Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Safety and feasibility of laparoscopic resection for large (≥ 6 CM) pheochromocytomas without suspected malignancy.

OBJECTIVE To determine whether laparoscopic adrenalectomy in patients without radiologic evidence of cancer compromises the perioperative and long-term outcomes in patients with large (≥ 6 cm) pheochromocytomas. METHODS We analyzed a prospective adrenal database of consecutive patients who underwent adrenalectomy at our institution between September 2000 and September 2010. Patients with diagnosed pheochromocytoma who underwent laparoscopic adrenalectomy were included. Patients with tumors smaller than 6 cm were compared with those presenting with tumors 6 cm or larger. RESULTS One hundred fifty-seven patients underwent adrenalectomy, and there were 32 catecholamine-secreting tumors. Of the 33, 7 were excluded from the study because of open surgery. Thus, 25 patients presented with 26 pheochromocytomas and underwent laparoscopic adrenalectomy. Thirteen of the 25 patients (52%) were women. Mean age (± standard error of the mean) was 53 ± 3 years. Mean tumor size was 5.2 ± 0.5 cm, and 11 pheochromocytomas (42%) were 6 cm or larger. Tumor size was significantly different between the large pheochromocytoma and the small pheochromocytoma groups (7.6 ± 0.4 vs 3.6 ± 0.4 cm, P<.001), but there was no significant difference in intraoperative complications, estimated blood loss, cancer diagnosis, or recurrence. The length of stay was comparable between the 2 cohorts, and there were no incidents of capsular invasion or adverse cardiovascular events. CONCLUSION Laparoscopic adrenalectomy of pheochromocytomas larger than 6 cm is feasible and safe with comparable results to those achieved with laparoscopic adrenalectomy in patients with smaller pheochromocytomas.
Impaired sleep and well-being in mothers with low-birth-weight infants.

OBJECTIVE To explore relationships between impaired sleep and well-being in mothers with low-birth-weight infants in the neonatal intensive care unit. DESIGN Cross-sectional descriptive exploratory design. SETTING Neonatal intensive care unit in metropolitan Atlanta, GA. PARTICIPANTS Twenty second-week postpartum, first-time mothers who had a low-birth-weight infant hospitalized in the neonatal intensive care unit. METHODS Self-report data were collected for sleep, fatigue, depression, and well-being. Total sleep time, wake after sleep onset, circadian activity rhythms, and light exposure were measured using a wrist actigraph. RESULTS Mothers reported clinically significant sleep disturbance and fatigue severity. Actigraphy showed the average nighttime total sleep time was less than 7 hours with 19%+/-2.2% wake after sleep onset, and the total daytime sleep was more than an hour. Mothers also experienced moderate depressive symptoms. Maternal well-being as measured by the Medical Outcomes Short Form-36, version 2 was approximately 1 SD below the mean scores of age-matched women in the general U.S. population. CONCLUSION Mothers of hospitalized low-birth-weight infants are vulnerable. The presence of sleep disturbances and negative physical and mental health indicators warrants further study. Intervention is needed to promote sleep for new mothers during postpartum recovery, especially mothers who are dealing with a medically ill infant.
Site-ability: A website usability measurement tool

Usability plays a major role towards user acceptance of website and it is increasingly becoming an important topic for organizations that develop and implement websites to market their products and services. Thus evaluating usability is critical for organizations in order to develop user friendly websites. One major challenge in usability evaluation is that most of the evaluation methods are subjective which depends on the evaluator's personal interpretations and judgment of the website. This is due to the lack of availability of automated tools in the respective field. Further, most of the usability evaluation methods are involved with manual approaches that consume time and money which is not affordable for organizations. Site-ability is an automation tool for website usability evaluation which is capable of mimicking human usability experts and it is based on usability guidelines provided by U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) Research-Based Web Design and Usability Guidelines.
OFDI Agglomeration and Chinese Firm Location Decisions under the “Belt and Road” Initiative

This paper established a combined dataset from 2004 to 2015 for 129 host countries and matched them with 1193 Outward Foreign Direct Investment (OFDI) events by Chinese listed firms. Four variables were designed to proxy the agglomeration effects of Chinese OFDI at both an industry and country level. Probit and FGLS estimation methods were used to analyze whether the Chinese listed firm location choices were affected by the agglomeration level. It was found that the agglomeration effect of Chinese OFDI on host country selection was obvious, as Chinese firms were often found to follow other Chinese firms and invest in host countries where Chinese investment was concentrated; however, it was also found that Chinese firms did not choose countries where there was a high concentration of non-Chinese FDI. The agglomeration effect on Chinese OFDI industry selection was also significant. Firms were found to invest in industries that already had large Chines OFDI agglomeration or high host-country industrial agglomeration. Further investigations found that the “Belt and Road” Initiative (BRI) was effective in guiding location decisions. Firms were found to invest more along the “Belt and Road” route after the BRI was launched; however, large State-owned listed firms with higher leverage but lower productivity and profitability were found to more often invest along the BRI routes.
Effects of Listeners' Experience on Two Measures of Intelligibility

10 speech-language pathologists with extensive experience in judging speakers' intelligibility and 10 control subjects with no such previous experience provided written identification and magnitude-estimation scaling judgments of the intelligibility of nine audiotaped speech samples. Analysis indicated no significant main effect for experience on either the written identification or the magnitude-estimation scaling tasks. Implications for the continued use of magnitude-estimation scaling as a measure of speech intelligibility are discussed.
Measuring and Improving the Performance of Customs Valuation Controls: An Illustration with Gabon

Modern customs administrations aim to both facilitate legal trade and combat fraud. To meet this dual objective, many customs administrations in developing countries must give risk management a highly prominent role. In this context of modernisation, this paper first provides stylised facts on the performance of the customs controls carried out at the Gabon border. Then, we compare Gabon′s granular import customs data with international trade statistics. Based on this comparison, we identify undetected fraud and present a methodology to target ex post audits. Finally, we define indicators to monitor the performance of customs valuation controls.
Effects of smoking on the incidence of non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. Replication and extension in a Japanese cohort of male employees.

The effects of smoking on the 8-year (1984-1992) incidence of non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) were investigated in a cohort of 2,312 male employees of an electrical company in Japan. The incidence rate was 2.2/1,000 person-years. After controlling for other known risk factors for NIDDM, a proportional hazards regression analysis indicated that those who were currently smoking 16-25 cigarettes per day had a 3.27 times higher risk of developing NIDDM during the follow-up period than never smokers (p < 0.05); the hazard ratio was similar (3.21) for those who were currently smoking > or = 26 cigarettes per day. Among ever smokers, proportional hazards regression analysis also indicated that younger age at starting smoking was associated with an increased risk of NIDDM (p for trend = 0.09). These findings suggest that number of cigarettes smoked per day is important in the relation between smoking and NIDDM incidence, although the risks did not increase above a given amount of smoking. Starting smoking at a younger age also might be independently associated with an increased risk of NIDDM.
The outcomes of reconstruction using frozen autograft combined with iodine-coated implants for malignant bone tumors: compared with non-coated implants.

OBJECTIVE We perform reconstruction using frozen tumor bone treated by liquid nitrogen after excision of malignant bone tumors. To prevent post-operative infection, we use iodine-coated implants that we developed. The purpose of this study is to compare the outcome of reconstruction using frozen autograft with non-coated implants (group N) and iodine-coated implants (group I). METHODS Sixty-two patients were included in group N. The mean age was 31.9 ± 2.3 years. A total of 20 patients died and two were lost to follow-up, averaging 20.0 ± 2.9 months post-operatively, leaving 40 patients available for an assessment at a mean of 79.1 ± 5.8 months post-operatively. There were 38 patients in group I. The mean age was 29.8 ± 3.9 years. The mean follow-up period was 32.1 ± 3.0 months. All patients were alive at the latest follow-up. Survival of frozen bone was determined by Kaplan-Meier analysis. RESULTS In group N, survival of frozen bone was 80.7 ± 6.0% and 57.4 ± 10.2% at 5 and 10 years, respectively. Complications were encountered in 31 of 62 patients (50.0%), including deep infection in 10 (16.1%), fracture in 11 (17.7%), local soft-tissue recurrence in 6 (9.7%) and bone absorption in 4 (6.5%). In group I, survival of frozen bone was 86.7 ± 6.3% at 5 years. Complications were encountered in 8 of 38 patients (21.1%), including deep infection in one (2.6%), fracture in four (10.5%), local soft-tissue recurrence in two (5.3%) and bone absorption in one (2.6%). There was a significantly lower infection rate in group I (P = 0.032). CONCLUSION Reconstruction using frozen autograft combined with iodine-coated implants for patients with malignant bone tumor is very useful method in which good limb function can be gained with minimized risk of infection.
Changes of Endothelin and Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide During Desflurane Anesthesia in Patients Undergoing Intracranial Aneurysm Clipping

The purpose of this study was to explore whether the changes of plasma concentrations of endothelin (ET) and calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) were possibly involved during desflurane anesthesia in patients undergoing intracranial aneurysm clipping. Forty-five consecutive patients scheduled for selective craniotomy and aneurysm clipping were anesthetized with desflurane in oxygen. Radial arterial catheter was inserted for blood sampling before anesthesia. Serial plasma concentrations of ET and CGRP were measured with radioimmunoassay prior to induction, after dura incision, after clipping of the aneurysm, and 30 minutes after clipping the aneurysm, respectively. Plasma concentrations of ET decreased significantly during the anesthesia and surgery compared with the baseline. An observed decrease in mean CGRP during anesthesia and surgery was not statistically significant. Considering the well-recognized vasoconstrictive effect of ET, it is possible that a decrease in its plasma concentration plays a role in the prevention of the acute cerebral vasospasm during desflurane anesthesia in patients undergoing intracranial aneurysm clipping.
NATURAL SELECTION RESULTING FROM FEMALE BREEDING COMPETITION IN A PACIFIC SALMON (COHO: ONCORHYNCHUS KISUTCH)

We studied breeding competition among wild female coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) and quantified natural selection acting on two important female characters: body size and kype size (a secondary sexual character used for fighting). We found that body size contributed to adult female fitness in three ways, through 1) an increased initial biomass of egg production, 2) the ability to acquire a high‐quality territory for egg development, and 3) success in nest defense. These factors together resulted in as much as a 23‐fold fitness advantage to the largest females in the population. The initial investment into egg production accounted for 50–60% of the measured intensity of natural selection on female body size. The effective investment into egg production (after female competition for territories) accounted for 40–50% of natural selection on female body size. Therefore, success in breeding competition is about as important as egg production in the current evolution of female body size. This is contrary to the expectation based on most fisheries literature. The size of a female's kype was also important to female reproductive success, although its contribution could not be separated from that of body size in our study. The strong natural selection that we have found for female competitive ability is presumably the basis for the evolution of female parental care in salmonids.
Anxiety symptoms in Korean elderly individuals: a two-year longitudinal community study

ABSTRACT Background: Although late-life anxiety occurs frequently and is associated with higher morbidity, few longitudinal studies have been concerned with the evaluation thereof. We investigated the prevalence, incidence, and persistence of anxiety and related factors over a two-year period in community-dwelling Korean elderly individuals. Methods: A total of 1,204 Korean elderly individuals were evaluated at baseline, and 909 were followed up two years later. The community version of the Geriatric Mental State Schedule was used to estimate anxiety at both baseline and follow-up interviews. We defined “prevalence” as the rate of anxiety symptoms (for both anxiety cases and sub-threshold anxiety) at baseline; “incidence” as the rate of anxiety symptoms at follow-up in those without baseline anxiety symptoms; and “persistence” as the rate of anxiety symptoms at follow-up in those with baseline anxiety symptoms. Associations between various covariates and anxiety status were examined using multivariate logistic regression models. Results: The prevalence, incidence, and persistence of anxiety symptoms were 38.1%, 29.3%, and 41.1%, respectively. Prevalent anxiety symptoms were associated independently with female, rented housing, more stressful life event and medical illness, physical inactivity, depression, insomnia, and lower cognitive function. Incident anxiety symptoms were predicted by older age, female gender, depression, and insomnia; persistent anxiety symptoms were predicted by older age, more medical illness, and baseline depression. Conclusions: Since depression was associated with prevalent, incident, and persistent anxiety symptoms, effective detection and management thereof is important in older adults to reduce anxiety. Furthermore, preventive collaborative care should be considered, particularly for older, female, insomniac patients.
Using Social Media to Increase Nonprofit Organizational Capacity

ABSTRACT This study examines social media utilization in nonprofit organizations (NPOs) for increasing organizational capacity. Using data from a survey of human service NPOs in the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the study finds that NPOs that post frequently on their social media sites and use dedicated funding are more likely to perceive social media as being effective in increasing their organizational capacity. However, NPOs that use Twitter, videos, and community-building posts are less likely to perceive social media as being effective. The study also reveals that NPOs face major challenges in social media use regarding resources, expertise, leadership and constituency.
Methane Production and Isotopic Fingerprinting in Ethanol Fuel Contaminated Sites

Biodegradation of organic compounds in groundwater can be a significant source of methane in contaminated sites. Methane might accumulate in indoor spaces posing a hazard. The increasing use of ethanol as a gasoline additive is a concern with respect to methane production since it is easily biodegraded and has a high oxygen demand, favoring the development of anaerobic conditions. This study evaluated the use of stable carbon isotopes to distinguish the methane origin between gasoline and ethanol biodegradation, and assessed the occurrence of methane in ethanol fuel contaminated sites. Two microcosm tests were performed under anaerobic conditions: one test using ethanol and the other using toluene as the sole carbon source. The isotopic tool was then applied to seven field sites known to be impacted by ethanol fuels. In the microcosm tests, it was verified that methane from ethanol (δ13C = −11.1‰) is more enriched in 13C, with δ13C values ranging from −20‰ to −30‰, while the methane from toluene (δ13C = −28.5‰) had a carbon isotopic signature of −55‰. The field samples had δ13C values varying over a wide range (−10‰ to −80‰), and the δ13C values allowed the methane source to be clearly identified in five of the seven ethanol/gasoline sites. In the other two sites, methane appears to have been produced from both sources. Both gasoline and ethanol were sources of methane in potentially hazardous concentrations and methane could be produced from organic acids originating from ethanol along the groundwater flow system even after all the ethanol has been completed biodegraded.
Identification of a promoter region for 3.6-kilobase mRNA of hepatitis B virus and specific cellular binding protein

The promoter region for transcription of the 3.6-kilobase mRNA of hepatitis B virus was identified by the chloramphenicol acetyltransferase assay by using HuH-7 hepatoma cells and was found to function directly in virus production by way of the transient expression system of HBV. The 5'-upstream sequence from nucleotides 1573 to 1657 (the transcription start site) was indispensable for promoter function, while the AT-rich sequence (from nucleotides 1581 to 1604) containing a directly repeated sequence TGTT connecting the same flanking sequence PyAAAGAC (where Py is a pyrimidine) at both sides was an essential element within this promoter region. A specific cellular factor which interacted with the essential element was detected in the HuH-7 cell extract. A similar binding factor was also observed in HepG2 and huH2-2 hepatoma cells. This factor may thus be responsible for regulating 3.6-kilobase mRNA, pregenome RNA transcription, or both.
Submillimeter Wavelength Scattering From Random Rough Surfaces

We describe bistatic scattering measurements on eight reference targets constructed from Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> grit of various sizes embedded in an absorptive epoxy matrix. These samples’ surface topographies were measured using focus-variation microscopy, and their autocorrelation lengths and root-mean-square (RMS) roughness levels were extracted. Bistatic scattering measurements were then performed in the principal plane over the 325–500 GHz range and at 650 GHz, using either a vector network analyzer or a narrow band source and detector, respectively, in both <italic>s-</italic> and <italic>p</italic>-polarizations, and at incidence angles of 25°, 45°, and 65°. The samples’ RMS roughness levels cover the range of 36–280 <italic>μ</italic>m, corresponding to <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$0.040< \sigma /\lambda< 0.60$</tex-math> </inline-formula>. Their autocorrelation lengths cover the range of <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX"> $0.086< L/\lambda< 1.14$</tex-math></inline-formula>, generally shorter than the samples in most previous studies. The measurements of bidirectional reflectance distribution function (BRDF) include regimes of both diffuse scattering and specular reflectance. The measurements were compared to two <italic>ab initio</italic> rough-surface scattering theories: the modified integral equation method (IEM-B) and the Generalized Harvey–Shack (GHS) model. There are no adjustable free parameters in these comparisons, but other important shortcomings exist and are described for both theories. Although there are several individual cases where either the IEM or the GHS theory (or both) provide an excellent match to measurement, their overall agreement with measurement across the entire dataset is poor. In addition, the diffuse BRDF in each bistatic scan has been fitted to a Lambertian (constant) dependence on scattering angle, and a purely empirical model has been developed for the dependence of the Lambertian scattering on frequency, roughness, polarization, and incidence angle. Across the entire dataset, this empirical model provides the best match to measurement, and can be used for reliable phenomenology studies of submillimeter imaging or wireless telecommunication.
Symbolic use of marine shells and mineral pigments by Iberian Neandertals

Two sites of the Neandertal-associated Middle Paleolithic of Iberia, dated to as early as approximately 50,000 years ago, yielded perforated and pigment-stained marine shells. At Cueva de los Aviones, three umbo-perforated valves of Acanthocardia and Glycymeris were found alongside lumps of yellow and red colorants, and residues preserved inside a Spondylus shell consist of a red lepidocrocite base mixed with ground, dark red-to-black fragments of hematite and pyrite. A perforated Pecten shell, painted on its external, white side with an orange mix of goethite and hematite, was abandoned after breakage at Cueva Antón, 60 km inland. Comparable early modern human-associated material from Africa and the Near East is widely accepted as evidence for body ornamentation, implying behavioral modernity. The Iberian finds show that European Neandertals were no different from coeval Africans in this regard, countering genetic/cognitive explanations for the emergence of symbolism and strengthening demographic/social ones.
Wildcat bankers or political failure? The Irish financial pantomime, 1797–1826

Using a new biography of banks, we examine the stability of Irish banking from 1797 to 1826 by constructing a failure rate series. We find that the ultimate cause of the frequent and severe banking crises was the crisis-prone structure of the banking system, which was designed to benefit the political elite. There is little evidence to suggest that wildcat banking or the failure of the Bank of Ireland to act as a lender of last resort were to blame. We also find that the main economic effect of the episodic crises was major diminutions in the money supply.
Modeling of the outer vestibule and selectivity filter of the L-type Ca2+ channel.

Using the KcsA bacterial K+ channel crystal structure [Doyle, D. A. , et al. (1998) Science 280, 69-74] and the model of the outer vestibule of the Na+ channel [Lipkind, G. M. , and Fozzard, H. A. (2000) Biochemistry 39, 8161-8170] as structural templates, we propose a structural model of the outer vestibule and selectivity filter of the pore of the Ca2+ channel (alpha1C or Ca(v)1.2). The Ca2+ channel P loops were modeled by alpha-helix-turn-beta-strand motifs, with the glutamate residues of the EEEE motif located in the turns. P loops were docked in the extracellular part of the inverted teepee structure formed by S5 and S6 alpha-helices with backbone coordinates from the M1 and M2 helices of the KcsA crystal structure. This construction results in a conical outer vestibule that tapers to the selectivity filter at the bottom. The modeled selectivity ring forms a wide open pore ( approximately 6 A) in the absence of Ca2+. When Ca2+ is present ( approximately 1 microM), all four glutamate side chains move to the center and form a cage around the dehydrated Ca2+ ion, blocking the pore. In the millimolar concentration range, Ca2+ also interacts with two low-affinity sites located externally and internally, which were modeled by the same carboxylate groups of the selectivity filter. Calculation of the resulting electrostatic potentials show that the single Ca2+ ion is located in an electrostatic trap. Only when three Ca2+ ions are bound simultaneously in the high- and low-affinity sites of the selectivity filter is Ca2+ able to overcome electrostatic attraction, permitting Ca2+ flux.