Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Teacher Evaluation

Accredited universities normally include a standard that addresses faculty evaluation. It may contain references to performance criteria and procedures and usually emphasizes the need for faculty evaluations to be systematic, regular, fair, objective and relevant to achieving the goals of the institution. Accredited language programs usually have a similar standard that addresses instructor evaluation. However, quite often performance criteria are never spelled out and teacher effectiveness is measured only by student appraisals of the course and the instructor. Public K-12 programs normally have agreed upon standards, but schools all too often measure teacher effectiveness solely by student test scores. The research is very clear that neither of these constitutes a fair and relevant evaluation. Teaching large groups of individuals with varied skills and backgrounds in diverse settings is not easy and neither is measuring its effectiveness.
Equivalent circuit model to explain extraordinary transmission

This work proposes a circuit model based explanation for the extraordinary transmission (ET) of light phenomenon studied in recent scientific literature [1], [2]. ET mainly stands for unexpected transmission of light through periodic arrays of subwavelength holes in a metal screen. The study of this phenomenon has attracted the attention of many scientists working in the fields of Optics and Condensed Matter Physics, giving place to some controversial explanations. The existence of surface plasmons supported by the metal/air interface at optical frequencies has been considered the underlying reason behind ET. Our contribution tries to offer a relatively simple explanation of ET based on conventional waveguide/transmission-line theory. It will be shown how this simplified microwave-engineering standpoint offers satisfactory explanation for most ET findings. Indeed, ET should be expected not only at optical frequencies but also at lower frequencies, when surface plasmons are not possible.
Rituximab in systemic lupus erythematosusA systematic review of off-label use in 188 cases

The complexity of the therapeutic approach in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is increased by the large number of patients who do not respond to the first-line therapies and by relapses after initial clinical remission. In these patients, second-line drugs are often prescribed according to individual clinical decisions. The emergence of biological therapies has increased the therapeutic armamentarium available in these complex situations, but their use is limited by the lack of licensing. Available data on the use of rituximab in SLE rely on a large number of case reports and some observational studies. We analyzed current evidence on the therapeutic use of rituximab in adult SLE patients by a systematic review of reports included in the PubMed database between 2002 and 2007. A total of 188 SLE patients treated with rituximab were identified; 171 (91%) patients showed a significant improvement in one or more of the systemic SLE manifestations. There were 103 patients with lupus nephritis, with an overall rate of therapeutic response of renal involvement of 91%. Adverse events were reported in 44 (23%) patients; the most frequent were infections (19%). Although it is not yet possible to make definite recommendations, the global analysis of all cases reported to date support the off-label use of rituximab in severe, refractory SLE cases, whereas its use as a first-line therapy or in patients with a predominantly mild form of the disease is not advised.
Intraoperative 3D ultrasound guidance system for permanent breast seed implantation

Permanent breast seed implantation (PBSI) is a single-visit technique for accelerated partial breast irradiation that uses a template and needles to implant seeds of Pd-103 under 2D ultrasound (US) guidance. The short treatment time is advantageous given the widely hypothesized link between treatment burden and mastectomy use. However, limitations of 2D US contribute to high operator dependence and seed placement error that we aim to address by developing a 3D US guidance system. A 3D US scanner for PBSI and a mechanism for template localization have been developed and validated. The 3D US system mechatronically moves and tracks a 2D US transducer over a 5 cm translation and 60° tilt, reconstructing the 2D images into a 3D volume as they are acquired. Additionally, a localizing arm, tracked via encoded joints and mounted to the scanner, determines template position by localizing divots on a modified needle template. Volume reconstruction was validated using linear measurements of a grid phantom and volumetric measurements of two surgical cavity phantoms. Localizing arm measurement accuracy was established using a testing jig with divots at known positions. Imaging volume was rigidly registered to scanner geometry using a string phantom mounted to a test jig. Lastly, volunteer scans were conducted to demonstrate clinical applicability. Median linear and average volumetric measurements were within ±1.4% of nominal and ±4.1% of water displacement measurements, respectively. Median measurement accuracy of the localizing arm was 0.475 mm. Imaging volume target registration error was 0.458 mm. Volunteer scans produced clinical quality images.
Evaluation of a topological distance algorithm for construction of a P2P multicast hybrid overlay tree

In the last decade Peer to Peer technology has been thoroughly explored, becauseit overcomes many limitations compared to the traditional client server paradigm. Despite its advantages over a traditional approach, the ubiquitous availability of high speed, high bandwidth and low latency networks has supported the traditional client-server paradigm. Recently, however, the surge of streaming services has spawned renewed interest in Peer to Peer technologies. In addition, services like geolocation databases and browser technologies like Web-RTC make a hybrid approach attractive. In this paper we present algorithms for the construction and the maintenance of a hybrid P2P overlay multicast tree based on topological distances. The essential idea of these algorithms is to build a multicast tree by choosing neighbours close to each other. The topological distances can be easily obtained by the browser using the geolocation API. Thus the implementation of algorithms can be done web-based in a distributed manner. We present proofs of our algorithms as well as experimental results and evaluations.
Effect of Methandienone on Free Fatty Acid and Triglyceride Turnover in Normal Females

Summary The effect of methandienone therapy on the concentration, turnover and removal rates of serum triglyc:eride have been studied in premenopausal women by endogenous label1ing of triglyceride during a 14 C palmitate infusion. Fifteen wo men served as controls, of whom five were also studied fol lowing a minimum of four weeks therapy. Treatment with methandienone was associated with a mark ed increase in triglyceride turnover. At the same time, there was accelerated triglyceride ciearance associated with a signi ficant increase in plasma post-heparin lipolytic activity. The resulting serum triglyceride eoncentration during therapy remained within the normal range although there was a signi ficant inerease fo11owing the introduetion of methandienone. The observed inerease in the triglyceride turnover was not associated with a eoneordant change in either free fatty acid eoncentration or free fatty acid turnover rate. Triglyceride turnover and plasma post-heparin lipolytic activity were signi ficantly eorrelated with the peak plasma insulin responses during a standard oral glucose tolerance test.
Fibulin-1 Is a Ligand for the C-type Lectin Domains of Aggrecan and Versican*

The aggregating proteoglycans (aggrecan, versican, neurocan, and brevican) are important components of many extracellular matrices. Their N-terminal globular domain binds to hyaluronan, but the function of their C-terminal region containing a C-type lectin domain is less clear. We now report that a 90-kDa protein copurifies with recombinant lectin domains from aggrecan and versican, but not from the brain-specific neurocan and brevican. Amino acid sequencing of tryptic peptides from this protein identified it as fibulin-1. This extracellular matrix glycoprotein is strongly expressed in tissues where versican is expressed (blood vessels, skin, and developing heart), and also expressed in developing cartilage and bone. It is thus likely to interact with these proteoglycans in vivo. Surface plasmon resonance measurements confirmed that aggrecan and versican lectin domains bind fibulin-1, whereas brevican and neurocan do not. As expected for a C-type lectin, the interactions with fibulin-1 are Ca2+-dependent, withK D values in the low nanomolar range. Using various deletion mutants, the binding site for aggrecan and versican lectin domains was mapped to the epidermal growth factor-like repeats in domain II of fibulin-1. No difference in affinity was found for deglycosylated fibulin-1, indicating that the proteoglycan C-type lectin domains bind to the protein part of fibulin-1.
Mosaic Trisomy 21/Monosomy 21 in a Living Female Infant

Many autosomal monosomies are presumed to end in arrested growth in the first few mitoses, prior even to the time of implantation, with possibly some proceeding to the stage of occult abortion. The single exception may be monosomy 21, although this has been questioned, with most earlier reports of monosomy 21 recently re-interpreted as being due to an unbalanced translocation involving chromosome 21. Here we report a female infant with a mosaic trisomy 21/monosomy 21 karyotype. While the karyotype 46,XX,i(21)(q10) is detected in all metaphases investigated in lymphocytes, mosaicism with the karyotype 46,XX,i(21)(q10)[31]/45,XX, –21[12] is seen in fibroblasts from a skin biopsy. Dysmorphic facial features and multiple malformations remarkably resemble cases of monosomy 21 that have been described in the literature. This suggests a dominant phenotypic effect of loss of one chromosome 21. Detailed clinical description, results of gene dosage studies, and cytogenetic analysis will be presented.
Corneal sensation in insulin dependent and non‐insulin dependent diabetics with proliferative retinopathy

Abstract The corneal sensation of diabetic patients undergoing pan retinal photocoagulation for the treatment of proliferative retinopathy was measured using the Cochet‐Bonnet aesthesiometer. Insulin dependent and non‐insulin dependent diabetics both showed significantly decreased corneal sensitivity, and there was no significant change following pan‐retinal photocoagulation. Insulin dependent diabetics with proliferative retinopathy had been diagnosed for a significantly longer period than non‐insulin dependent diabetics, but had better corneal sensitivity than the latter group. Male patients were more likely to have brown irides, whereas there was a preponderance of blue irides amongst the females. Patients with blue irides also had significantly lower sensitivity than patients with brown irides. The results are discussed.
Exploration of antigenic variation in gp120 from clades A through F of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 by using monoclonal antibodies

The reactivities of a panel of 14 monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) with monomeric gp120 derived from 67 isolates of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 of clades A through F were assessed by using an antigen-capture enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The MAbs used were all raised against gp120 or gp120 peptides from clade B viruses and were directed at a range of epitopes relevant to human immunodeficiency virus type 1 neutralization: the V2 and V3 loops, discontinuous epitopes overlapping the CD4-binding site, and two other discontinuous epitopes. Four of the five V3 MAbs showed modest cross-reactivity within clade B but very limited reactivity with gp120s from other clades. These reactivity patterns are consistent with the known primary sequence requirements for the binding of these MAbs. One V3 human MAb (19b), however, was much more broadly reactive than the others, binding to 19 of 29 clade B and 10 of 12 clade E gp120s. The 19b epitope is confined to the flanks of the V3 loop, and these sequences are relatively conserved in clade B and E viruses. In contrast to the limited reactivity of V3 MAbs, CD4-binding site MAbs were much more broadly reactive across clades, two of these MAbs (205-46-9 and 21h) being virtually pan-reactive across clades A through F. Another human MAb (A-32) to a discontinuous epitope was also pan-reactive. The CD4-binding site is strongly conserved between clades; but when considering the epitopes near the CD4-binding site, clade D gp120 appears to be the most closely related to clade B and clade E appears to be the least related. A tentative rank order for these epitopes is B/D-A/C-E/F. V2 MAbs reacted sporadically within and between clades, and no clear pattern was observable. While results from binding assays do not predict neutralization serotypes, they suggest that there may be antigenic subtypes related, but not identical, to the genetic subtypes.
EFFECT OF ALLOWING FOR ETHNIC GROUP IN PRENATAL SCREENING FOR DOWN'S SYNDROME

We conducted a study to investigate ethnic group differences in levels of serum markers used in screening for Down's syndrome [serum alpha‐fetoprotein (AFP), unconjugated oestriol (uE3), total human chorionic gonadotrophin (hCG), free α‐ and free β‐hCG, and dimeric inhibin‐A], to estimate the extent to which maternal weight differences between ethnic groups explain these differences, and to estimate the effect of adjusting for ethnic group and maternal weight on screening performance. Serum measurements were taken from women who were screened prenatally for Down's syndrome. AFP, uE3, and hCG concentrations were available from 9462 white, 4215 black, and 4392 South Asian women with singleton pregnancies without Down's syndrome or neural tube defects between 15 and 22 weeks' gestational age. Frozen serum samples were available from a subset of 922 white, 449 black, and 135 South Asian women and were used for measurement of free α‐hCG, free β‐hCG, and inhibin. Values were expressed as multiples of the median (MOM) for women of the same gestational age. There were statistically significant differences in the serum marker levels between ethnic groups that were not explained by differences in maternal weight. The main differences were found in black women compared with white women; black women had serum AFP levels 22 per cent higher (95 per cent confidence interval 20–24 per cent), total hCG levels 19 per cent higher (16–22 per cent), and free β‐hCG levels 12 per cent (3–21 per cent) higher. The other differences were less than 10 per cent. Adjusting for ethnic group only had a small estimated effect on screening performance: a maximum of about 0·5 per cent extra detection at a 5 per cent false‐positive rate. At a fixed risk cut‐off level, the false‐positive rate will not be materially different between different ethnic groups. Adjusting serum markers for ethnic groups improves Down's syndrome screening performance to a very small extent. It is worthwhile because of its established value in AFP screening for open neural tube defects.
The Shapiro Wilk And Related Tests For Normality

Given a sampleX1, . , Xn of n real-valued observations, the Shapiro– Wilk test (Shapiro and Wilk, 1965) is a test of the composite hypothesis that the data are i.i. d. (independent and identically distributed) and normal, i.e. N(μ, σ) for some unknown real μ and some σ > 0. This test of a parametric hypothesis relates to nonparametrics in that a lot of statistical methods (such as t-tests and analysis of variance) assume that variables are normally distributed. If they are not, then some nonparametric methods may be needed. The 2-parameter normality hypothesis cannot just be reduced to a simple hypothesis. Of course, the variables Xi − μ are i.i. d. N(0, σ) and (Xi − μ)/σ are i.i. d. N(0, 1), but these variables are not observed because μ and σ are unknown. If we replace μ by its usual estimate X = (X1 + · · · + Xn)/n and consider Xi − X, then these variables have the same distribution, which is normal with mean 0, but they are dependent (their sum is 0). If we replace σ by the usual estimate
Interferon Alpha 2b as Maintenance Therapy Improves Outcome In Follicular Lymphoma

The role of interferon alpha as maintenance therapy in follicular lymphoma (FL) remains unsolved. We started a controlled clinical trial to assess if interferon alpha 2b could improve outcome, measured with event free survival (EFS) and overall survival (OS) in patients with FL in complete remission after chemotherapy based anthracyclines and adjuvant radiotherapy to sites of initial bulky disease. Three hundred and eighty four patients in complete response after 6 cycles of CEOP-Bleo (cyclophosphamide, epirubicin, vincristine, prednisone and bleomycin, at standard doses), and adjuvant radiotherapy when necessary, were randomized to received Interferon alpha 2b, three times a week for 1 year or no treatment (control group). Median follow up was 9.8 years (range 7.0 - 15 years); actuarial curves showed that EFS was 64% (95% confidence interval (CI) 56 - 71%) in patients treated with interferon that was statistically significant to patients in the control group: 35% (95% CI: 28 - 43%) (p < .01). OS was also statistically significant: 81% in patients treated with interferon (95% CI: 74 - 93%) and 57% (95% CI: 50 - 63%) in the control group (p < .001). Toxicity was mild, all patients received the planned dose of interferon on time. The use of aggressive chemotherapy and maintenance therapy with interferon alpha 2b in follicular lymphoma improved outcome; more than 60% of patients remain alive free of disease at longer follow-up.
Bone Age at Birth; Method and Effect of Hypothyroidism

ABSTRACT. Bone maturity at birth (or during the neonatal period) can be estimated from the ossified distal femoral epiphyses (FE). In congenital hypothyroidism (CHT) bone maturation is retarded and neonatal bone age reflects the severity of prenatal thyroid failure. In our reference group of 111 healthy infants, the size of these epiphyses depended not only on the age but also on body size. Thus, if bone age is estimated from the size of an epiphysis, the size of the infant is a potential confounder. This problem was avoided by estimating the maturation lag from the difference between the observed and predicted heights of FE (FEHs). Models for predicting FEH were constructed from data from the reference group by multiple linear regression and confirmed in a separate group of 37 healthy infants. In 52 hypothyroid newborns both FEH and FEH lag correlated with serum thyroxine concentration, indicating that FEH can be used as a measure of bone maturation in a population that is fairly homogeneous for (postmenstrual) age and size. Otherwise FEH lag is a better indicator.
Family History as an Indictor of Risk for Reading Disability

Self-reported reading ability of the parents of 174 reading-disabled children and of 182 controls was used to estimate the posterior probability that a child will become reading disabled given that a parent is affected. Using Bayesian inverse probability analysis, it was found that the risk for reading disability is increased substantially (by a factor of from about 4 to over 13) if either parent has had difficulty in learning to read. The absolute risk appears to be sufficiently high to warrant clinical application of family history information as one component of a multifactorial risk assessment battery.
Human blood group activity of human and canine intestinal glycolipids containing fucose.

A number of fucose-containing glycolipids (fuco-lipids), which are similar in composition to those of human normal and malignant gastrointestinal tissue, have been isolated from whole small intestines of individual dogs. Dogs from which these fuco-lipids were isolated fell into two types according to the qualitative sugar composition of their fuco-lipids. Glycolipids from type I dogs contained glucose, galactose, glucosamine, galactosamine and fucose, while those from type II dogs contained the same sugars but lacked galactosamine. Fucolipids isolated from type I and II dogs were tested for both canine blood group and human A, B, H and Lea and Leb blood group activity. At the concentrations tested, only human blood group A activity was found in significant amounts, and only in those fuco-lipids which contained galactosamine (type I dogs). Of the fuco-lipids with human blood group A activity, some had activity comparable to that of glycoprotein blood group substances, while others had lower, but significant, activity. These latter fuco-lipids also had marked chromatographic differences, indicating that they are of several different structural types, a finding similar to the A active glycolipids of human red cell stroma. None of the isolated intestinal fuco-lipids had canine blood group activity. A fuco-lipid with Lea activity was also isolated in relatively large amounts from a normal human whole small intestine.
Lipooligosaccharide Structures of Invasive and Carrier Isolates of Neisseria meningitidis Are Correlated with Pathogenicity and Carriage*

The degree of phosphorylation and phosphoethanolaminylation of lipid A on neisserial lipooligosaccharide (LOS), a major cell-surface antigen, can be correlated with inflammatory potential and the ability to induce immune tolerance in vitro. On the oligosaccharide of the LOS, the presence of phosphoethanolamine and sialic acid substituents can be correlated with in vitro serum resistance. In this study, we analyzed the structure of the LOS from 40 invasive isolates and 25 isolates from carriers of Neisseria meningitidis without disease. Invasive strains were classified as groups 1–3 that caused meningitis, septicemia without meningitis, and septicemia with meningitis, respectively. Intact LOS was analyzed by high resolution matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry. Prominent peaks for lipid A fragment ions with three phosphates and one phosphoethanolamine were detected in all LOS analyzed. LOS from groups 2 and 3 had less abundant ions for highly phosphorylated lipid A forms and induced less TNF-α in THP-1 monocytic cells compared with LOS from group 1. Lipid A from all invasive strains was hexaacylated, whereas lipid A of 6/25 carrier strains was pentaacylated. There were fewer O-acetyl groups and more phosphoethanolamine and sialic acid substitutions on the oligosaccharide from invasive compared with carrier isolates. Bioinformatic and genomic analysis of LOS biosynthetic genes indicated significant skewing to specific alleles, dependent on the disease outcome. Our results suggest that variable LOS structures have multifaceted effects on homeostatic innate immune responses that have critical impact on the pathophysiology of meningococcal infections.