Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Straylight before and after LASEK in myopia: changes in retinal straylight.

PURPOSE To quantify the changes in retinal straylight that occur after laser-assisted subepithelial keratectomy (LASEK). METHODS This prospective study included 86 eyes of 49 patients who were scheduled for LASEK surgery. Patients were divided into groups based on their preoperative contact lens wear habits: rigid lenses (RCL), soft lenses (SCL), spectacles after a period of contact lenses (SaC), and spectacles only (Specs). Retinal straylight was tested before surgery and 6 months after surgery with the compensation comparison method. Straylight was also compared to a normal reference database. The difference with the average straylight increase with age, called base- and age-corrected (BAC) straylight, was also studied. RESULTS Before surgery, BAC straylight was found to be strongly elevated, with a value of 0.15 +/- 0.14 log units. After LASEK, this decreased to 0.00 +/- 0.14 log units. The reduction was significant (paired t-test, P << 0.01) and correlated with preoperative BAC straylight levels (r(2) = 0.332; P << 0.01). There was no correlation between the straylight change and the spherical equivalent of the laser refractive correction (r(2) = 0.042; P = 0.059). Preoperative wear of soft contact lenses increased the BAC straylight by approximately 0.06 log units, with respect to the spectacles groups (P < 0.05, unpaired t-test), but after surgery, this difference was no longer found (P > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS Higher than normal preoperative BAC straylight was found to normalize after LASEK refractive surgery. Wearing soft contact lenses causes an additional increase in preoperative BAC straylight that is eliminated after LASEK.
Molecular variant analysis as an epidemiological tool to study persistence of cervical human papillomavirus infection.

Percy et al. (1) have reported that the detection rate (the proportion of hospital diagnoses of NPC in which the death certificate reflects the same diagnosis) and confirmation rate (the proportion of NPC deaths on death certificates that are also specified as NPC in hospital records) were poor. These rates for NPC (65.5% and 78.6%, respectively) are low compared with some other cancers, such as breast and lung cancers, where both rates are over 90% and indicate that, contrary to the implication by Lucas, relying upon death certificates to identify NPC may actually result in slightly fewer cases of NPC than from hospital-based diagnoses. This is because 34.5% of the NPC cases in hospital records are missed on death certificates, but only 21.4% of the death certificates that list NPC as the cause of death are inappropriately coded. The major error made by Lucas, however, is that she corrects only the death certificate diagnoses in the cohort and ignores the comparison population, which, in the NPC analysis of the National Cancer Institute's formaldehyde study (2), was the U.S. general population. The guiding principle in disease assessment in cohort studies is that diagnostic procedures applied to the cohort of interest must be the same as those applied to the referent population. The approach proposed by Lucas, i.e., removal of causes of death inaccurately classified as NPC in the cohort only, would actually bias the relative risk estimate downward because of the failure to correct for similar misclassification in the genera] U.S. population statistics. We agree that more accurate diagnosis of disease in cohort studies is desirable, but the suggestion of Lucas that investigators confirm all NPC cases in studies of formaldehyde is inappropriate, unless this procedure is applied to the comparison population as well.
Plasma Clearance of Iohexol in Hemodialysis Patients Requires Prolonged Blood Sampling.

Figure 1. Comparison of clearance measurements in the Residual Kidney Function Study. (A) Scatterplot of 24-hour plasma clearance of iohexol (CLiohexol) versus 24-hour urinary CLiohexol. Dashed lines and shaded areas represent the linear fit and confidence interval of the linear regression. (B) Plot of extrarenal CLiohexol (24-hour plasma CLiohexol 24-hour urinary CLiohexol) versus 24-hour urinary CLiohexol. Positive numbers represent overestimation of 24-hour urinary CLiohexol; negative numbers, underestimation. Dashed line represents fit from a median quantile regression of the extrarenal CLiohexol on 24-hour urinary CLiohexol. Abbreviation: RMSE, root-meansquare error. To the Editor: We read with interest the recent article by Shafi et al reporting discrepancies between plasma and urinary clearance of iohexol in dialysis patients. This could jeopardize estimation of residual kidney function when incremental dialysis is used. However, there are methodological problems in this study that could influence its results. The basic formula for plasma clearance uses the dose of the exogenous marker administered divided by the calculated area under the curve. Both singleand multiple-sample plasma clearance techniques must incorporate a late plasma sample to properly estimate the area under the curve and avoid a falsely high estimate of glomerular filtration rate (GFR). In patients with estimated GFRs of 10 to 30 mL/min/1.73 m, collection time for this sample is at 24 hours, which gives good correlation between plasma clearance and renal clearance of iohexol. For dialysis-dependent patients with chronic kidney failure, the time at which the last blood sample is drawn should be delayed even further. We measured between-dialysis 2-sample plasma iohexol clearance for which the last sample was taken 44 hours after injection of the marker. There was good correlation to renal iohexol clearance, with overestimation of GFR by w2 mL/min/1.73 m. This result agrees with data from anuric patients for whom extrarenal iohexol clearance was measured between 2 hemodialysis sessions. Thus, we believe that properly performed plasma iohexol clearance using long sampling time is a suitable technique for estimating residual kidney function in patients receiving hemodialysis. The established method based on urine collection and blood sampling is less suited for everyday clinical practice.
Predisposing factors for individuals' Lyme disease prevention practices: Connecticut, Maine, and Montana.

OBJECTIVES This study examined factors that predispose individuals to protect against Lyme disease. METHODS Knowledge, attitude, and practice questions concerning Lyme disease prevention were included in the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance surveys in Connecticut, Maine, and Montana. A total of 4246 persons were interviewed. RESULTS Perceived risk of acquiring Lyme disease, knowing anyone with Lyme disease, knowledge about Lyme disease, and believing Lyme disease to be a common problem were significantly associated with prevention practices. CONCLUSIONS Predisposing factors differ substantially between states and appear related to disease incidence. Personal risk, knowing someone with Lyme disease, and cognizance about Lyme disease and acting on this information are consistent with social learning theories.
Iterative SOMA-Based SU-MIMO Receivers with Extrinsic-Information Adaptive Front-Ends

In this paper we present reduced-complexity high- performance iterative receivers for single-user MIMO systems that employ OFDM with bit-interleaved coded modulation. The proposed inner-outer decoder structures exploit the Soft-Output M algorithm (SOMA) to calculate bit-likelihood estimates via a limited search on a tree. A key element of the proposed designs is the way the SOMA front-end adapts at each iteration to new extrinsic information. This front-end defines the tree, both in terms of the order in which symbols are considered, as well as in terms of the subspaces used in the likelihood calculations at each depth in the tree. The proposed SOMA front-ends are different from the conventional QR-decomposition front-ends and provide a systematic way to adapt both the order and the subspaces at each iteration in an iterative decoding structure. Simulations for 4 × 4 16 QAM systems show that the proposed iterative receivers can yield significant performance gains over receivers using non-adaptive conventional front-ends. Index Terms—MIMO, iterative decoding, OFDM, BICM, MMSE, reduced-complexity receivers. I. INTRODUCTION
Comparison between jumping vs. cycling tests of short-term power in elite male handball players: the effect of age

Comparaison entre des tests de detente verticale et de puissance en cyclisme chez des handballeurs de haut niveauObjectif : Le but de la presente etude etait d’examiner la relation entre des tests de detente verticale et de puissance en cyclisme chez des handballeurs de haut niveau. Methodes : Une etude transversale a ete realisee chez des handballeurs, adolescents et adultes (n = 96, âge 19,6 ± 6,9 ans, masse corporelle 75,8 ± 14,1 kg, taille 1,78 ± 0,10 m). Les sujets ont realise quatre tests de detente verticale (detente verticale sans contre-mouvement, SJ ; une detente verticale avec contre-mouvement, CMJ, detente verticale Abalakov (AJ) et test de Bosco de 30 s) et deux tests sur des cycloergometres (force-vitesse (F-v) test et Wingate (WAnT)). La frequence cardiaque (FC) a ete enregistree pendant toute la duree du test Bosco et du WAnT. Les participants ont ete repartis en quatre groupes d’âge (12,1–15,0 ans, U15 ; 15,1–18,0 ans, U18 ; 18,1–25,0 ans, U25 ; and 25,1–35,0 ans, O25). Resultats : Des differences entre les groupes, de moderees a larges, ont ete observees en fonction des variables des tests F-v, WAnT et de detente verticale. Les groupes les plus âges ont obtenu des meilleurs resultats dans tous les tests (p < 0,05). La correlation entre la puissance moyenne du WAnT (8,0 ± 1,0 W.kg−1) et du test Bosco (29,3 ± 7,1 W.kg−1) etait r = 0,70 (p < 0,001) pour tous les joueurs (variant de r = 0,43, p = 0,075 pour O25 a r = 0,72 pour U15, p < 0,001). La correlation entre la FC du WAnT (179 ± 12 bpm) et du Bosco test (162 ± 14 bpm) etait r = 0,75 (p < 0,001) pour tous les joueurs (variant de r = 0,65, p < 0,001 pour U18 a r = 0,81 pour O25, p < 0,001). Conclusions : Ces resultats pourraient aider les entraineurs a analyser la puissance explosive de leurs joueurs et a utiliser convenablement les tests de puissance en cyclisme et de detente verticale.Abbreviations: SJ = squat jump; CMJ = countermovement jump; AJ = Abalakov jump; WAnT = Wingate anaerobic test; F-v = force-velocity; Ppeak = peak power; Pmean = mean power; FI = fatigue index; Pmax = maximal power; F0 = theoretical maximal force; V0 = theoretical maximal velocity.
Effects of Formalin, Methacarn, and FineFIX Fixatives on RNA Preservation

Formalin-fixed tissues represent the most abundant clinical material for retrospective studies. However, formalin highly affects macromolecules, impairing their extraction and analysis. In this study, the suitability of some potential substitutes of formalin for RNA-based applications has been considered. Conventional formalin was compared with methacarn and the commercial FineFIX. Their impact on overall RNA preservation was investigated in a cell line-based model fixed during a time course treatment and in a series of fixed human tissues. RNA yield was detected by Nanodrop; ribosomal RNA (rRNA) integrity by electrophoresis and the Agilent Bioanalyzer; messenger RNA (mRNA) integrity by Northern blot and endpoint reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction; and mRNA amount by real-time polymerase chain reaction. In the cell line model, formalin fixation showed time-dependent detrimental effects on overall RNA preservation. Methacarn and FineFIX were more conservative on both rRNA and mRNA preservation and their impact was time-independent. In tissues, high rRNA degradation levels were found in all fixed specimens, contrasting with the results found in the cells. Conversely, the effects of the fixatives on mRNA integrity reflected the observations shown in the cell line model. In methacarn-fixed samples mRNA amount was also preserved, whereas in formalin and FineFIX-fixed samples it was notably lower when compared with the fresh frozen control. Alcohol-based fixatives are a good solution for long-term fixation of both cytologic and tissue samples by virtue of their time-independent effects on mRNA preservation. In fixed tissue samples, however, the potential effects of preanalytical tissue-related factors should be considered when performing mRNA quantitative analysis.
The oral microbiota of man from birth to senility.

IN REVIEWING THE LITERATURE it was surprising to find out how little information is available concerning the development of the oral microbiota. Studies of the oral microbiota of man are faced with numerous problems. Some of these problems include the complexity of the resident microbiota, the fastidious nature of many of the oral organisms and the variability encountered when one examines the microbiota in any given site. For example, the microbial composition of a dental plaque on a single tooth, is unique to that site at that time. Removal of the plaque, will be followed by the development of a new plaque, undoubtedly with a different qualitative, quantitative and spacial arrangement of the organisms.
Clinical Evaluation of Dynamic Visual Acuity in Subjects With Unilateral Vestibular Hypofunction

Objectives: The objectives of this study are threefold: 1) to examine the effect of frequency of head motion on the clinical dynamic visual acuity (DVA) score in subjects with unilateral vestibular hypofunction (UVH); 2) to compare DVA scores between subjects with UVH and subjects with a complete unilateral vestibular deficit; and 3) to establish whether a relationship exists between the extent of the vestibular deficit and the DVA score. Design: Experimental study. Setting: Vestibular outpatient rehabilitation program. Methods: A convenience sample of 10 subjects with UVH. Main Outcome Measures: Dynamic visual acuity scores were recorded using 2 standard acuity charts: Snellen and E-chart. The DVA scores were obtained at slow (0.5 Hz), moderate (1 and 1.5 Hz), and fast (2.0 Hz) frequencies of head motion in the horizontal and the vertical planes. Percentage of caloric weakness was compared with DVA scores in each subject to test whether a relationship exists between the two. Results: As the frequency of head motion increased, the number of UVH subjects with an abnormal DVA score increased. Subjects with an abnormal DVA score at 1 Hz had the same or higher score as the frequency of the head motion was increased. Spearman correlation analyses revealed low-correlation coefficients between percentage of vestibular paresis at the caloric test and DVA scores (horizontal direction: r = 0.31, p = 0.38 for Snellen chart and r = −0.33, p = 0.35 for the E-chart; vertical: r = 0.05, p = 0.91 for the Snellen chart and r = −0.28, p = 0.50 for the E-chart). Conclusion: Subjects with UVH manifest impaired DVA. The frequency of head motion has an impact on clinical DVA scores in UVH subjects.
The Muslim Discovery of Europe

I suppose that most textbooks of European history or of world history—which in European textbooks is much the same thing—contain a chapter called ‘The Age of the Discoveries’, or something of the kind, which deals with the period from the fifteenth century onwards when Western Europe set about discovering the rest of the world. My subject to-day is another and earlier discovery, in which the West European was not the explorer going forth to discover the barbarian, but the barbarian discovered by the explorer—the Muslim explorer. My purpose is to outline, very briefly, the sources, nature, and stages of growth of Muslim knowledge concerning Western Europe, first in the obscure centuries before the Crusades, then during that great offensive of Western Christendom against Islam, of which the expeditions to Palestine were the easternmost expression.
Nighttime Sleep Duration and Sleep Behaviors among Toddlers from Low-Income Families: Associations with Obesogenic Behaviors and Obesity and the Role of Parenting.

BACKGROUND Shortened sleep duration is associated with poor health and obesity among young children. Little is known about relationships among nighttime sleep duration, sleep behaviors, and obesogenic behaviors/obesity among toddlers. This study characterizes sleep behaviors/duration and examines relationships with obesogenic behaviors/obesity among toddlers from low-income families. METHODS Mothers of toddlers (age 12-32 months) were recruited from urban/suburban sites serving low-income families. Mothers provided demographic information and completed the Brief Infant Sleep Questionnaire (BISQ); a 6-item Toddler Sleep Behavior Scale was derived (TSBS-BISQ, higher score reflects more recommended behaviors). Toddler weight/length were measured; obesity defined as ≥95th percentile weight-for-length. Measures of obesogenic behaviors: physical activity [accelerometry, minutes/day in Moderate-to-Vigorous Physical Activity (MVPA)] and diet quality [24-hour recall, Healthy Eating Index 2005 (HEI-2005)]. Bivariate and adjusted multivariable models examined associations between nighttime sleep behaviors/duration and obesogenic behaviors/obesity. RESULTS Sample included 240 toddlers (mean age = 20.2 months), 55% male, 69% black, 59% urban. Toddlers spent 55.4 minutes/day in MVPA, mean HEI-2005 score was 55.4, 13% were obese. Mean sleep duration was 9.1 hours, with 35% endorsing 5-6 recommended sleep behaviors (TSBS-BISQ). In multivariable models, MVPA was positively related to sleep duration; obese toddlers had a shorter nighttime sleep duration than healthy weight toddlers [odds ratio = 0.69, p = 0.014]. Nighttime sleep duration was associated with high TSBS-BISQ scores, F = 6.1, p = 0.003. CONCLUSIONS Toddlers with a shorter nighttime sleep duration are at higher risk for obesity and inactivity. Interventions to promote healthy sleep behaviors among toddlers from low-income families may improve nighttime sleep duration and reduce obesogenic behaviors/obesity.
Customer satisfaction and perceptions about food services on the University for Development Studies Campus, Ghana

Customers’ perceptions about food and service attributes are considered to be very crucial in influencing their satisfaction and behavioral intentions in the food and service industry. This study focused on customer satisfaction and the general perception about food services of two restaurants on the Nyankpala Campus of the University for Development Studies, Tamale, Ghana. The study further looked at the challenges the restaurants encounter in acquiring and storing agricultural produce in the industry. The two restaurants were Alimento (A) and Lovely Sisters (B), purposively sampled, based on their high levels of patronage. A semi-structured questionnaire was designed and administered to a total of 240 respondents in both restaurants during the second session of 2009/2010 academic year. The main methods of analysis were principal component analysis and a multiple regression to find out the factors that influenced the levels of patronage so as to make recommendations for improvements. The study revealed that while only 38.8% of the customers were satisfied with the services of Restaurant A, as much as 81.7% of the customers in Restaurant B were satisfied. The principal components that influenced patrons’ frequency of visits to Restaurant A were cleanliness of eating area, cleanliness of serving area, appearance of staff and relaxed atmosphere. For Restaurant B, efficiency of service, friendliness of servers and pleasing appearance of food were the principal components that influenced patrons’ frequency of visit. Regression of patron’s frequency of visits on the principal components confirmed the significance of the factors in influencing the dependent variable. It is important that apart from reducing the price, Restaurant A improves upon its assurance and empathy dimensions while Restaurant B also improves upon its tangibility dimensions. Also, in order to avert the seasonal shortages of produce, it may be necessary for the restaurateurs to put up simple storage structures to store their raw materials. Key words: Food service, perceptions, principal components, regression coefficients.
The aerobic and anaerobic bacteriology of perirectal abscesses

The microbiology of perirectal abscesses in 144 patients was studied. Aerobic or facultative bacteria only were isolated in 13 (9%) instances, anaerobic bacteria only were isolated in 27 (19%) instances, and mixed aerobic and anaerobic flora were isolated in 104 (72%) instances. A total of 325 anaerobic and 131 aerobic or facultative isolates were recovered (2.2 anaerobic isolates and 0.9 aerobic isolates per specimen). The predominant anaerobes were as follows: Bacteroides fragilis group (85 isolates), Peptostreptococcus spp. (72 isolates), Prevotella spp. (71 isolates), Fusobacterium spp. (21 isolates), Porphyromonas spp. (20 isolates), and Clostridium spp. (15 isolates). The predominant aerobic and facultative bacteria were as follows: Staphylococcus aureus (34 isolates), Streptococcus spp. (28 isolates), and Escherichia coli (19 isolates). These data illustrate the polymicrobial aerobic and anaerobic microbiology of perirectal abscesses.
Phenotypic recurrent selection in the common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L) with carioca-type grains for resistance to the fungi Phaeoisariopsis griseola

The efficiency of recurrent selection was assessed in obtaining common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L) plant lines resistant to the phytopathogenic fungi Phaeoisariopsis griseola. The base bean population was obtained from the partial diallel between seven lines with carioca-type grains and 10 sources of resistance to P. griseola. The plants most resistant to the pathogen were selected in the F2 (S0) generation of the populations (C-0). The best S0:1 plants that presented carioca-type grains were intercrossed to obtain cycle I (C-I). The same procedure was adopted to obtain cycles C-II to C-V. In each recurrent selection cycle, S0:1 progenies selected were also assessed in experiments carried out in Lavras, Brazil, always using as check the Carioca MG (susceptible to P. griseola) and Perola (tolerant) cultivars. The response to selection for resistance to the pathogen was estimated from the general mean of the S0:1 progenies from each selective cycle compared to the susceptible check Carioca MG. The estimated gain was 6.4% per cycle and the indirect response in grain yield by selection for resistance to the pathogen was 8.9% per cycle. The variability detected among the progenies in the last selective cycles enabled the prediction of additional responses to recurrent selection.
DESIGN STUDY OF STRESSED MIRROR POLISHING (SMP) FIXTURE FOR SEGMENTED MIRROR TELESCOPES

Stressed Mirror Polishing (SMP) is a technique developed for the fabrication of off-axis aspheric mirror segments in a rapid and cost effective manner. In SMP, the polishing of the mirror is carried out along with specific loads which are capable of deforming a spherical mirror into any desired aspherical shape and thus reducing the difficulty of aspheric mirror polishing. When the blank is removed from SMP after spherical polish and metrology, the blank will relax to the required aspherical surface with-in desired PV & RMS surface figure accuracies. This paper discusses the different FEM approaches that can be adopted for simulating the deformations in the mirror blank. For preliminary study purpose, a 36-cm diameter off-axis, meniscus shaped parabolic roundel and a Spherical roundel mirror blanks are taken and required deformations are achieved through various FEM approaches. The net deformed surface is validated and compared with a best fit near spherical surface. Additionally the reversibility of the technique is also proved with-in required Surface accuracies. It is felt necessary that these preliminary simulations should form the basis in understanding the warping process and their locations, so that full SMP fixture can be designed which is capable of warping the mirrors.