Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Teaching a lay theory before college narrows achievement gaps at scale

Significance In the United States, large, persistent gaps exist in the rates at which racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic groups complete postsecondary education, even when groups are equated on prior preparation. We test a method for preventing some of those gaps by providing individuals with a lay theory about the meaning of commonplace difficulties before college matriculation. Across three experiments, lay theory interventions delivered to over 90% of students increased full-time enrollment rates, improved grade point averages, and reduced the overrepresentation of socially disadvantaged students among the bottom 20% of class rank. The interventions helped disadvantaged students become more socially and academically integrated in college. Broader tests can now be conducted to understand in which settings lay theories can help remedy postsecondary inequality at scale. Previous experiments have shown that college students benefit when they understand that challenges in the transition to college are common and improvable and, thus, that early struggles need not portend a permanent lack of belonging or potential. Could such an approach—called a lay theory intervention—be effective before college matriculation? Could this strategy reduce a portion of racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic achievement gaps for entire institutions? Three double-blind experiments tested this possibility. Ninety percent of first-year college students from three institutions were randomly assigned to complete single-session, online lay theory or control materials before matriculation (n > 9,500). The lay theory interventions raised first-year full-time college enrollment among students from socially and economically disadvantaged backgrounds exiting a high-performing charter high school network or entering a public flagship university (experiments 1 and 2) and, at a selective private university, raised disadvantaged students’ cumulative first-year grade point average (experiment 3). These gains correspond to 31–40% reductions of the raw (unadjusted) institutional achievement gaps between students from disadvantaged and nondisadvantaged backgrounds at those institutions. Further, follow-up surveys suggest that the interventions improved disadvantaged students’ overall college experiences, promoting use of student support services and the development of friendship networks and mentor relationships. This research therefore provides a basis for further tests of the generalizability of preparatory lay theories interventions and of their potential to reduce social inequality and improve other major life transitions.
Human sleep consolidates allergic responses conditioned to the environmental context of an allergen exposure

Significance Allergic disorders are widespread and can strongly affect quality of life. Here we show in humans that an allergic response can be triggered even in the absence of allergens by simply reencountering the environmental context in which an allergen was previously administered. This effect occurred only when participants slept during the night after allergen administration and was entirely absent when they stayed awake on that night, demonstrating that sleep is necessary for consolidating the association between environmental context and allergen. These findings have important implications for understanding the often observed “placebo” allergic responses occurring in the absence of allergens. Allergies are highly prevalent, and allergic responses can be triggered even in the absence of allergens due to Pavlovian conditioning to a specific cue. Here we show in humans suffering from allergic rhinitis that merely reencountering the environmental context in which an allergen was administered a week earlier is sufficient to trigger an allergic response—but only if participants had slept after allergen exposure. This context-conditioning effect was entirely absent when participants stayed awake the night after allergen exposure or were tested in a different context. Unlike in context conditioning, cue conditioning (to an odor stimulus) occurred independently of sleep, a differential pattern that is likewise observed for conditioning in the behavioral domain. Our findings provide evidence that allergic responses can be conditioned to contextual information alone, even after only a single-trial conditioning procedure, and that sleep is necessary to consolidate this rapidly acquired maladaptive response. The results unravel a mechanism that could explain part of the strong psychological impact on allergic responses.
Parasympathetic and sympathetic control of the pancreas: A role for the suprachiasmatic nucleus and other hypothalamic centers that are involved in the regulation of food intake

To reveal brain regions and transmitter systems involved in control of pancreatic hormone secretion, specific vagal and sympathetic denervation were combined with injection of a retrograde transsynaptic tracer, pseudorabies virus (PRV), into the pancreas. After sympathetic or vagal transsection first‐order neurons were revealed in the dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus (DMV) or in preganglionic spinal cord neurons (SPN), respectively. Careful timing of the survival of the animals allowed the detection of cell groups in immediate control of these DMV or SPN neurons. A far larger number of cell groups is involved in the control of DMV than of SPN neurons. Examples are given of a high level of interaction between the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system. Several cell groups project to both branches of the autonomic nervous system, sometimes even the same neurotransmitter is used, e.g., oxytocin neurons in the paraventricular nucleus and melanin‐concentrating hormone and orexin neurons in the lateral hypothalamus project to both the DMV and SPN neurons. Moreover, the appearance of third‐order neurons located in the sympathetic SPN after complete sympathectomy and in the DMV after complete vagotomy illustrates the possibility that motor neurons of the sympathetic and parasympathetic system may exchange information by means of interneurons. The presence of second‐order neurons in prefrontal, gustatory, and piriform cortex may provide an anatomic basis for the involvement of these cortices in the cephalic insulin response. The observation that second‐order neurons in both vagal and sympathetic control of the pancreas contain neuropeptides that are known to play a role in food intake indicates a direct association between behavioral and autonomic functions. Finally, the observation of third‐order neurons in the suprachiasmatic nucleus and ventromedial hypothalamus shows the modulatory action of the time of the day and metabolic state, respectively. J. Comp. Neurol. 431:405–423, 2001. © 2001 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Management of different types of gastric varices with band ligation: a 3-year experience

Background and aim Gastric varices (GVs) occur with an incidence of 20% in patients with portal hypertension. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of endoscopic band ligation (BL) as an option in the management of small-to-moderate nonbleeding GVs in cirrhotic patients. Patients and methods A total of 50 patients (GOV2; n=6, IGV1; n=34, IGV2; n=10) with nonbleeding small-to-moderate-sized GVs without local risk signs of bleeding, such as large size, red-colored elevated areas or red wales, and systemic factors of bleeding risk such as an international normalized ratio of at least 2 and a platelet count of 80 000/µl or less were subjected to endoscopic BL. The patients were followed up every 2 weeks for 1 month and then every 1.5 months for 6 months. The primary outcome was GV eradication, detection of complications such as postprocedural bleeding ulceration and mortality. Results The mean number of BL sessions was 2.2±0.8; post-BL ulceration occurred in two (4%) patients (n=2 in IGV1, P=0.61), bleeding occurred in one (2%) patient (n=1 in IGV1, P=0.79), and epigastric pain occurred in six (12%, n=4 in GOV2, n=2 in IGV1) patients. There was no mortality reported among patients treated with BL. Conclusion Endoscopic BL resulted in better outcome and a lower incidence of complications when used to treat small-to-medium-sized nonbleeding GVs. Further, early eradication can save effort and cost, thus avoiding the future risk of treatment of large or risky GVs with sclerotherapy.
Fine structural aspects of an embryo-adapted strain of Eimeria tenella in the epithelial cells of the chorio-allantoic membrane

Summary The fine structure and development of the endogenous stages of an embryo-adapted strain of Eimeria tenella in chicken embryos is described. First-generation merozoites were formed by endodyogeny in uninucleate developmental stages as well as schizogony and the endoplasmic reticulum of merozoites of the second-generation schizonts appeared as a circular structure, often enclosing other organelles. In contrast to the parent strain, development of the second-generation schizonts was restricted to cells of epithelial origin. These observations confirm that the complete endogenous cycle of the embryo-adapted strain of E. tenella is restricted to epithelial cells of the chorio-allantoic membrane (CAM) and that no major ultrastructural changes have occurred as a result of repeated embryo passage.
MnTBAP therapy attenuates the downregulation of sodium transporters in obstructive kidney disease

Ureteral obstruction is associated with reduced expressions of renal sodium transporters, which contributes to impaired urinary concentrating capacity. In this study, we employed a synthetic mitochondrial superoxide dismutase 2 (SOD2) mimic MnTBAP to investigate the role of mitochondrial oxidative stress in modulating the sodium transporters in obstructive kidney disease. Following unilateral ureteral obstruction (UUO) for 7 days, a global reduction of sodium transporters including NHE3, NCC, NKCC2, and ENaCα was observed as determined by qRT-PCR, Western Blotting or immunohistochemistry. Among these sodium transporters, the downregulation of NHE3, NCC, and NKCC2 was partially reversed by MnTBAP treatment. In contrast, the reduction of ENaCα was not affected by MnTBAP. The β and γ subunits of ENaC were not significantly altered by ureteral obstruction or MnTBAP therapy. To further confirm the anti-oxidant effect of MnTBAP, we examined the levels of TBARs in the urine collected from the obstructed ureters of UUO mice and bladder of sham mice. As expected, the increment of urinary TBARs in UUO mice was entirely abolished by MnTBAP therapy, indicating an amelioration of oxidative stress. Meantime, we found that three types of SOD were all reduced in obstructed kidneys determined by qRT-PCR, which was unaffected by MnTBAP. Collectively, these results demonstrated an important role of mitochondrial oxidative stress in mediating the downregulation of sodium transporters in obstructive kidney disease.
Efficiency of oscillation-based BIST in 90nm CMOS active analog filters

Research presented in this paper is aimed at the comparison of the Oscillation-based Built-In Self Test (OBIST) efficiency in covering catastrophic and parametric faults in active analog integrated filters designed in two different technologies. Sallen-Key topologies of low-pass and high-pass filters were used as Circuit Under Test (CUT), designed in 0. 35μm and 90nm CMOS technologies. The presented oscillation test strategy uses the on-chip Schmitt oscillator as the reference frequency source to compensate the influence of process parameter variations. Achieved results show that the proposed BIST approach is fully implementable in nanoscale technologies. Finally, dependence of the fault coverage on the oscillation frequency value was investigated.
Estimation of Daily Surface Shortwave Net Radiation From the Combined MODIS Data

Surface shortwave net radiation (SSNR) is a key component of the surface radiation budget. In this paper, we refined a direct estimation approach to retrieve daily SSNR estimates from combined Terra and Aqua Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data. The retrieved MODIS SSNR estimates were validated against measurements at seven stations of the Surface Radiation Budget Network. We also compared the MODIS retrievals with three existing SSNR products: the Clouds and the Earth's Radiant Energy System (CERES) products, the North American Regional Reanalysis (NARR) data, and the ERA-Interim reanalysis data from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts. MODIS data at 1 km were upscaled to mitigate the mismatch between site measurements and satellite retrievals. Among the four data sets, the aggregated MODIS retrievals agreed best with in situ measurements, with a root-mean-square error (rmse) of 23.1 W/m2 and a negative bias of 6.7 W/m2. The CERES products have a slightly larger rmse of 24.2 W/m2 and a positive bias of 7.6 W/m2. Both reanalysis data (NARR and ERA-Interim) overestimate daily SSNR and have much larger uncertainties. Monthly satellite SSNR data are more accurate than daily values, and the scaling issue in validating monthly MODIS SSNR retrievals is also less prominent. Averaged with a window size of 23 km, the two MODIS sensors can estimate monthly SSNR with an rmse error of 11.6 W/m 2, representing an improvement of 2.4 W/m2 over the CERES products.
Clinical course of multiple sclerosis: A nationwide cohort study

Background: The course of multiple sclerosis (MS) has been studied in several cohorts; however, results have varied significantly. Objective: To describe the clinical course of MS in a nationwide cohort of patients. Method: Data from the Swedish MS register (SMSreg) were used to estimate the median time to the sustained Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) scores 3.0, 4.0 and 6.0, onset of secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (SPMS) and death using Kaplan–Meier method. A possible effect of first-line treatments on age at EDSS 6.0 and SPMS was estimated. Results: In all, 12,703 patients were included. Median ages at EDSS scores 3.0, 4.0 and 6.0 were 55.4 (95% confidence interval (CI): 54.8−55.8), 60.7 (95% CI: 60.1−61.2) and 64.3 (95% CI: 63.6−64.7), respectively. Median age at SPMS was 57.4 (95% CI: 56.9−57.9). The median age at the time of death was 80.5 (95% CI: 79.9−81.1). Males and progressive-onset patients showed higher risks of disability worsening. On average, treated patients gained 1.6 years (95% CI: 0.2−3) to EDSS 6.0 as a result of treatment. Conclusion: Ages at disability milestones in this population-based cohort were higher than previously described in clinic- and regional-based samples. Nevertheless, MS patients die at younger age and live at an average almost 20 years with moderate and 30 years with severe disability.
Pharmacy Students’ Perceptions of Cultural Competence Encounters During Practice Experiences

Objective. To determine pharmacy students’ perceptions regarding cultural competence training, cross-cultural experiences during advanced pharmacy practice experiences (APPEs), and perceived comfort levels with various cultural encounters. Methods. Fourth-year pharmacy (P4) students were asked to complete a questionnaire at the end of their fourth APPE. Results. Fifty-two of 124 respondents (31.9%) reported having 1 or more cultural competence events during their APPEs, the most common of which was caring for a patient with limited English proficiency. Conclusion. Students reported high levels of comfort with specific types of cultural encounters (disabilities, sexuality, financial barriers, mental health), but reported to be less comfortable in other situations.
A Survey: Software-Managed On-Chip Memories

Processors are unable to achieve significant gains in speed using the conventional methods. For example increasing the clock rate increases the average access time to on-chip caches which in turn lowers the average number of instructions per cycle of the processor. On-chip memory system will be the major bottleneck in future processors. Software-managed on-chip memories (SMCs) are on-chip caches where software can explicitly read and write some or all of the memory references within a block of caches. This paper footnoteThe work presented in this paper is an expansion of the authors' previously published work in the conference paper citeSMC-HPCS-10, and was carried out when the first author was a Ph.D. student in the Department of Computer Science at University of Victoria. analyzes the current trends for optimizing the use of these SMCs. We separate and compare these trends based on general classifications developed during our study. The paper not only serves as a collection of recent references, information and classifications for easy comparison and analysis but also as a motivation for improving the SMC management framework for embedded systems. It will also make a first step towards making them useful for general purpose multicore processors.
New Automated Immunoassay Measuring Immunoglobulin A Antigliadin Antibodies for Prediction of Celiac Disease in Childhood

ABSTRACT The prevalence of celiac disease (CD) in Sweden is about 4 cases per 1,000 people. Screening for CD with serological tests indicates similar high prevalences in many other countries. Between 1 November 1992 and 30 April 1995, 133 children (9 months to 16.7 years of age) with suspected CD were studied. The predictive value (PV) of immunoglobulin A antigliadin antibodies (IgA-AGA) in the serum as assayed with two new commercial automated immunoassays—the Pharmacia CAP System Gliadin IgA FEIA (CAP) and the UNICAP-100 (UNICAP)—and with three “in-house” methods was evaluated using assessment of the small intestinal mucosa morphology as the “gold standard. ” All serum samples were analyzed for total serum IgA. At presentation the diagnostic sensitivities and specificities of the different tests varied from 0.72 to 0.88 and 0.67 to 0.87, respectively. All methods showed a higher sensitivity for CD in younger children. The area under each assay's receiver operating characteristic curve was calculated and varied between 0.82 and 0.89. The positive and negative PVs for the CAP and UNICAP, which were assays with a high sensitivity and a high specificity, respectively, were estimated. In the clinically selected population (prevalence of CD, 1 in 3) the positive PV was about 55%, and in the general population (prevalence, 1 in 250) it was about 1%. The negative PVs for both CAP and UNICAP were close to 100%; thus, when the AGA test was negative, the risk for CD was small. Interestingly, five children had serum IgA levels below the detection limit (<0.07 g/liter) when on a gluten-free diet, whereas they had normal levels at the time of the first biopsy. In conclusion, the automated immunoassays—based on ImmunoCAP technology—for analysis of IgA-AGA had a reliability comparable to that of the in-house methods.
A Pilot Study of Computer-Based Simulation Training for Enhancing Family Medicine Residents' Competence in Computerized Settings

We previously developed a prototype computer-based simulation to teach residents how to integrate better EMR use in the patient-physician interaction. To evaluate the prototype, we conducted usability tests with three non-clinician students, followed by a pilot study with 16 family medicine residents. The pilot study included pre- and post-test surveys of competencies and attitudes related to using the EMR in the consultation and the acceptability of the simulation, as well as 'think aloud' observations. After using the simulation prototypes, the mean scores for competencies and attitudes improved from 14.88/20 to 15.63/20 and from 22.25/30 to 23.13/30, respectively; however, only the difference for competencies was significant (paired t-test; t=-2.535, p=0.023). Mean scores for perceived usefulness and ease of use of the simulation were good (3.81 and 4.10 on a 5-point scale, respectively). Issues identified in usability testing include confusing interaction with some features, preferences for a more interactive representation of the EMR, and more options for shared decision making. In conclusion, computer-based simulation may be an effective and acceptable tool for teaching residents how to better use EMRs in clinical encounters.
A new solution to the plasma starved event horizon magnetosphere

Very Long Baseline Interferometry observations at 86 GHz reveal an almost hollow jet in M87 with a forked morphology. The detailed analysis presented here indicates that the spectral luminosity of the central spine of the jet in M87 is a few percent of that of the surrounding hollow jet 200–400 μ as from the central black hole. Furthermore, recent jet models indicate that a hollow “tubular” jet can explain a wide range of plausible broadband spectra originating from jetted plasma located within ~30 μ as of the central black hole, including the 230 GHz correlated flux detected by the Event Horizon Telescope. Most importantly, these hollow jets from the inner accretion flow have an intrinsic power capable of energizing the global jet out to kiloparsec scales. Thus motivated, this paper considers new models of the event horizon magnetosphere (EHM) in low luminosity accretion systems. Contrary to some models, the spine is not an invisible powerful jet. It is an intrinsically weak jet. In the new EHM solution, the accreted poloidal magnetic flux is weak and the background photon field is weak. It is shown how this accretion scenario naturally results in the dissipation of the accreted poloidal magnetic flux in the EHM not the accumulation of poloidal flux required for a powerful jet. The new solution indicates less large scale poloidal magnetic flux (and jet power) in the EHM than in the surrounding accretion flow and cannot support significant EHM driven jets.
Validation of the Alcohol, Smoking and Substance Involvement Screening Test in a low- and middle-income country cross-sectional emergency centre study.

INTRODUCTION AND AIM Given the high prevalence and detrimental consequences of alcohol or other drug (AOD) use in low- and middle-income countries, a screening tool for early detection in health care, including emergency care, is critical. We set out to validate the Alcohol, Smoking and Substance Involvement Screening Test (ASSIST) for the South African context. DESIGN AND METHODS We interviewed emergency centre patients (n = 200) in Cape Town for this cross-sectional study conducted from January to March 2013 utilising a questionnaire battery, including the ASSIST and Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview. Internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha) and screening properties of the ASSIST (receiver operating characteristic analysis) were examined utilising the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview AOD use modules as the gold standard. RESULTS Cronbach's alpha for alcohol and illicit drugs ranged from 0.81 to 0.95 indicating good internal consistency. ASSIST cut-off scores show a good sensitivity and specificity for discrimination particularly when distinguishing between substance use and abuse, rather than dependence. For alcohol, the area under the curve was 0.94 for distinguishing between use and abuse, and this dropped to 0.68 for distinguishing between abuse and dependence, while the statistic remained high for both use/abuse and abuse/dependence for illicit drugs: 0.95 and 0.96. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION AOD abuse was associated with cut-off scores below the World Health Organization recommended levels, in keeping with various international studies suggesting that individuals with lower scores be offered interventions. The ASSIST was found to be useful for South African health care and holds promise for cost-effective task-shifting approaches in lower resourced settings. [van der Westhuizen C, Wyatt G, Williams JK, Stein DJ, Sorsdahl K. Validation of the Alcohol, Smoking and Substance Involvement Screening Test in a low- and middle-income country cross-sectional emergency centre study. Drug Alcohol Rev 2016;35:702-709].