Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Three-Dimensional, Kinematic, Human Behavioral Pattern-Based Features for Multimodal Emotion Recognition

This paper presents a multimodal emotion recognition method that uses a feature-level combination of three-dimensional (3D) geometric features (coordinates, distance and angle of joints), kinematic features such as velocity and displacement of joints, and features extracted from daily behavioral patterns such as frequency of head nod, hand wave, and body gestures that represent specific emotions. Head, face, hand, body, and speech data were captured from 15 participants using an infrared sensor (Microsoft Kinect). The 3D geometric and kinematic features were developed using raw feature data from the visual channel. Human emotional behavior-based features were developed using inter-annotator agreement and commonly observed expressions, movements and postures associated to specific emotions. The features from each modality and the behavioral pattern-based features (head shake, arm retraction, body forward movement depicting anger) were combined to train the multimodal classifier for the emotion recognition system. The classifier was trained using 10-fold cross validation and support vector machine (SVM) to predict six basic emotions. The results showed improvement in emotion recognition accuracy (The precision increased by 3.28% and the recall rate by 3.17%) when the 3D geometric, kinematic, and human behavioral pattern-based features were combined for multimodal emotion recognition using supervised classification.
Hydroxyurea therapy for sickle cell disease in community‐based practices: A survey of Florida and North Carolina hematologists/oncologists

Little is known about patterns of hydroxyurea (HU) use by community‐based hematologist/oncologists (H/Os) for the treatment of sickle cell disease (SCD). Determination of these practice patterns pertaining to adult SCD patients was the focus of this study. A self‐administered survey was mailed to H/Os in two southeastern states. Replies were received from 70% of eligible physicians. This study focuses on responses from 184 community H/Os and a comparison group of 30 university‐based/affiliated H/Os providing ongoing care for at least 3 SCD patients/month. The majority of community H/O respondents saw less than 3 SCD patients/month. HU was prescribed by more than half (55%) of community H/Os in at least 10% of their patients. The most common reasons cited for prescribing HU include frequent painful crises (76%), chronic pain with frequent narcotic use (58%), and acute chest syndrome (43%). Although the majority of community H/Os care for few patients with SCD, the reported indications for HU were consistent with currently accepted recommendations. However, community H/Os reported acute chest syndrome, stroke, and pulmonary hypertension as indications for HU less often than the academic H/O group. Barriers to wider use of HU include physician concerns about carcinogenic potential, doubts about HU effectiveness, perceived patient apprehension about adverse effects, concern about lack of contraceptive use, and patient compliance. Further resources should focus on updating physicians on recently published material supporting the effectiveness of HU in symptomatic SCD as well as providing management guidelines to optimize the use of HU. Am. J. Hematol. 79:107–113, 2005. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Granulocyte chemotactic protein 2 (gcp-2/cxcl6) complements interleukin-8 in periodontal disease.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE Mucosal inflammatory responses are orchestrated largely by pro-inflammatory chemokines. The chemokine granulocyte chemotactic protein 2 (CXCL6) is involved in neutrophil recruitment and migration. Previous studies have shown that granulocyte chemotactic protein 2 is up-regulated during mucosal inflammation (e.g. in inflammatory bowel disease), similarly to the functionally and structurally related chemokine interleukin-8. Nevertheless, unlike interleukin-8, a role of granulocyte chemotactic protein 2 in gingival inflammation has not been yet demonstrated. In this study we aimed to evaluate the expression of the chemokine granulocyte chemotactic protein 2 in clinically healthy vs. diseased gingival tissues and to explore possible correlations with clinical and microbiological markers of periodontitis. MATERIAL AND METHODS Gene expression in 184 'diseased' and 63 'healthy' gingival tissue specimens from 90 patients with periodontitis was analyzed using Affymetrix U133Plus2.0 arrays. The expression of granulocyte chemotactic protein 2 was further confirmed by real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction, western blotting and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, while the localization of granulocyte chemotactic protein 2 in gingival tissues was analyzed by immunohistochemistry. Plaque samples from the adjacent periodontal pockets were collected and evaluated for 11 species of periodontal bacteria using checkerboard DNA-DNA hybridizations. RESULTS Among all known chemokines, GCP-2 expression was the most up-regulated (3.8-fold, p < 1.1 x 10(-16)), in 'diseased' vs. 'healthy' tissue as compared to a 2.6-fold increased expression of interleukin-8 mRNA (p < 1.2 x 10(-15)). Increased expression of granulocyte chemotactic protein 2 correlated with higher levels of 'red' and 'orange' complex pathogens and with increased probing depth, but not with attachment loss. Immunohistochemistry showed that granulocyte chemotactic protein 2 was expressed in gingival vascular endothelium. CONCLUSION The level of expression of granulocyte chemotactic protein 2 correlates with the severity of periodontitis and appears to act as a hitherto unrecognized functional adjunct to interleukin-8 in diseased gingival tissues.
Automorphism Groups of Cayley Maps

Cayley maps are embeddings of Cayley graphs in orientable surfaces, with the same local orientation at every vertex. In this paper, conditions will be given under which a Cayley map is regular or reflexible, together with algorithms for checking these conditions. We shall give the description of the automorphism group of an arbitrary Cayley map and focus on the special case of k-balanced Cayley maps.
Field studies on the environmental fate of the Cry1Ab Bt‐toxin produced by transgenic maize (MON810) and its effect on bacterial communities in the maize rhizosphere

Field studies were done to assess how much of the transgenic, insecticidal protein, Cry1Ab, encoded by a truncated cry1Ab gene from Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), was released from Bt‐maize MON810 into soil and whether bacterial communities inhabiting the rhizosphere of MON810 maize were different from those of the rhizosphere of nontransgenic maize cultivars. Bacterial community structure was investigated by SSCP (single‐strand conformation polymorphism) of PCR‐amplified 16S rRNA genes from community DNA. Using an improved extraction and detection protocol based on a commercially available ELISA, it was possible to detect Cry1Ab protein extracted from soils to a threshold concentration of 0.07 ng/g soil. From 100 ng of purified Cry1Ab protein added per gram of soil, only an average of 37% was extractable. At both field sites investigated, the amount of Cry1Ab protein in bulk soil of MON810 field plots was always lower than in the rhizosphere, the latter ranging from 0.1 to 10 ng/g soil. Immunoreactive Cry1Ab protein was also detected at 0.21 ng/g bulk soil 7 months after harvesting, i.e. in April of the following year. At this time, however, higher values were found in residues of leaves (21 ng/g) and of roots (183 ng/g), the latter corresponding to 12% of the Cry1Ab protein present in intact roots. A sampling 2 months later indicated further degradation of the protein. Despite the detection of Cry1Ab protein in the rhizosphere of MON810 maize, the bacterial community structure was less affected by the Cry1Ab protein than by other environmental factors, i.e. the age of the plants or field heterogeneities. The persistence of Cry1Ab protein emphasizes the importance of considering post‐harvest effects on nontarget organisms.
Strong carbon-nanotube fibers spun from long carbon-nanotube arrays.

The superior mechanical properties of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) mean they have been regarded as a new material with the potential to revolutionize and enable many advanced technologies. CNTs have extremely high tensile strength ( 150 GPa), high modulus ( 1 TPa), large aspect ratio, low density, good chemical and environmental stability, and high thermal and electrical conductivity. These superior and unique properties make CNTs very attractive for many structural applications such as aerospace structures, body armors, and sporting goods. Early studies of CNT-reinforced nanocomposites showed that CNTs were effective fillers to enhance the mechanical properties of polymer matrices, but the reinforcement was limited by the quality of dispersion, CNT alignment, and load-transfer efficiency between the CNT and the matrix. The full reinforcement potential of CNTs has not yet been utilized in CNT composites. It has been a challenge to make macroscale CNT structures and to fully utilize the outstanding mechanical properties of CNTs. The first macroscale CNT structure was in the form of a film called buckypaper, which displayed relatively high electrical and thermal conductivity, but low mechanical properties. For the purpose of obtaining superior mechanical performance, researchers have recently focused on CNT fibers. The first CNT fiber was successfully prepared through spinning a CNT homogeneous dispersion into a polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) coagulation bath. This approach was modified by Baughman s group to make single-walled (SW) CNT composite fibers with very high strength. 8] The major issues with this approach include a relatively high fraction of remaining polymer volume and short individual CNTs, which limits the fiber s strength, electrical and thermal conductivity. Recently, new approaches have been reported in which pure CNT fibers were spun without a matrix. For example, pure CNT fibers were spun from a CNT-fuming sulfuric acid solution. A continuous multi-walled (MW) CNT yarn was pulled from a high-quality array without twisting. SWCNT fibers were spun from an aerogel in the chemical vapor deposition synthesis zone, and MWCNT fibers were spun from CNT arrays. 15] These CNT fibers usually have a strength of 1.5 GPa and a Young s modulus of 30 GPa. Here, we report the spinning of CNT fibers from relatively long CNT arrays (0.65 mm). The influence of post-spin twisting on the mechanical performance of these fibers is also discussed. Figure 1a shows a scanning electron microscopy (SEM) image of the 0.65-mm CNT array, which is synthesized by
Mitigation of Inter-Cell Interference in Flash Memory With Capacity-Approaching Variable-Length Constrained Sequence Codes

We propose using variable-length constrained sequence codes to mitigate inter-cell interference (ICI) in all-bit-line flash memory with multi-page programming for single-level cell, multi-level cell, and triple-level cell flash memory structures. We outline constraints that mitigate ICI in these systems based on an observation of the Gray mapping of data symbols, and we derive the capacity of each constraint. Based on a finite state machine representation of each constraint, we construct variable-length constrained sequence codes with code rates very close to capacity to mitigate ICI in these flash memories. We then exploit the inherent error control capability of the proposed constrained sequence codes to alleviate error propagation. Finally, we integrate these codes with error control codes and present simulation results that demonstrate the enhanced bit error rate performance that can be achieved.
Effects of a Mirror-Induced Visual Illusion on a Reaching Task in Stroke Patients

Background. Although most mirror therapy studies have shown improved motor performance in stroke patients, the optimal mirror training protocol still remains unclear. Objective. To study the relative contribution of a mirror in training a reaching task and of unilateral and bimanual training with a mirror. Methods. A total of 93 stroke patients at least 6 months poststroke were instructed to perform a reaching task as fast and as fluently as possible. They performed 70 practice trials after being randomly allocated to 1 of 5 experimental groups: training with (1) the paretic arm with direct view (Paretic-No Mirror), (2) the nonparetic arm with direct view (Nonparetic-No Mirror), (3) the nonparetic arm with mirror reflection (Nonparetic Mirror), (4) both sides and with a nontransparent screen preventing visual control of paretic side (Bilateral-Screen), and (5) both sides with mirror reflection of the nonparetic arm (Bilateral-Mirror). As baseline and follow-up, patients performed 6 trials using only their paretic side. Primary outcome measure was the movement time. Results. We found the largest intervention effect in the Paretic-No Mirror condition. However, the Nonparetic-Mirror condition was not significantly different from the Paretic-No Mirror condition, while the Unaffected-No Mirror condition had significantly less improvement than the Paretic-No Mirror condition. In addition, movement time improved significantly less in the bimanual conditions and there was no difference between both bimanual conditions or between both mirror conditions. Conclusion. The present study confirms that using a mirror reflection can facilitate motor learning. In this task, bimanual movement using mirror training was less effective than unilateral training.
Influence of adiposity on leptin, LH and androgen levels in lean, overweight and obese PCOS patients.

BACKGROUND Leptin modulates hypothalamic-pituitary-gohadal axis functions. OBJECTIVE To assess the influence of leptin on LH, and to investigate the potential association of leptin with body mass index (BMI) and androgen concentrations in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). DESIGN Levels of leptin, LH, FSH, E2, testosterone, and androstenedione were measured. PATIENTS 91 patients with PCOS were included in this study. METHODS Patients were stratified into three groups according to BMI: normal weight (NW group, N=31), overweight patients (OW group N=30) and obese PCOS patients (Ob group, N=30). Results-Hyperandrogenemia was present in the studied group. A significant correlation was observed between BMI and androgens (both P < 0.01), and between leptin levels and androgens (respectfully for androstenendione P < 0.01 and for testosterone P < 0.05). A positive correlation between the LH and leptin levels in NW (P < 0.05) and OW (P < 0.001) patients was noticed, while negative correlation is seen in the Ob group (P < 0.01). In OW patients the significant positive correlation between leptin levels and androstenendione was found (P < 0.001), after correction for BMI. A linear regression model indicated that leptin concentrations and BMI contributed negatively and significantly (P < 0.001) to LH concentrations. CONCLUSION LH secretion in PCOS patients can be viewed as a consequence of the activity of different adipocyte and neuroendocrine factors. The attenuation in basal LH levels in obese PCOS women might be related to a leptin-resistant state.
Isolated Sphenoid Lesions: Diagnosis and Management

Isolated sphenoid lesions are rare. It is likely that isolated sphenoid sinus disease is underreported for a number of reasons. First, the presenting symptoms are often nonspecific; second, the inaccessibility of the sinus precludes optimal physical examination; and third, before the advent of CT and MRI scanning, radiologic examination of the sinus was inadequate. Endoscopic evaluation and current imaging techniques with CT or MRI have contributed to an increase in diagnosis of these lesions. Twenty-one patients with isolated sphenoid lesions that I treated in a 4-year period are presented. The pathology was unilateral sphenoid sinusitis (8), sphenoid mucoceles (4), inflammatory spheno-choanal polyp (3), inverting papilloma (2), invasive pituitary adenoma (1), carcinoma (1), aspergilloma (1), and fibrous dysplasia (1). Endoscopic biopsy was carried out in 7 patients (33.3%). A precise diagnosis after endoscopy, biopsy, and imaging studies was established in all patients. Definitive treatment included an endoscopic sphenoidotomy in 15 (71.4%). Five patients (23.8%) were treated with other therapeutic modalities. One patient did not require any definitive treatment. The combined use of imaging techniques and diagnostic nasal endoscopy allows for an accurate diagnosis and enables minimally invasive techniques to be tailored to the patient's disease. Isolated sphenoid pathology may be very insidious and present with nonspecific symptoms. It is therefore not surprising that these lesions have been regarded as an uncommon entity because of the lack of adequate diagnostic facilities in the past. Plain radiographs and examination with a headlight offer little diagnostic information on sphenoid pathology. The increased use of endoscopy in routine nasal examination and advances in imaging techniques of this area will probably result in more frequent diagnosis of these lesions. Twenty-one patients with isolated sphenoid lesions that I treated in a 4-year period are presented. The patient characteristics, presentation, diagnosis, and management of these lesions are described. An important feature emerging on studying these lesions was that a preoperative diagnosis, made possible by nasal endoscopy and CT/MRI scan, was invaluable in planning the treatment of these patients. Definitive endoscopic management of these lesions was possible in 15 patients.
Attitudes Toward Immigrant Groups and the September 11 Terrorist Attacks

The current research examined prejudice and perceived threat toward Mexican and Arab immigrants/immigration along the U.S./Mexico border. Sample 1 (n = 84) was collected before September 11; attitudes toward Mexican immigrants were assessed. Sample 2 (n = 140) was collected one month after September 11 and Sample 3 (n = 180) was collected one year later; attitudes toward both Mexican and Arab immigrants were assessed. U.S. citizens completed a social attitudes survey assessing symbolic threat, perceived realistic threat, and prejudice. Individual differences, such as American identity and political orientation, were also measured. As predicted, in samples 2 and 3 Arab immigrant's engendered greater levels of symbolic threat and prejudice among participants compared to Mexican immigrants and immigration. Participants also reported greater perceived realistic threat from Mexican immigrants after September 11 than before. American identity was positively related to threat and prejudice with respect to both i.
Beitrag zur Entwicklung eines Köders für Wölfe (Canis lupus) zur oralen Vakzination gegen Tollwut

The purpose of this study was to develop a suitable bait formula which can be used as an oral vaccination bait for wolves (Canis lupus) against rabies. Due to the current population trend of wolfs in Germany an introduction of the zoonosis cannot be ruled out. To guarantee a quick reaction in case of a rabies outbreak the bait matrix in which the blister will be integrated must be machine producible. The development of a suitable bait is necessary to stop or eliminate rabies as has performed in foxes. Therefore the present study has relevancy for animal welfare and conservation. To determine the taste prevalence of wolves different bait combinations were tested in various zoological institutions. The very well accepted intestinal bait (domestic pig) proved to be the optimal positive control and the poorly accepted fish bait (fox bait) served as the negative control in this study. As an egg based bait (egg bait) showed no significant difference in acceptance to the intestinal bait, this was chosen as a base material. In contrast to the intestinal bait the egg bait triggered the necessary chewing movements to perforate the vaccine blister which will be integrated in future. The absolved experiments confirm that the egg bait is suitable for mechanical mass production. Accordingly in this study the egg bait with several flavour enhancing substances and was offered to the wolves. During their main activity time the wolves discovered the egg-rumen-flour-coated bait more significantly often than the egg bait. Thus the egg-rumen-flour-coated bait is the bait of choice. Based on the presented and discussed results future studies can be aimed at finding a suitable blister. It is recommended that the blister is tested by wolves in different institutions. The final step would then be to test the reaction of free ranging wolves to the whole bait (matrix + blister) in the field.
The "compact impact" in Hawaii: focus on health care.

The political, economic, and military relationship between the former Pacific Trust Territories of the United States is defined by the Compact of Free Association (COFA) treaty. The respective COFA treaties allow the United States military and strategic oversight for these countries, while COFA citizens can work, reside, and travel with unlimited lengths of stay in the United States. The unforeseen consequences of the diaspora of the people of the COFA nations to the United States and its territories is called the "Compact Impact. " In 2007 the social, health, and welfare system costs attributed to the estimated 13,000 COFA migrants in Hawaii was $90 million. The US federal government does not take full responsibility for the adverse economic consequences to Hawaii due to COFA implementation. The lack of health and education infrastructure in the COFA nations, as well as the unique language, culture, political, and economic development of the region have contributed to the adverse elements of the Compact Impact. The Department of Human Services of Hawaii, once supportive of the COFA peoples, now looks to withdraw state sponsored health care support. This paper reviews the historical, political, and economic development, which surrounds the Compact Impact and describes Hawaii's government and community response. This paper attempts to understand, describe, and search for solutions that will mitigate the Compact Impact.
Understanding and use of antibiotics amongst Samoan people in New Zealand.

INTRODUCTION Use of antibiotics is high in Samoa and this may affect the expectations and patterns of antibiotic use of Samoans in New Zealand. AIM This study examined the understanding and reported use of antibiotics amongst Samoans in New Zealand. METHODS In-depth interviews were held with 13 Samoans in New Zealand. These interviews were analysed and used to develop a questionnaire that was administered to 112 Samoans attending health care facilities in New Zealand. RESULTS Many participants had little understanding of antibiotics. Less than 2% identified the correct purpose for antibiotics, and 66% thought they were used to relieve pain. Respondents regarded a wide range of medicines (including some which they regularly took) as antibiotics. They frequently attributed colds and flu to environmental conditions (96%), and regarded antibiotics as a useful treatment for them (81%). They reported stopping taking antibiotics before finishing the course. Very few (8%) were aware of antibiotic resistance. DISCUSSION Health care practitioners cannot assume that patients share a Western scientific understanding of which illnesses are caused by microbes, or what antibiotics are or do. People may have significant confusion about the medicines they take. Samoans, whether they are born in New Zealand or not, may hold traditional Samoan views about health and illness.
Tumor Development after 3-Methylcholanthrene in Immunologically Deficient Athymic-Nude Mice

Athymic-nude (nu/nu) mice and normal (nu/+) mice showed no differences in either latent period or incidence of local sarcomas or lung adenomas within 120 days after administration of 3-methylcholanthrene at birth. However, nu/nu mice were incapable of rejecting allogeneic skin grafts for the duration of the experiment. These results argue against an active role of thymus-dependent immunity as a surveillance mechanism preventing tumor development.