Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Key for Successful Home-Based Slow Oral Immunotherapy in Children with Egg Allergy: Age and Sensitivity

Background: Oral immunotherapy (OIT) has been recognized as a promising therapy for children with food allergy. However a part of applied patients was not able to increase doses of allergic food. Since a clear standard for the appropriate patient selection for OIT has not been established, we tried to determine the indication criteria for when and/or to whom OIT should be applied. Method: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 82 children treated by home-based slow OIT which shows the administration of baked eggs orally every 2-3 days at home for two months as maintenance dose after open food challenge and statistically analyzed their clinical courses to identify the prognostic factors associated with a successful result. We applied the variables such as age, sex, symptoms during OIT, initial dose when starting OIT, specific IgE level and dislike of eggs, to a multivariate stepwise logistic regression analysis. Results: A total of 40 (56%) children reached remission in the OIT trial for a median of 213 days without severer allergic reactions, the remaining 31 (44%) could not reach the remission stage. We found the clinical course of the patients to be significantly associated with age and the initial dose of OIT. The children under 4 years of age or who could ingest larger portions (more than 1g if under 4 years, and 6g if over 5 years) as an initial dose were found to be the best candidates for OIT. Conclusions: This study revealed that home-based slow OIT caused almost successful results without severe allergic results in the children with egg allergy, and especially when starting before 5 years of age it is remarkable even if their initial doses were limited. This is the first report to contribute to the establishment of the indication criteria for home-based OIT.
Ice nucleating particles in the Saharan Air Layer

Abstract. This study aims at quantifying the ice nucleation properties of desert dust in the Saharan Air Layer (SAL), the warm, dry and dust-laden layer that expands from North Africa to the Americas. By measuring close to the dust's emission source, before aging processes during the transatlantic advection potentially modify the dust properties, the study fills a gap between in situ measurements of dust ice nucleating particles (INPs) far away from the Sahara and laboratory studies of ground-collected soil. Two months of online INP concentration measurements are presented, which were part of the two CALIMA campaigns at the Izana observatory in Tenerife, Spain (2373 m a.s.l.), in the summers of 2013 and 2014. INP concentrations were measured in the deposition and condensation mode at temperatures between 233 and 253 K with the Portable Ice Nucleation Chamber (PINC). Additional aerosol information such as bulk chemical composition, concentration of fluorescent biological particles as well as the particle size distribution was used to investigate observed variations in the INP concentration. The concentration of INPs was found to range between 0.2 std L−1 in the deposition mode and up to 2500 std L−1 in the condensation mode at 240 K. It correlates well with the abundance of aluminum, iron, magnesium and manganese (R: 0.43–0.67) and less with that of calcium, sodium or carbonate. These observations are consistent with earlier results from laboratory studies which showed a higher ice nucleation efficiency of certain feldspar and clay minerals compared to other types of mineral dust. We find that an increase of ammonium sulfate, linked to anthropogenic emissions in upwind distant anthropogenic sources, mixed with the desert dust has a small positive effect on the condensation mode INP per dust mass ratio but no effect on the deposition mode INP. Furthermore, the relative abundance of biological particles was found to be significantly higher in INPs compared to the ambient aerosol. Overall, this suggests that atmospheric aging processes in the SAL can lead to an increase in ice nucleation ability of mineral dust from the Sahara. INP concentrations predicted with two common parameterization schemes, which were derived mostly from atmospheric measurements far away from the Sahara but influenced by Asian and Saharan dust, were found to be higher based on the aerosol load than we observed in the SAL, further suggesting aging effects of INPs in the SAL.
EFFECT OF DIFFERENT DRYING METHODS ON SAFFRON (CROCUS SATIVUS L) QUALITY

The substances responsible for saffron's characteristic quality are crocins, picrocrocin, and safranal. The drying process is critical to the saffron quality as measured by levels of secondary metabolites, crocin (color and anti-tumor properties), picrocrocin (taste), and safranal (aroma). Four different dehydration methods were evaluated: Iranian traditional method (room temperature); dehydration with electrical oven at different temperatures; and dehydration with microwave at different powers. The results showed that the highest coloring strength was obtained when saffron treated at higher temperatures and lower times. Also the higher amount of safranal (aroma) and crocin (color) was obtained at high temperature. There was not significant difference between the amounts of picrocrocin at different temperatures in all drying methods. Between these methods, drying with microwave at 1000 W and drying at room temperature obtained the highest the �� lowest results respectively.
Observations on viscosity reduction of PHPA polymer support fluids

Polymer fluids have been used in foundation drilling for many years and yet no previous studies have been reported which assess their sensitivity to shear such as is induced by pumping equipment. A field study has been carried out on two specific polymer products under actual site conditions. It is found that there is a significant loss of viscosity when partially hydrolyzed polyacrylamide (PHPA) fluids are circulated through a centrifugal pump in a loop system. This behavior is quite distinct from that of bentonite slurries which require high shear mixing and recirculation to ensure good hydration. At first sight the sensitivity of PHPA fluids to shear may be perceived as a disadvantage but in fact if shear can be reduced so can on-site energy consumption. A reduction in fluid viscosity was also observed over a standing period between mixing and use, suggesting that a second mechanism may be contributing to the properties change. From the trial results, recommendations are given on pump selection and on the maintenance of fluid properties.
Regional, Very Heavy Daily Precipitation in CMIP5 Simulations

AbstractThe authors analyze the ability of global climate models (GCMs) from phase 5 of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP5) multimodel ensemble to simulate very heavy daily precipitation and its supporting processes, comparing them with observations. Their analysis focuses on an upper Mississippi region for winter (December–February), when it is assumed that resolved synoptic circulation governs precipitation. CMIP5 GCMs generally reproduce well the precipitation versus intensity spectrum seen in observations to intensities as strong as 20 mm day−1. Most models do not produce the highest precipitation intensities seen in observations. Models show good agreement at the 95th percentile, while the coarsest resolution models generally show lower precipitation at high-intensity thresholds, such as the 99.5th percentile. There is no dominant month for simulated very heavy events to occur, although observed very heavy events occur most frequently in December. Further analysis focuses on precipitati.
Estimating a discrete distribution via histogram selection

Our aim is to estimate the joint distribution of a finite sequence of independent categorical variables. We consider the collection of partitions into dyadic intervals and the associated histograms, and we select from the data the best histogram by minimizing a penalized least-squares criterion. The choice of the collection of partitions is inspired from approximation results due to DeVore and Yu. Our estimator satisfies a nonasymptotic oracle-type inequality and adaptivity properties in the minimax sense. Moreover, its computational complexity is only linear in the length of the sequence. We also use that estimator during the preliminary stage of a hybrid procedure for detecting multiple change-points in the joint distribution of the sequence. That second procedure still satisfies adaptivity properties and can be implemented efficiently. We provide a simulation study and apply the hybrid procedure to the segmentation of a DNA sequence.
The complete spectrum of the equatorial electrojet related to solar tides: CHAMP observations

Abstract. Based on 10 yr of magnetic field measurements by the CHAMP satellite we draw a detailed picture of the equatorial electrojet (EEJ) tidal variations. For the first time the complete EEJ spectrum related to average solar tides has been compiled. A large fraction of the resulting spectrum is related to the switch on/off of the EEJ between day and night. This effect has carefully been considered when interpreting the results. As expected, largest amplitudes are caused by the migrating tides representing the mean diurnal variation. Higher harmonics of the daily variations show a 1/f fall-off in amplitude. Such a spectrum is required to represent the vanishing of the EEJ current at night. The migrating tidal signal exhibits a distinct annual variation with large amplitudes during December solstice and equinox seasons but a depression by a factor of 1.7 around June–July. A rich spectrum of non-migrating tidal effects is deduced. Most prominent is the four-peaked longitudinal pattern around August. Almost 90% of the structure can be attributed to the diurnal eastward-propagating tide DE3. In addition the westward-propagating DW5 is contributing to wave-4. The second-largest non-migrating tide is the semi-diurnal SW4 around December solstice. It causes a wave-2 feature in satellite observations. The three-peaked longitudinal pattern, often quoted as typical for the December season, is significantly weaker. During the months around May–June a prominent wave-1 feature appears. To first order it represents a stationary planetary wave SPW1 which causes an intensification of the EEJ at western longitudes beyond 60° W and a weakening over Africa/India. In addition, a prominent ter-diurnal non-migrating tide TW4 causes the EEJ to peak later, at hours past 14:00 local time in the western sector. A particularly interesting non-migrating tide is the semi-diurnal SW3. It causes largest EEJ amplitudes from October through December. This tidal component shows a strong dependence on solar flux level with increasing amplitudes towards solar maximum. We are not aware of any previous studies mentioning this behaviour of SW3. The main focus of this study is to present the observed EEJ spectrum and its relation to tidal driving. For several of the identified spectral components we cannot offer convincing explanations for the generation mechanisms.
Soft-Output Detection Methods for Sparse Millimeter-Wave MIMO Systems With Low-Precision ADCs

In this paper, we propose computationally efficient yet near-optimal soft-output detection methods for coded millimeter-wave (mmWave) multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) systems with low-precision analog-to-digital converters (ADCs). The underlying idea of the proposed methods is to construct an extremely sparse inter-symbol-interference channel model by jointly exploiting the delay-domain sparsity in mmWave channels and a high quantization noise caused by low-precision ADCs. Then, we harness this sparse channel model to create a trellis diagram with a reduced number of states and a factor graph with very sparse edge connections, which are used for the computationally efficient soft-output detection methods. Using the reduced trellis diagram, we present a soft-output detection method that computes the log-likelihood ratios (LLRs) of coded bits by optimally combining the quantized received signals obtained from multiple receive antennas using a forward-and-backward algorithm. To reduce the computational complexity further, we also present a low-complexity detection method using the sparse factor graph to compute the LLRs in an iterative fashion based on a belief propagation algorithm. Simulations results demonstrate that the proposed soft-output detection methods provide significant frame-error-rates gains compared with the existing frequency-domain equalization techniques in a coded mmWave MIMO system using one- or two-bit ADCs.
Parametric Splines in Tension Reproduction Agreement

A brief review of curve fitting terminology is presented, and the cubic spline interpolation scheme is outlined. Parametric and non-parametric curve fit ting techniques are compared. The technique to fit parametric cubic splines is derived using the Euler-Lagrange formulation. Previous work on splines in tension is identified. Employing the notion of splines in tension, a method is proposed to fit a parametric curve to a set of (n + 1) points in ^-dimension space satisfying a specified set of boundary conditions. The curve fitted will not have any inflection points within any span and will be invariant with respect to coor dinate translation and rotation. Using Euler-Lagrange formulation, a system of linear equations in terms of the unknown second derivatives at knots is developed. Three kinds of boundary conditions are investigated. Software is developed in VAX Fortran to fit both parametric splines in tension and parametric cubic splines. Applications where splines in tension may find use are identified. Some ex amples of such applications are presented and comparison to cubic spline made. Splines in tension offer a better alternative than Fourier transform in describing boundary of shape in digital image processing application. Possi ble extensions to the numerical scheme developed and related investigations by other workers in this field are also listed.
Successful Leadership Practices for Schools in Challenging Urban Contexts: Case Studies Prácticas de Liderazgo Exitoso en Escuelas en Contextos Urbanos Desafiantes: Estudios de Caso Práticas de Liderança de Sucesso para as Escolas em Contextos Urbanos Desafiadores: Estudos de Caso

This paper examines some of the key aspects of successful leadership practices for schools in challenging urban context. The research question for this paper is: “What are the key aspects of successful leadership practices used by headteachers in schools in a highly disadvantaged urban context? ” The study is based on a qualitative case study approach with a comparative perspective. In the study a purposeful sampling approach was adopted. In order to answer the research question multiple methods of data collection were used. The research findings show three following development phases common to the studied schools and successful leadership practices corresponding to those phases: (i) Creation of reliable foundations: toward new qualities; (ii) Building a culture of concern and achievement; and (iii) Searching for synergy: stabilization and consolidation. Teachers’ leadership and building the educational partnerships are especially important practices within the phase: “Searching for synergy: stabilization and consolidation”.
Common variants at 8q24 confer susceptibility to urothelial bladder cancer in the Pakistani population

Abstract. - 8q24 has recently received much attention after genome-wide studies identified the association of common sequence variants in the 8q24.21 gene desert as well as a 5′UTR polymorphism of the PSCA gene with individual susceptibility to urinary bladder cancer (UBC). The objective of the present study was to determine the association of selected single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) at the 8q24 locus (rs9642880 and rs6983267 at 8q24.21 and rs2294008 near the prostate stem cell antigen [ PSCA] ) with urothelial bladder cancer (UBC) among the Pakistani population. For this purpose, genotyping of selected SNPs was performed by simple allele-discriminating polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in 200 UBC cases and 200 healthy controls. All three variants were found to be associated with a significantly increased UBC risk (p<0.05) after adjusting for age, gender and smoking. rs9642880 was found to be associated slightly stronger with low grade as compared to high grade UBC, while rs2294008 was associated with increased risk of high grade and invasive stages of the disease, and rs6983267 exhibited a strong positive association with UBC risk irrespective of tumor stage and grade. In conclusion, the current study shows a significant involvement of the 8q24 locus in UBC etiology in Pakistani patients.
Simple random search of static linear policies is competitive for reinforcement learning

Model-free reinforcement learning aims to offer off-the-shelf solutions for controlling dynamical systems without requiring models of the system dynamics. We introduce a model-free random search algorithm for training static, linear policies for continuous control problems. Common evaluation methodology shows that our method matches state-of-the-art sample efficiency on the benchmark MuJoCo locomotion tasks. Nonetheless, more rigorous evaluation reveals that the assessment of performance on these benchmarks is optimistic. We evaluate the performance of our method over hundreds of random seeds and many different hyperparameter configurations for each benchmark task. This extensive evaluation is possible because of the small computational footprint of our method. Our simulations highlight a high variability in performance in these benchmark tasks, indicating that commonly used estimations of sample efficiency do not adequately evaluate the performance of RL algorithms. Our results stress the need for new baselines, benchmarks and evaluation methodology for RL algorithms.
Biological introductions or native ranges: two curious cases of new distributional records in the Panama Canal

We report two new, curious records of freshwater worms collected in the Panama Canal, Panama: the ribbon worm, Apatronemertes albimaculosa Wilfert and Gibson, 1974, and the leech, Placobdella parasitica (Say, 1824). Identification of these specimens relied on morphological examinations and, more heavily, on molecular barcoding using the mitochondrial COI locus. Both phylogenetic and genetic distance analyses were employed to robustly establish the identities of the specimens. Whereas the native range of A. albimaculosa is currently unknown, P. parasitica was first described from Minnesota, USA and is possibly native to southern Canada and most of the USA. Neither species has previously been recorded from Central America. We briefly discuss possible scenarios for the dispersal of both species, and conclude that the introduction of P. parasitica into Panamanian waters was likely human-mediated in association with the introduction of its turtle host. Insofar as ours is the first record of wild-caught A. albimaculosa worldwide, we do not exclude the possibility of Panama being within the native range of the species. However, it is also possible that the species has been transported with ballast water into the Panama Canal; a relatively common phenomenon.
Assessment of the Mandibular Canal Position in the Mandibular Body using Cone Beam Computed Tomography

1. Department of Oral and Maxillofacial of Radiology, Faculty of Dentistry, Babol University of Medical Sciences, Babol, I.R. Iran 2. Department of Periodontology, Faculty of Dentistry, Babol University of Medical Sciences, Babol, I.R. Iran 3. Faculty of Dentistry, Babol University of Medical Sciences, Babol, I.R. Iran 4. Non-Communicable Pediatric Diseases Research Center, Babol University of Medical Sciences, Babol, I.R. Iran
Effect of Organic Zinc on the Skin Characteristics of Broilers and the Expression Level of Skin Proteins

Organic zinc was included in the diet of broiler chickens to examine its effect on the skin characteristics and the expression level of skin proteins. Broiler chicks (Ross×Ross) were fed a corn-wheat-soybean meal basal diet, either as control or containing an additional 80 ppm of zinc proteinate for 4 weeks, and then five broilers from each treatment were selected randomly, slaughtered, and their skin characteristics were examined. There were significant increases (p＜0.05) in thigh skin epidermis and dermis thickness in the chicks fed organic zinc. Collagen content in the skin of broilers was also increased by the addition of organic zinc to the diet. 2D-gel electrophoresis patterns indicated that expression levels of the three proteins, glyoxylase 1, hypothetical protein, and dispersin B were affected by zinc feeding. These results suggest that adding organic zinc to the chicken’s feed may contribute to decreased skin tearing.
Radiological Mapping Of Nepalese Calvaria.

Introduction Skull has cranial vault and base. The cranial vault is called as calvarium which roofs the cranial cavity (brain box). Cranial vault consists of frontal, parietal and occipital bones. Total thickness of calvarial bones includes outer table, diploe and inner table. Diploe is made up of spongy bone whereas outer and inner table made up of compact bone. Objective To measure the thickness of Nepalese calvarial bones i.e. Frontal, Parietal and Occipital. Methods It is a hospital base cross-sectional study. CT records of one hundred and fifty adult people were studied. Nine various points on frontal bone, seven on parietal and six on occipital were located and their thickness were measured bilaterally with help of CT scan. Results The present study showed that Mean thickness+_SD of frontal bone were 6.1+_1. 8mm; parietal 4.6+_2.2 and occipital 9.5+_3. 4. The study also showed that frontal bone had 2.4+_0.8 mm thick outer table; 1.4+_0. 6mm inner table and 3.5+_1. 3mm diploe. Similarly parietal bone had 1.9+_0. 6 mm thick outer table; 1.1+_0. 4mm inner table and 0.8+_0. 5mm diploe. The occipital bone had 3.5+_1.5 mm thick outer table; 2.2+_0.8mm inner table and 4.3+_1. 8mm diploe. Similarly this present study also calculated the mean thickness+_SD of outer table in the calvarium as 2.7+_1. 3mm and that of inner table 1.5+_0. 9 mm. Thus it concluded that outer table was thicker than inner table. Journal of Nobel Medical College Vol. 2, No.1 Issue 3 Nov.-April 2013 Page 31-35 DOI: http://dx.doi. org/10.3126/jonmc.v2i1. 7670
Preliminary impacts of the leader+ approach in the Czech Republic.

The paper outlines the backgrounds related to the necessity of searching for the new methods of assessing preliminary impacts of the rural development programmes. That is why the content analysis is tested in this paper for its possibilities to observe the preliminary impacts of one of the rural development tools – the community initiative LEADEr+ in the czech republic. The research pointed out that content analysis might be an appropriate method to define some impacts (and also the efficiency) of the LEADEr+ approach. The results demonstrated that the transparency and public accountability of some local action groups (LAg) activities are not always on a high level. Also the differences among the LAgs are shown as for their ability to learn the principles of the LEADEr+. The method also enabled to estimate how the LEADEr+ contributes to eliminate the social exclusion in the countryside. it also pointed out a lower representation of farming oriented projects in the LEADEr+ approach. The content analysis reflected the transfer of the best practices among the territories and also the possible knowledge of the public about the LEADEr+ approach and about the projects implemented in