) were conducted to confirm differentially expressed genes (DEGs). Kaplan-Meier survival analysis and univariate Cox regression analysis were carried out to analyze the association between TRIM gene expression and NSCLC prognoses. Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) was carried on for the predict the biological processes. Results: Of the 78 TRIM family members measured, TRIM15 was selected due to the DEGs and the prognostic value regarding NSCLC. In lung squamous cell carcinoma (LUSC), the Log2 fold change (Log2FC) of TRIM15 was 5.16 (p= 0.00575), whereas in lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD), it was 6.37 (p =6.78E-07). TRIM15 upregulation was related to poor prognoses in both LUSC (HR 1.353; 95%CI 1.023-1.789; p =0.034) and LUAD (HR 1.560; 95%CI 1.159-2.101; p =0.003). Using immunohistochemistry, TRIM15 expression was significantly higher in NSCLC tissues compared with that of matched normal tissues (p =0.0009), and similar findings were generated with tissue microarray analysis (p<0.0001). Conclusion: TRIM15 could act as a diagnostic predictor or therapeutic target for lung cancer treatments.
Investigating Computer Anxiety and Communication Apprehension as Performance Antecedents in a Computing-Intensive Learning Environment

Public and private organizations continue to invest heavily in computing technologies for individual, group, organizational, and inter-organizational communication and learning activities. However, this investment approach appears to neglect consideration of individual characteristics with respect to communication and computer attitudes. The effects of individual characteristics of computer anxiety and communication apprehension upon computer technology usage are often overlooked in most adoption and deployment activities of information systems functions in general and technology-mediated learning environments in particular. To help us gain a better understanding of individual factors that can influence usage and outcomes of computer technologies for learning purposes, this research examines computer anxiety and communication apprehension and their relationships to individual performance in a computing and programming-intensive course. The results indicate that computer anxiety and communication apprehension significantly influence performance outcomes in such a course. The paper concludes with a discussion of the implications and directions for future research.
Psychosocial and intellectual functioning in childhood narcolepsy

Purpose: This study reports the psychological assessment of 12 children referred to a narcolepsy clinic, using quantitative methods to describe intellectual and psychosocial functioning in childhood narcolepsy. Methods: The participants were six males and six females aged between 7–16 years (median age 10 years). The protocol included a clinical interview; the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-III-UK; and the Parent version of the Achenbach Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL). Results: Eleven children obtained an IQ in the average range (mean and median = 100). However, a significant difference was found between verbal and performance scales in 42% of children, compared to WISC-III normative prevalence rates of 24%. CBCL results revealed that 10/12 children scored in the clinically significant range on the Total Score Index, with 9/12 obtaining scores in the significant range on the Internalizing Index. The majority of children presented with difficulties in discussing and describing distressing physical and psychological symptoms with parents and others. Conclusions: These findings suggest that the psychosocial impact of narcolepsy extends beyond the effects of excessive sleepiness and that symptoms such as hallucinations can lead to significant psychological morbidity.
Raising a Red Flag on Global WWW Privacy Policies

Global e-commerce has become a reality for many as a result of the worldwide reach of the web. Although personal information privacy concerns have been around for hundreds of years, the introduction of global e-commerce and its associated technologies presents privacy concerns anew. The Global 500 companies are expected to be leaders in the use of technologies and business practices. This preliminary study examines web sites of the Global 500 and shows that different countries greatly vary in their use of privacy policies on their web sites and their use of seal programs as visible signs of attention to privacy concerns. Web sites from 12 of the 25 countries represented in the Global 500 have no privacy policies. Slightly more than 30% of Global 500 Web sites provide privacy policies or appropriate links to policies on their home pages. Comprehensive privacy policies to address all privacy dimensions (notice, choice, access, and data security) are less common. In addition, Privacy's notice dimension has drawn the most attention from each continent, yet more than one-half of the Global 500 Web sites who have privacy policies failed to address the access element of the privacy dimension.
Tropical fish diversity enhances coral reef functioning across multiple scales

Fish diversity enhances the process of herbivory on coral reefs, with consequent benefits also to ecosystem integrity. There is now a general consensus that biodiversity positively affects ecosystem functioning. This consensus, however, stems largely from small-scale experiments, raising the question of whether diversity effects operate at multiple spatial scales and flow on to affect ecosystem structure in nature. Here, we quantified rates of fish herbivory on algal turf communities across multiple coral reefs spanning >1000 km of coastline in the Dominican Republic. We show that mass-standardized herbivory rates are best predicted by herbivore biomass and herbivore species richness both within (α-diversity) and across sites in the region (β-diversity). Using species-diversity models, we demonstrate that many common grazer species are necessary to maximize the process of herbivory. Last, we link higher herbivory rates to reduced algal turf height and enhanced juvenile coral recruitment throughout the ecosystem. Our results suggest that, in addition to high herbivore biomass, conserving biodiversity at multiple scales is important for sustaining coral reef function.
Possible Role of Court-Type Thai Traditional Massage During Parturition: a Randomized Controlled Trial

Background and Objectives Court-type Thai traditional Massage (c-TTM) applied during intrapartum may have some benefit other than pain relief. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of c-TTM during the first and second stage of labor, as well as pain alleviation in the first stage. Methods This was a randomized controlled trial study. Eligible participants were singleton pregnant mothers with cervical dilation between 3–5 cm and no medical complications. Both trial groups received the same routine antepartum care except for 1 hour additional c-TTM given to the experimental group when they were in the active phase of labor. The pain score was taken from the participants at the time before labor pains started, at the time of active labor, 1, 2, 3, and 4 hours after the intervention. Pain was recorded by the researcher using a visual analog scale. The primary outcome during the first and second stages of labor was compared between groups. Pain relief during the first stage of labor and analgesic drugs used were compared as a secondary outcome. This trial is registered under the identification number TCTR20171115003. Results Fifty-nine participants were enrolled and randomly assigned with 1:1 allocation to groups. The duration of first and second stage labor was significantly shorter in the experimental c-TTM than in the conventional control group (mean ± SD: 198.37 ± 62.80 minutes: 268.52 ± 137.81 minutes, p value =.02 and 17.54 ± 9.49 minutes: 23.35 ± 15.01 minutes, p value =.03, respectively). There was no difference of pain score between the groups. Conclusion One hour of c-TTM can significantly decrease the duration of the first and second stages of labor. The pain score recorded is not statistically different between the groups.
Scar tissue to lung cancer; pathways and treatment

Lung cancer still remains diagnosed at a late stage although we have novel diagnostic techniques at our disposal. However; for metastatic disease we have novel therapies based on pharmacogenomics. Tumor heterogenity provides us different treatments. There are several reasons for carcinogenesis; fibrosis and scar tissue provides an environment that induces malignancy. In the current review we will try and elucidate the pathways involved from scar tissue to carcinogenesis.
Obesity measured as percent body fat, relationship with body mass index, and percentile curves for Mexican pediatric population

In Mexico, the increase in childhood obesity is alarming. Thus, improving the precision of its diagnosis is expected to impact on disease prevention. We estimated obesity prevalence by bioimpedance–based percent body fat (%BF) and body mass index (BMI) in 1061 girls and 1121 boys, from 3 to 17 years old. Multiple regressions and area under receiver operating curves (AUC) were used to determine the predictive value of BMI on %BF and percentile curves were constructed. Overall obesity prevalence estimated by %BF was 43.7%, and by BMI it was 20.1%; it means that the diagnosis by BMI underestimated around 50% of children diagnosed with obesity by %BF (≥30% for girls, ≥25% for boys). The fat mass excess is further underestimated in boys than in girls when using the standard BMI classification. The relationship between %BF and BMI was strong in school children and adolescents (all cases R2>0.70), but not in preschool children (girls R2 = 0.57, boys R2 = 0.23). AUCs showed greater discriminative power of BMI to detect %BF obesity in school children and adolescents (all cases AUC≥0.90) than in preschool children (girls AUC = 0.86; boys AUC = 0.70). Growth percentile charts showed that girls aged 9–17 years and boys aged 8–17 years presented fat excess from the 50th percentile and above. We suggested to change the BMI cut-off for them, considering values at the 75th percentile as overweight, and values at the 85th percentile as obesity, as previously recommended for Mexican children. Improving obesity diagnosis will allow greater efficiency when searching for comorbidities in clinical practice.