Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Are Investors Really Reluctant to Realize their Losses? Trading Responses to Past Returns and the Disposition Effect

We examine how investor preferences and beliefs affect trading in relation to past gains and losses. The probability of selling as a function of profit is V-shaped; at short holding periods, investors are more likely to sell big losers than small ones. There is little evidence of an upward jump in selling at zero profits. These findings provide no clear indication that realization preference explains trading. Furthermore, the disposition effect is not driven by a simple direct preference for selling a stock by virtue of having a gain versus a loss. Trading based on belief revisions can potentially explain these findings. The Author 2012. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Society for Financial Studies. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com. , Oxford University Press.
Prevalence of Latent Tuberculosis Infection (LTBI) among House Hold Contacts of Sudanese Patients with Pulmonary Tuberculosis in Eastern Sudan: Revisiting the Tuberculin Skin Test

A third of the world’s population is latently infected with TB with an increased risk of developing active TB. Household contacts (HHCs) of pulmonary TB cases are at a greater risk of developing disease. Early identification and treatment of latent TB infected individuals may reduce progression to active TB. This study aimed to determine latent TB infections (LTBI) point prevalence among HHCs and community contacts (CCs) using Tuberculin Skin Test (TST) and whole blood IFN-γ release assay in an area of high TB prevalence. In a prospective, longitudinal and community-based study and following informed consent, 768 volunteers (HHCs n = 245; CCs n = 523) were enrolled. Tuberculin Skin Test (TST), whole blood stimulation with PPD and IFN-γ levels determination using ELISA were performed. Mean ages of HHCs and the CCs were not significantly different (HHCs 35.6 ± 15.7 and CCs 30.6 ± 11.7 years; p = 0.99), with a Male:Female ratio of 1:2. Mean recruitment TST indurations were 4.6 ± 5.5 mm and 2.8 ± 3 mm for HHCs and CCs respectively (p = 0.000). Follow-up (Day 614) mean TST indurations increased significantly to 9.1 ± 7.2 mm and 4.4 ± 3.2 mm for HHCs and CCs respectively (p = 0.001). Using TST indurations ≥ 10 mm, LTBI point prevalence for HHCs and CCs was significantly different (HHCs 461/1000 and 367/1000 individuals, p = 0.03). The mean IFN-γ levels for HHCs and CCs at recruitment day (Day 0) were 0.66 ± 0.17 IU/ml and 0.06 ± 0.04 respectively. The mean of IFN-γ production levels dropped significantly at Day 614 for HHCs and CCs to 0.66 ± 0.15 IU/ml and 0.02 ± 0.02 respectively (p = 0.03) (p = 0.00001). Recruitment LTBI point prevalence using IFN-γ level ≥ 0.35 IU/ml for HHCs and CCs was 440/1000 and 203/1000 respectively (p = 0.000000001). No correlations between TST indurations and IFN-γ levels were detected among HHCs or CCs (p > 0.05). TST is a simple, efficient and cheap technique for LTBI diagnosis and triaging individuals for treatment.
Hospital cost is reduced by motorcycle helmet use.

BACKGROUND The purpose of this study was to identify the impact of motorcycle helmet use on patient outcomes and cost of hospitalization, in a state with a mandatory helmet law. METHODS Patients admitted after motorcycle crashes from July 1996 to October 2000 were reviewed, including demographics, Injury Severity Score, length of stay, injuries, outcome, helmet use, hospital cost data, and insurance information. Statistical analysis was performed comparing helmeted to unhelmeted patients using analysis of variance, Student's test, and regression analysis. RESULTS We admitted 216 patients: 174 wore helmets and 42 did not. Injury Severity Score correlated with both length of stay and cost of hospitalization. Mortality was not significantly different in either group. Failure to wear a helmet significantly increased incidence of head injuries (Student's test, p < 0.02), but not other injuries. Helmet use decreased mean cost of hospitalization by more than $6,000 per patient. CONCLUSION Failure to wear a helmet adds to the financial burden created by motorcycle-related injuries. Therefore, individuals who do not wear helmets should pay higher insurance premiums.
Determining the Basis for a Taxonomy of Mechanical Ventilation

BACKGROUND: Mechanical ventilation technology has evolved rapidly over the last 30 years. One consequence is the creation of an unmanageable number of names to describe modes of ventilation. The proliferation of names makes education of end users difficult, potentially compromising the quality of patient care. OBJECTIVE: To determine if stakeholders are familiar enough with published constructs related to modes of mechanical ventilation to form a basis for a consensus, by surveying the medical, education, and business communities. The hypotheses tested were: there is concordance (> 50%) on 10 basic constructs related to modes; concordance with the basic constructs varies among stakeholders according to professional training and professional activity; and concordance varies among the set of constructs. METHODS: The survey was distributed through an Internet-based tool to 2,994 physicians, respiratory therapists, nurses, engineers, and others involved with mechanical ventilation. Hypotheses were tested with chi-square, with P < . 05 considered significant. RESULTS: The response rate was 15%. Respondents were 55% respiratory therapists, 35% physicians, 3% nurses, 1% engineers, and 5% other professionals. There was an 82% concordance with the 10 constructs (P < .001). Respiratory therapists showed the highest degree of concordance (84%) and “other profession” showed the lowest (79%) (P = .006). No significant difference (P = .07) in concordance was observed when data were grouped by professional activity. Concordance differed significantly among the survey questions (P < .001). CONCLUSIONS: Survey results indicate that respondents were either familiar with or amenable to the previously published literature that the survey constructs represented. The degree of familiarity and concordance with these constructs represents a sufficient basis for attempting to formalize a taxonomy. Further analysis of the pattern of concordance among the constructs will inform future educational and consensus building efforts.
Fast docking using the CHARMM force field with EADock DSS

The prediction of binding modes (BMs) occurring between a small molecule and a target protein of biological interest has become of great importance for drug development. The overwhelming diversity of needs leaves room for docking approaches addressing specific problems. Nowadays, the universe of docking software ranges from fast and user friendly programs to algorithmically flexible and accurate approaches. EADock2 is an example of the latter. Its multiobjective scoring function was designed around the CHARMM22 force field and the FACTS solvation model. However, the major drawback of such a software design lies in its computational cost. EADock dihedral space sampling (DSS) is built on the most efficient features of EADock2, namely its hybrid sampling engine and multiobjective scoring function. Its performance is equivalent to that of EADock2 for drug‐like ligands, while the CPU time required has been reduced by several orders of magnitude. This huge improvement was achieved through a combination of several innovative features including an automatic bias of the sampling toward putative binding sites, and a very efficient tree‐based DSS algorithm. When the top‐scoring prediction is considered, 57% of BMs of a test set of 251 complexes were reproduced within 2 Å RMSD to the crystal structure. Up to 70% were reproduced when considering the five top scoring predictions. The success rate is lower in cross‐docking assays but remains comparable with that of the latest version of AutoDock that accounts for the protein flexibility. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Comput Chem, 2011
Comparing the oral health status of diabetic and non-diabetic children from Puerto Rico: a case-control pilot study.

OBJECTIVE Children with type 1 diabetes have infrequently been the subjects of studies examining oral health status (caries and gingival diseases); in addition, no study of this type has ever been on Puerto Rican children. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the oral health status of Puerto Rican children (ranging in age from 6 to 12 years) either with or without type 1 diabetes and compare the two groups with regard to that status. METHODS This was a matched case-control study. A convenience sample of 25 children with type 1 diabetes (cases) and 25 non-diabetic children (controls), all ranging in age from 6 to 12 years and matched by age and gender, was evaluated by a calibrated dentist for caries, bleeding on probing, and plaque and calculus indexes. A sample of saliva was taken from each subject and analyzed to determine Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacillus counts. Descriptive statistics, chi-square test, and t-test were used to describe and assess the data. RESULTS We used the caries index to evaluate the teeth of the children participating in our study; we found significant differences in the number of lesions in the permanent teeth of diabetic children compared to the number found in the permanent teeth of non-diabetic children (1.43 and 0.56, respectively; p = 0.05). The mean number of sites of bleeding on probing for diabetic children was 23.9; for non-diabetic children it was 4.2. Diabetic children had more plaque than did the control children (plaque index = 2.5 vs. 0.8; p = 0.007) and more bleeding on probing (p = 0.001). High levels of glycosylated hemoglobin in diabetic children were statistically significantly associated with a greater number of sites with bleeding on probing. CONCLUSION Diabetic children are at higher risk for caries and gum disease than are non-diabetic children.
A simulation model of glucose regulation in the critically ill

Focused research is underway to improve the delivery of tight glycaemic control at the intensive care unit. A major component is the development of safe, efficacious and effective insulin titration algorithms, which are normally evaluated in time-consuming resource-demanding clinical studies. Simulation studies with virtual critically ill patients can substantially accelerate the development process. For this purpose, we created a model of glucoregulation in the critically ill. The model includes five submodels: a submodel of endogenous insulin secretion, a submodel of insulin kinetics, a submodel of enteral glucose absorption, a submodel of insulin action and a submodel of glucose kinetics. Model parameters are estimated utilizing prior knowledge and data collected routinely at the intensive care unit to represent the high intersubject and temporal variation in insulin needs in the critically ill. Bayesian estimation combined with the regularization method is used to estimate (i) time-invariant model parameters and (ii) a time-varying parameter, the basal insulin concentration, which represents the temporal variation in insulin sensitivity. We propose a validation process to validate virtual patients developed for the purpose of testing glucose controllers. The parameter estimation and the validation are exemplified using data collected in six critically ill patients treated at a medical intensive care unit. In conclusion, a novel glucoregulatory model has been developed to create a virtual population of critically ill facilitating in silico testing of glucose controllers at the intensive care unit.
Effects of sepsis on neutrophil chemotaxis

Purpose of reviewNeutrophil recruitment to sites of infection is a critical element of the innate immune response. In patients with sepsis, this response is dysregulated, with exuberant inflammation being followed by a state of profound immune suppression, including inhibition of neutrophil recruitment. This review examines mechanisms underlying suppression of neutrophil migration during sepsis. Recent findingsMechanisms governing neutrophil chemotactic function in sepsis are complex. Bacterial products, cytokines, and chemokines can modulate neutrophil migratory responses during sepsis via induction of cytoskeletal changes, inhibition of polymorphonuclear leukocyte (PMN)–endothelial cell interactions, and alterations in G protein-coupled receptor expression or signaling. Impaired chemotactic responses can occur as a result of dysregulated PMN Toll-like receptor signaling. Other recently identified inhibitory mechanisms include exposure to elevated temperatures, activation of the anti-inflammatory nuclear transcription factor peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ, and suppression of PMN–endothelial interactions due to nitric oxide and its metabolites. Finally, circulating microparticles released in sepsis exert important immunomodulatory effects on PMN adherence and transmigration. SummaryNeutrophil recruitment is a coordinated process that is altered at multiple stages during sepsis, culminating in defective innate immunity and increased risk of infection in these patients. Defining mechanisms involved and strategies to interrupt these deleterious responses requires further investigation.
Anticipatory Grief Among Close Relatives of Patients with ALS and MS

A postal survey was sent to close relatives of Swedish patients with ALS and progressive MS to assess preparatory grief according to the Anticipatory Grief Scale (AGS), together with age, relationship, duration of the illnesses, perceived quality of care, present need of care, caregiver burden, and need of support. The relatives in the two illness groups generally responded in similar ways on the AGS, e.g. reporting closeness, preoccupation, tearfulness, and feelings of injustice regarding the illness. More MS relatives agreed on being irritable and wondering about life without the disease; they reported increased competence, but less ability to move ahead with life. The relatives’ need to talk to somebody outside the family and the hospital staff was more frequently reported by the MS relatives than by the ALS relatives. Overall, the need to talk correlated to feelings of loneliness, longing, tearfulness, loss of interest in daily activities, worries for the future, irritability and sleeping problems. However, surprisingly many of the ALS and MS relatives reported planning for the future and had discovered new personal resources after the diagnose, possibly indicating an overweight of responders adjusted to the situation and therefore expressing less sorrow.
Congenital Heart Disease ardiac Transplantation After he Fontan or Glenn Procedure

OBJECTIVES The purpose of this study was to review the clinical course and outcome of cardiac transplantation after a failed Glenn or Fontan procedure. BACKGROUND Late complications of the Glenn or Fontan procedure, including ventricular failure, cyanosis, protein-losing enteropathy, thromboembolism, and dysrhythmias often lead to significant morbidity and mortality. If other therapies are ineffective, cardiac transplantation is the only therapeutic recourse. Transplantation in this unique population presents significant challenges in the operative and perioperative periods. METHODS The anatomic diagnoses, previous operations, clinical status, and indications for transplantation were characterized in patients transplanted after a Glenn or Fontan procedure. Outcomes after transplantation, including postoperative complications and mortality, were reviewed. Comparisons were made between survivors and nonsurvivors. RESULTS Primary orthotopic cardiac transplantation was performed in 35 patients (mean age 15.7 8.5 years) with a mean follow-up of 54 46 months. A total of 11 patients had undergone a Glenn shunt and 24 patients a Fontan procedure. Indications for transplantation were a combination of causes including ventricular dysfunction, failed Fontan physiology, and/or cyanosis. Ten patients died 2 months after transplantation; nine of the deaths occurred in the Fontan patients. Overall, one-year survival was 71.5%, and five-year survival was 67.5%. Survival was not significantly different between patients transplanted after a Glenn or Fontan procedure and patients transplanted for other etiologies. CONCLUSIONS Cardiac transplantation can be performed successfully in patients with end-stage congenital heart disease after a Glenn or Fontan procedure, with outcomes similar to transplantation for end-stage heart failure secondary to other etiologies. (J Am Coll Cardiol 2004;44:2065–72) ublished by Elsevier Inc. doi:10.1016/j.jacc. 2004.08. 031
Targeting intracellular and extracellular alpha-synuclein as a therapeutic strategy in Parkinson's disease and other synucleinopathies

Introduction: α-Synuclein is a neuronal presynaptic protein that regulates neurotransmitter release. Genetic, neuropathological, biochemical and animal model data indicate that it plays a major role in Parkinson's disease and other neurodegenerative disorders, acting through a toxic gain of function. Although the mechanism of the toxic function of α-Synuclein is not yet certain, it may involve multiple intracellular targets of the aberrantly misfolded, aggregated protein. It is generally thought that specific soluble oligomeric α-Synuclein species are the offending toxic agents. The total amount of α-Synuclein is a significant factor that determines its toxicity. α-Synuclein can also be secreted and can thus affect neuronal and glial function. Propagation of α-Synuclein pathology via neuron-to-neuron transmission and seeding may also contribute to Parkinson's disease pathogenesis. Areas covered: Key mechanisms of deregulation of α-Synuclein that could be relevant to neurodegeneration, and could offer opportunities for therapeutic intervention. Expert opinion: Counteracting intracellular and extracellular effects of α-Synuclein represents a valid therapeutic target in neurodegeneration. In particular, strategies that target α-Synuclein through limitation of its burden at the transcriptional and post-transcriptional level, inhibition of its aggregation or of aberrant phosphorylation states, immunization or attenuation of its secretion and propagation may be therapeutic options.
Application of lattice-gas cellular automata to the Brownian motion of solids in suspension.

An adaptation of lattice-gas cellular automata to the simulation of solid-fluid suspensions is described. The method incorporates both dissipative hydrodynamic forces and thermal fluctuations. At low solid densities, theoretical results for the drag force on a single disk and the viscosity of a suspension of disks are reproduced. The zero--shear-rate viscosity has been obtained over a range of packing fractions and results indicate that simulations of three-dimensional suspensions are feasible.
FPGA implementation of resistor network for fast segment line detector

In this article we present a Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGA) implementation inspired by a weighting resistor matrix (WRM) for fast discrete segment line detection in digital images. The implementation proposed here achieves both real time processing and very good performance, taking advantage of the flexibility and the fast deployment of the FPGA for real time segment detection applications.
Cutting Edge: Lymphatic Vessels, Not Blood Vessels, Primarily Mediate Immune Rejections After Transplantation

The purpose of this study was to determine the relative importance of blood vessels (hemangiogenesis) versus lymphatic vessels (lymphangiogenesis) in mediating immunological responses after transplantation. Using the murine model of corneal transplantation, graft survival was compared in differentially prevascularized and avascular recipient beds. Donor corneas (C57BL/6) were transplanted into uninflamed or inflamed avascular, prehemvascularized only or prehemvascularized and prelymphvascularized recipient murine eyes (BALB/C). Selective inhibition of lymphangiogenesis was achieved using antivascular endothelial growth factor receptor 3 Abs and anti-integrin α5 small molecules. Grafts placed into only prehemvascularized recipient beds had a similarly good graft survival compared with grafts placed into completely avascular, normal recipients, whereas the pre-existence of lymphatic vessels significantly deteriorated corneal graft survival (p < 0.05). Lymphatic vessels seem to contribute significantly to graft rejection after (corneal) transplantation. That may allow for selective, temporary, perioperative antilymphangiogenic treatment to promote graft survival without affecting blood vessels, even after solid organ transplantation.
EFFECT OF STARTING STANCE ON INITIAL SPRINT PERFORMANCE

The effect of different starting stances from a standing position on short sprint times and the subsequent variability in times was investigated in this study. A dual-beam timing light system was used to measure 5- and 10-m times for 3 different standing starts commonly found in the sporting environment: parallel (feet parallel to the start line), split (lead left foot on start line, right leg back), and false (initial parallel start, right leg drops back to split start when movement initiated). The parallel start was found to be significantly (α < 0.05) slower than the other 2 stances for both the 5- (∼8.3%) and the 10-m (∼5.9%) distances. Within the trial, variation of the different starting stances was equally consistent; however, there was less variability for the 10-m distance (CV = 1.16–1.67%) than the 5-m distance (CV = 1.43–2.15%) for each start for both men and women. The split and false start seem to offer the best option as a movement strategy for minimizing short-distance sprint times. However, the benefits of these 2 starts are less clear if total movement time is the variable of interest.
Survey of the Metazoan Ectoparasites of the European Flounder Platichthys flesus (Linnaeus, 1758) along the North-Central Portuguese Coast

A survey was undertaken to identify metazoan ectoparasite species on the European flounder, Platichthys flesus (Linnaeus, 1758), in 4 different locations off the north-central Portuguese coast. Parasites of 7 different taxa were found: Caligus diaphanus, Caligus sp. , and Lepeophtheirus pectoralis (Copepoda: Caligidae); Acanthochondria cornuta (Copepoda: Chondracanthidae); Holobomolochus confusus (Copepoda: Bomolochidae); Nerocila orbignyi (Isopoda: Cymothoidae); and praniza larvae (Isopoda: Gnathiidae). Lernaeocera branchialis, a common European flounder parasite in the North and Baltic Seas, was not observed among the surveyed fish. Caligus diaphanus, Caligus sp. , and Nerocila orbignyi are new host records. The high prevalence and intensity values recorded for L. pectoralis and A. cornuta suggest that both parasite species are common to the European flounder along the north-central Portuguese coast. In contrast, infection levels with respect to the other parasite taxa were, in most cases, comparatively lower, thereby indicating that they only occur occasionally among flounders in the surveyed area.
Learning how to Learn: An Adaptive Dialogue Agent for Incrementally Learning Visually Grounded Word Meanings

We present an optimised multi-modal dialogue agent for interactive learning of visually grounded word meanings from a human tutor, trained on real human-human tutoring data. Within a life-long interactive learning period, the agent, trained using Reinforcement Learning (RL), must be able to handle natural conversations with human users, and achieve good learning performance (i.e. accuracy) while minimising human effort in the learning process. We train and evaluate this system in interaction with a simulated human tutor, which is built on the BURCHAK corpus – a Human-Human Dialogue dataset for the visual learning task. The results show that: 1) The learned policy can coherently interact with the simulated user to achieve the goal of the task (i.e. learning visual attributes of objects, e.g. colour and shape); and 2) it finds a better trade-off between classifier accuracy and tutoring costs than hand-crafted rule-based policies, including ones with dynamic policies.