Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Teleseismic P wave imaging of the 26 December 2004 Sumatra‐Andaman and 28 March 2005 Sumatra earthquake ruptures using the Hi‐net array

[1] Seismograms from a dense, high-quality seismic network in Japan are used to investigate the characteristics of the 26 December 2004 Sumatra-Andaman and the 28 March 2005 Sumatran earthquakes. The onset of the P waveforms are aligned through cross correlation, and a simple concept of back-projecting seismic energy to a grid of potential source locations is applied. The waveform alignment removes the effects due to lateral variations in wave speed between the hypocenter and each station. To better approximate the effects of three-dimensional heterogeneity for paths originating from grid points away from the hypocenter, cross-correlation results of the P waveforms from aftershocks are introduced. This additional information leads to improved resolution of smaller-scale features near many of the aftershocks by reducing wavefront distortion. The back-projection analysis provides a quick assessment of the spatiotemporal extent and variability of relative high-frequency energy release, which can be translated into an estimate of the moment magnitude, as well as an unparalleled view of high-frequency rupture propagation. The results are, in general, consistent with those obtained from more involved source inversion methods. The 2004 Sumatra-Andaman earthquake released most energy in a region northwest of the Sumatra island and the rupture extended to the northern Andaman islands, about 1300 km from the epicenter. This northern portion of the rupture radiated a considerable amount of energy, but there is little evidence of slow slip. The 2005 event is imaged to have bilateral rupture with northwestern slip occurring for about 50 s before it moved to the southeast of the epicenter.
Automated Methods for the Decision Support of Cervical Cancer Screening Using Digital Colposcopies

Cervical cancer remains a significant cause of mortality in low-income countries. However, it can often be cured by removing the affected tissues when detected in early stages. Therefore, it is relevant to provide universal and efficient access to cervical screening programs, being digital colposcopy an inexpensive technique with high potential of scalability. The development of computer-aided diagnosis systems for the automated processing of digital colposcopies has gained the attention of the computer vision and machine learning communities in the last decade, giving origin to a wide diversity of tasks and computational solutions. However, there is a lack of a unified framework to discuss the main tasks and to assess their performance. Thus, in this paper, we studied the core research lines surrounding the automated analysis of digital colposcopies and built a topology of problems and techniques, including their key properties, advantages, and limitations. Also, we discussed the open challenges in the area and released a database that serves as a common basis to evaluate such systems.
The Characteristics and Trends in Adrenocortical Carcinoma: A United States Population Based Study

Background Adrenocortical carcinoma (ACC) is a rare malignancy with poor prognosis. Data on the incidence of ACC, however, are scarce and not recent. The purpose of this study was to characterize the tumor and the patients developing ACC over the last four decades using a large population based database. Methods We identified all cases of ACC diagnosed between 1973 - 2014 from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results-18 registry. Descriptive analyses were used for all extracted demographic, clinical, pathological, therapeutic and survival data, and were compared between the four time periods of 1973 to 1984, 1985 to 1994, 1995 to 2004 and 2005 to 2014 using Chi-square tests for categorical variables and one-way analysis of variance for continuous variables. Results There were a total of 2,014 cases of ACC between 1973 and 2014 with an age-adjusted incidence of 1.02 per million populations. The median age at diagnosis was 55 years with the majority of them being females and whites. The proportion of cases by different genders, races and age at diagnosis had not changed significantly over time. These malignancies were mostly the only primary malignancy, unilateral and of high grades at diagnosis. Surgical resection of the tumor remained the mainstay of treatment. However, there was a significant increase in the use of adjuvant radiotherapy, adjuvant chemotherapy and chemotherapy alone in recent times. The median survival time was 17 months, but continues to decrease in recent time periods. Conclusions ACC continues to be a rare malignancy in the United States. However, most cases continue to be diagnosed only in advanced stages and are associated with poor survival. These findings underline the need for specific diagnostics tools with new and more effective treatment options.
The impact of the ‘open’ workspace on human collaboration

Organizations’ pursuit of increased workplace collaboration has led managers to transform traditional office spaces into ‘open’, transparency-enhancing architectures with fewer walls, doors and other spatial boundaries, yet there is scant direct empirical research on how human interaction patterns change as a result of these architectural changes. In two intervention-based field studies of corporate headquarters transitioning to more open office spaces, we empirically examined—using digital data from advanced wearable devices and from electronic communication servers—the effect of open office architectures on employees' face-to-face, email and instant messaging (IM) interaction patterns. Contrary to common belief, the volume of face-to-face interaction decreased significantly (approx. 70%) in both cases, with an associated increase in electronic interaction. In short, rather than prompting increasingly vibrant face-to-face collaboration, open architecture appeared to trigger a natural human response to socially withdraw from officemates and interact instead over email and IM. This is the first study to empirically measure both face-to-face and electronic interaction before and after the adoption of open office architecture. The results inform our understanding of the impact on human behaviour of workspaces that trend towards fewer spatial boundaries. This article is part of the theme issue ‘Interdisciplinary approaches for uncovering the impacts of architecture on collective behaviour’.
A Population-Based Cross-Sectional Study of the Association between Liver Enzymes and Lipid Levels

Background To examine the association between low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) levels and liver enzyme functions. Methods The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) data from 1999 to 2012 was used to examine the association between liver enzymes and lipid levels amongst adults in the United States. Results Sixteen percent adults had ALT > 40 U/L, 11% had AST > 40 U/L, and 96% had ALP > 120 U/L. Age, gender, and race/ethnicity showed significant association with LDL, HDL, and triglycerides levels. LDL greater than borderline high was associated with little over two times higher odds of elevated ALT (OR: 2.33, 95% CI: 2.17, 2.53, p ≤ 0.001) and AST (OR: 2.79, 95% CI: 2.55, 3.06, p ≤ 0.001). High HDL was associated with 50% higher odds for elevated ALT (OR: 1.51, 95% CI: 1.39, 1.64, p ≤ 0.001) and over two-and-half fold elevated AST (OR: 2.77, 95% CI: 2.47, 3.11, p ≤ 0.001). LDL-C, HDL-C, and triglycerides were found to be good predictor of elevated ALT, AST, and ALP levels. Similarly, old age and female gender were significant predictor of elevated ALT and AST (p ≤ 0.001). Conclusions Underlying hepatic pathophysiology from dyslipidemia deserves further exploration due to its potential effects on hepatic drug metabolism/detoxification.
The association of FokI and ApaI polymorphisms in vitamin D receptor gene with autoimmune thyroid diseases in the northwest of Iran

Background: Some genetic factors are involved in the etiology of Hashimoto thyroiditis and Graves’ disease as autoimmune thyroid diseases (AITDs). Effects of vitamin D receptor gene polymorphisms in AITDs development have already been investigated in some previous studies. However, no study has been done on the association between VDR FokI and ApaI polymorphisms and AITDs in an Iranian population. In this study, the possible effects of FokI and ApaI polymorphisms on AITDs were investigated in the population of northwest of Iran. Methods: A total of 121 AITDs adult patients and 117 healthy controls matched by age and sex in the same population were included in this study. FokI and ApaI polymorphisms were genotyped by polymerase chain reaction- restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP). Chi-square test and odds ratio (OR) with 95% CI were used to analyze the data. Results: FokI and ApaI genotypes frequencies were not significantly different between the 2 groups (p= 0.06, p= 0.73, respectively). However, FokI "CC" and "CT" genotypes were related to AITDs risk (p= 0.03; OR= 3.75; 95% CI, 1.16-12.17 and p= 0.04; OR= 3.41; 95% CI, 1.03-11.28, respectively). Conclusion: These data suggest that FokI polymorphisms are involved in AITDs susceptibility in the population of northwest of Iran.
Cisplatin-Induced Nephrotoxicity in Rats: Modulatory Role of Simvastatin and Rosuvastatin against Apoptosis and Inflammation. -

Cisplatin use as a chemotherapeutic agent is restricted due to its nephrotoxicity. The current study investigates the possible mechanisms responsible for the nephro-protective effects of simvastatin (SIM) and rosuvastatin (RST) in cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity in rats. Acute nephrotoxicity was induced in rats by single injection of cisplatin on the 10th day of the treatment period. Two groups received SIM and RST daily respectively, for 10 days prior to cisplatin injection. 5 days post cisplatin injection, blood samples were taken, rats were scarified and renal tissues were isolated for biochemical, immunohistochemical and histopathological assessments. Results of the study revealed that cisplatin-injected rats showed a reduction in the relative kidney weight with an elevation in the serum kidney function and renal inflammatory mediators viz. myeloperoxidase (MPO), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells (NF-kB) and interlukin-1β (IL-1β). Kidneys isolated from rats injected with cisplatin showed overexpression of apoptotic markers and a decrease in the expression of the anti-apototic markers. SIM and RST significantly improved relative kidney weight, serum kidney function and restored renal tissue concentrations of inflammatory mediators. Decreased renal expression of caspases-3, Bax with increased Bcl-2 expression and improved histopathological pictures of treatment groups were observed. Our results suggest that SIM and RST have nephroprotective properties against cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity due to their anti-inflammatory and anti-apoptotic effects.
Interplay of DDP4 and IP-10 as a Potential Mechanism for Cell Recruitment to Tuberculosis Lesions

Introduction Mycobacterium tuberculosis is one of the world’s most successful pathogens equipped to establish itself within the human host as a subclinical infection without overt disease. Unable to eradicate the bacteria, the immune system contains the infection in a granuloma structure. Th1 cells that are essential for infection control are recruited to the site of infection directed by chemokines, predominantly CXCL10. It has previously been shown that CXCL10 in the plasma of patients chronically infected with hepatitis C virus is present primarily in an antagonist form. This is due to N-terminal truncation by the enzyme DPP4, which results in the antagonist form that is capable of binding its receptor CXCR3, but does not induce signaling. We aimed to explore whether such CXCL10 antagonism may have an impact on the pathogenesis of tuberculosis (TB). Results We measured plasma levels of agonist and antagonist CXCL10 by Simoa digital ELISA, as well as DPP4 enzyme activity in the plasma of 20 patients with active TB infection, 10 patients with pneumonia infection, and a group of 10 healthy controls. We found higher levels of total and antagonist CXCL10 and reduced DPP4 enzyme activity in the plasma of TB patients compared to controls. We traced the source of CXCL10 secretion using immunohistochemical and confocal analysis to multinucleated giant cells in the TB lesions, and variable expression by macrophages. Interestingly, these cells were associated with DPP4-positive T cells. Moreover, the analysis of lymphocytes at the site of TB infection (bronchoalveolar lavage) showed a reduced frequency of CXCR3+ T cells. Interpretation Our data suggests that CXCL10 antagonism may be an important regulatory mechanism occurring at the site of TB pathology. CXCL10 can be inactivated shortly after secretion by membrane bound DPP4 (CD26), therefore, reducing its chemotactic potential. Given the importance of Th1 cell functions and IFN-γ-mediated effects in TB, our data suggest a possible unappreciated regulatory role of DPP4 in TB. Perspectives DPP4 is the target for a class of enzyme inhibitors used in the treatment of diabetes, and the results from this study suggest that these drugs could be repurposed as an adjunct immunotherapy of patients with TB and MDR-TB.
A Theory of ICOs: Diversification, Agency, and Information Asymmetry

This paper develops a theory of financing of entrepreneurial ventures via crypto tokens, which is not limited to platform-based ventures. We compare token financing with traditional equity financing, focusing on agency problems and information asymmetry frictions associated with the two financing methods, as well as on risk sharing between entrepreneurs and investors. Token financing introduces an agency problem not present under equity financing (underproduction), while mitigating an agency problem often associated with equity financing (entrepreneurial effort underprovision). Our theory abstracts from all institutional and potentially transient differences between tokens and equity and is based on a single intrinsic characteristic of tokens: they represent claims to a venture’s output. We show that tokens are likely to dominate equity for ventures developing goods or services that involve low marginal production costs, those for which entrepreneurial effort is crucial, and/or those with relatively low payoff volatility. In addition, tokens can have an advantage over equity in signaling venture quality to outside investors. This paper was accepted by Kay Giesecke, finance.
Autophagy-dependent gut-to-yolk biomass conversion generates visceral polymorbidity in aging C. elegans

Aging (senescence) is characterized by the development of numerous pathologies, some of which limit lifespan. Key to understanding aging is discovery of the mechanisms (etiologies) that cause senescent pathology. In Caenorhabditis elegans a major senescent pathology of unknown etiology is atrophy of its principal metabolic organ, the intestine. Here we identify a cause of not only this pathology, but also of yolky lipid accumulation and redistribution (a form of senescent obesity): autophagy-mediated conversion of intestinal biomass into yolk. Inhibiting intestinal autophagy or vitellogenesis rescues both visceral pathologies, and can also extend lifespan. This defines a disease syndrome leading to polymorbidity and contributing to late-life mortality. Activation of gut-to-yolk biomass conversion by insulin/IGF-1 signaling (IIS) promotes reproduction and senescence. This illustrates how major, IIS-promoted senescent pathologies in C. elegans can originate not from damage accumulation, but from continued action of a wild-type function (vitellogenesis), consistent with the recently proposed hyperfunction theory of aging.
Report treat from Ocean Warming

Thomas Wernberg,1,2,* Bayden D. Russell,3 Mads S. Thomsen,1,5 C. Frederico D. Gurgel,3,6,7 Corey J.A. Bradshaw,4,6 Elvira S. Poloczanska,8 and Sean D. Connell3 1UWA Oceans Institute, School of Plant Biology, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, Western Australia 6009, Australia 2Australian Institute of Marine Science, Crawley, Western Australia 6009, Australia 3Southern Seas Ecology Laboratories 4The Environment Institute School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia 5005, Australia 5Department of Marine Ecology, National Environmental Research Institute, Aarhus University, DK-4000 Roskilde, Denmark 6South Australian Research and Development Institute, Henley Beach, South Australia 5022, Australia 7State Herbarium of South Australia, Adelaide, South Australia 5001, Australia 8Climate Adaptation Flagship, CSIROMarine and Atmospheric Research, Cleveland, Queensland 4163, Australia
Heritabilities of and genetic and phenotypic correlations between condition score and production and conformation traits in Black-and-White cows.

The objectives of this study were to estimate the heritability (h2) of body condition score (BCS), body conformation (type) and production traits of Black-and-White cows maintained by small farmers of Eastern Poland as well as genetic (rG) and phenotypic (rP) correlations between the traits mentioned. Considered were 2012 cows with completed 305-day lactation from the years 1997-1999. The h2 estimate for BCS was 0.37. Out of 26 condition and conformation traits considered, the rP of 17 and rG of 13 traits appeared negative. The rG values ranged from -0.30 (musculature) to 0.45 (udder).
Robustness of Stepwise Latent Class Modeling With Continuous Distal Outcomes

Recently, several bias-adjusted stepwise approaches to latent class modeling with continuous distal outcomes have been proposed in the literature and implemented in generally available software for latent class analysis. In this article, we investigate the robustness of these methods to violations of underlying model assumptions by means of a simulation study. Although each of the 4 investigated methods yields unbiased estimates of the class-specific means of distal outcomes when the underlying assumptions hold, 3 of the methods could fail to different degrees when assumptions are violated. Based on our study, we provide recommendations on which method to use under what circumstances. The differences between the various stepwise latent class approaches are illustrated by means of a real data application on outcomes related to recidivism for clusters of juvenile offenders.
Epidemiology of osteoarthritis: state of the evidence

Purpose of review— This review focuses on recent studies of osteoarthritis epidemiology, including research on prevalence, incidence, and a broad array of potential risk factors at the person level and joint level. Recent findings— Studies continue to illustrate the high impact of osteoarthritis worldwide, with increasing incidence. Person-level risk factors with strong evidence regarding osteoarthritis incidence and/or progression include age, sex, socioeconomic status, family history, and obesity. Joint-level risk factors with strong evidence for incident osteoarthritis risk include injury and occupational joint loading; the associations of injury and joint alignment with osteoarthritis progression are compelling. Moderate levels of physical activity have not been linked to increased osteoarthritis risk. Some topics of high recent interest or emerging evidence for association with osteoarthritis include metabolic pathways, vitamins, joint shape, bone density, limb length inequality, muscle strength and mass, and early structural damage. Summary— Osteoarthritis is a complex, multifactorial disease, and there is still much to learn regarding mechanisms underlying incidence and progression. However, there are several known modifiable and preventable risk factors, including obesity and joint injury; efforts to mitigate these risks can help to lessen the impact of osteoarthritis. leptin This study found that ipsilateral proximal femur shape differed between prevalent case and control knees for both medial and lateral osteoarthritis, adding to prior literature showing that hip shape is associated with hip osteoarthritis. This study found differences in hip shape between knees with and without lateral knee osteoarthritis. Also found related sex differences in hip shape that may help to explain sex differences in lateral knee osteoarthritis.
Optimal and Robust Sampled-Data Control of Markov Jump Linear Systems: A Differential LMI Approach

This paper addresses the problem of designing optimal sampled-data state feedback control for continuous-time Markov jump linear systems. Stability and performance robustness against polytopic uncertainty acting on the system parameters including the transition rate matrix are analyzed. The main goal is to characterize the optimal solution of this class of problems in the context of <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">${\mathcal H}_2$</tex-math> </inline-formula> and <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">${\mathcal H}_\infty$</tex-math></inline-formula> performances. The theoretical achievements are based on the direct application of the celebrated Bellman's Principle of Optimality expressed in terms of the dynamic programming equation applied to the time interval corresponding to two successive sampling instants. The design conditions are expressed through differential linear matrix inequalities. Examples are solved for illustration.
Consistent simulation of bromine chemistry from the marine boundary layer to the stratosphere - Part 1: Model description, sea salt aerosols and pH

This is the first article of a series present- ing a detailed analysis of bromine chemistry simulated with the atmospheric chemistry general circulation model ECHAM5/MESSy. Release from sea salt is an important bromine source, hence the model explicitly calculates aerosol chemistry and phase partitioning for coarse mode aerosol particles. Many processes including chemical reaction rates are influenced by the particle size distribution, and aerosol associated water strongly affects the aerosol pH. Knowl- edge of the aerosol pH is important as it determines the aerosol chemistry, e.g., the efficiency of sulphur oxidation and bromine release. Here, we focus on the simulated sea salt aerosol size distribution and the coarse mode aerosol pH. A comparison with available field data shows that the sim- ulated aerosol distributions agree reasonably well within the range of measurements. In spite of the small number of aerosol pH measurements and the uncertainty in its exper- imental determination, the simulated aerosol pH compares well with the observations. The aerosol pH ranges from alka- line aerosol in areas of strong production down to pH-values of 1 over regions of medium sea salt production and high levels of gas phase acids, mostly polluted regions over the oceans in the Northern Hemisphere.
Curiosity Driven Exploration of Learned Disentangled Goal Spaces

Intrinsically motivated goal exploration processes enable agents to autonomously sample goals to explore efficiently complex environments with high-dimensional continuous actions. They have been applied successfully to real world robots to discover repertoires of policies producing a wide diversity of effects. Often these algorithms relied on engineered goal spaces but it was recently shown that one can use deep representation learning algorithms to learn an adequate goal space in simple environments. However, in the case of more complex environments containing multiple objects or distractors, an efficient exploration requires that the structure of the goal space reflects the one of the environment. In this paper we show that using a disentangled goal space leads to better exploration performances than an entangled goal space. We further show that when the representation is disentangled, one can leverage it by sampling goals that maximize learning progress in a modular manner. Finally, we show that the measure of learning progress, used to drive curiosity-driven exploration, can be used simultaneously to discover abstract independently controllable features of the environment.