Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Using image-transform-based bootstrapping to improve scene classification

The performance of an exemplar-based scene classification system depends largely on the size and quality of its set of training exemplars, which can be limited in practice. In addition, in non-trivial data sets, variations in scene content as well as distracting regions may exist in many testing images to prohibit good matches with the exemplars. We introduce the concept of image-transform bootstrapping using image transforms to address such issues. In particular, three major schemes are described for exploiting this concept to augment training, testing, and both. We have successfully applied it to three applications of increasing difficulty: sunset detection, outdoor scene classification, and automatic image orientation detection. It is shown that appropriate transforms and meta-classification methods can be selected to boost performance according to the domain of the problem and the features/classifier used.
Küttner’s Tumor of Salivary Glands Resembling Marginal Zone B-cell Lymphoma of the MALT Type: A Histopathologic and Immunohistochemical Study of 7 Cases

Küttner’s tumor is a benign inflammatory process of the submandibular gland that presents as a hard mass mimicking a malignant neoplasm clinically. The histologic feature varies according to stage of evolution and severity of inflammation. We report here 7 cases of Küttner’s tumor that morphologically resemble primary salivary gland marginal zone B-cell lymphoma of the mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) type. Histologically, the lobular architecture was distorted and the septa showed sclerosis. There was a dense lymphoplasmacytoid infiltration with lymphoid follicle formation accompanied by loss of acini and ducts. In 4 cases, a few salivary gland ducts contained the lymphoid cells within the epithelium. However, a true lymphoepithelial lesion was observed in none of the 7 cases. Immunohistochemical study demonstrated a disrupted follicular dendritic cell network, which is a characteristic finding of follicular colonization of MALT-type lymphoma. In 6 cases, there were a few small foci of lymphocytes somewhat resembling centrocyte-like cells of MALT-type lymphoma. However, immunohistological study demonstrated the mixed nature of the cells resembling centrocyte-like cells. Moreover, the polytypic nature of B lymphocytes was demonstrated by immunohistochemistry and polymerase chain reaction.
Evidence of the escape of antithrombin from the blood into the interstitial space in pregnant women

Abstract Objective: We investigated whether ascites samples obtained from pregnant women during cesarean sections contained antithrombin because it is unknown whether antithrombin escapes from the blood and passes into the interstitial space during pregnancy. Methods: The concentration and activity levels of antithrombin were determined in six ascites samples obtained from six consecutive women who exhibited generalized edema, ascites, and a gradual decline in antithrombin activity. Results: All six ascites samples contained antithrombin (mean±SD, 4.9±2.2 mg/dL; range, 2.7–8.8 mg/dL) and exhibited an antithrombin activity level of 15.5±6.0% (range, 10–24%). Conclusions: Antithrombin escapes from the blood into the interstitial space in pregnant women. This phenomenon partially explains the gradual decline in antithrombin activity observed in these six pregnant women with generalized edema and large volumes of ascites.
Psoriasis and Dyslipidemia

Introduction: Psoriasis is a chronic skin ailment, which can be connected with other ailments including dyslipidemia. Examinees and methods: Research included 70 patients affected by psoriasis. Both genders, above 18 years of age. Average age of the respondents was 47.14 (SD= ±15.41), which consisted of 36 men (51.43%) and 34 women (48.57%). The average duration of psoriasis was 15.52 (SD= ±12.54) years. Results: Frequency of dyslipidemia on those affected by psoriasis was 62.85%. Most often it was hypertriglyceridemia (39%) and hypertriglyceridemia with a lowered value of HDL (36%), average age of those affected by psoriasis with dyslipidemia was 48.76 years (SD= ±14.72), and the average duration of the basic disease was 16.15 years (SD= ±12.63), the average values of the PASI score were 16.65. Increase in values of PASI score and dyslipidemia were statistically significantly connected (r=0.41; p=0.0001). Conclusion: Psoriasis is connected with dyslipidemia.
Global differences in dialysis modality mix: the role of patient characteristics, macroeconomics and renal service indicators.

BACKGROUND An increase in the dialysis programme expenditure is expected in most countries given the continued rise in the number of people with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) globally. Since chronic peritoneal dialysis (PD) therapy is relatively less expensive compared with haemodialysis (HD) and because there is no survival difference between PD and HD, identifying factors associated with PD use is important. METHODS Incidence counts for the years 2003-05 were available from 36 countries worldwide. We studied associations of population characteristics, macroeconomic factors and renal service indicators with the percentage of patients on PD at Day 91 after starting dialysis. With linear regression models, we obtained relative risks (RRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). RESULTS The median percentage of incident patients on PD was 12% (interquartile range: 7-26%). Determinants independently associated with lower percentages of patients on PD were as follows: patients with diabetic kidney disease (per 5% increase) (RR 0.93; 95% CI 0.89-0.97), health expenditure as % gross domestic product (per 1% increase) (RR 0.93; 95% CI 0.87-0.98), private-for-profit share of HD facilities (per 1% increase) (RR 0.996; 95% CI 0.99-1.00; P = 0.04), costs of PD consumables relative to staffing (per 0.1 increase) (RR 0.97; 95% CI 0.95-0.99). CONCLUSIONS The factors associated with a lower percentage of patients on PD include higher diabetes prevalence, higher healthcare expenditures, larger share of private-for-profit centres and higher costs of PD consumables relative to staffing. Whether dialysis modality mix can be influenced by changing healthcare organization and funding requires additional studies.
The parent-form Child Health Questionnaire in Australia: comparison of reliability, validity, structure, and norms.

OBJECTIVE To improve the ability to describe and compare child health within and between countries, using standardized multidimensional child health measures. METHODS Data on population-specific psychometrics, the measurement structure, and norms are a vital prerequisite. These properties for the Child Health Questionnaire (CHQ) were examined for an Australian population and compared with the originating U.S. data. The CHQ 50-item parent-report was completed by 5,414 parents of children aged 5-18 years. Multi-item/multi-trait analysis tested convergent and discriminatory validity. Construct validity, test-retest reliability, comparative population mean scale scores, and the summary score factor structure were examined. RESULTS Item and scale internal consistency and item discriminant validity results were good to excellent, and construct (concurrent) validity was supported. Australian children had higher scores than U.S. children except for Family Activities and Physical Functioning. The factor structure of the two summary scores for American children was not replicated in the normative sample but held for a subsample of children with one or more health conditions. CONCLUSIONS The CHQ PF50 performed well in Australia at item and scale level. However, the physical and psychosocial summary scores are not supported for population-level analyses but may be of value for sub-groups of children with health problems.
Farm entry and exit from US agriculture

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to use a linked-farm approach and a cohort approach to estimate farm entry and exit rates using the US Census of Agriculture. The number of new farms entering agriculture was re-estimated and adjusted upward since not all new and beginning farmers are known to US Department of Agriculture. Design/methodology/approach - In addition to a linked-farm approach (linking farms over time), a cohort approach (farms that started operating in the same year) is used to determine exit rates conditional on the number of years a farm has been operating. Linear forecasting, moving-average forecasting, and using data from a later Census are used to re-estimate the number of new farms in their first year of operating. Findings - Using the linked-farm approach, an average annual entry rate of 7.5 percent and exit rate of 8.5 percent is estimated for 2007 to 2012, which vary based on the farmer’s lifecycle. The cohort approach shows that exit rates are lower than 4 percent for the first 40 years of operating a farm business and then exit rates gradually increase. Revised estimates of approximately 70-80,000 new farms entering each year are calculated, which are considerably higher numbers than the 30-40,000 new farm entrants participating in the Census of Agriculture. Originality/value - The linked-farm and cohort approaches are used to provide updated estimates for farm entry and exit using new Census data and to make comparisons with previous years. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to provide revised estimates for new farm entrants into US agriculture.
Remission of Barrett's esophagus with early neoplasia 5 years after radiofrequency ablation with endoscopic resection: a Netherlands cohort study.

BACKGROUND & AIMS Radiofrequency ablation (RFA), with or without endoscopic resection effectively eradicates Barrett's esophagus (BE) containing high-grade intraepithelial neoplasia and/or early-stage cancer. We followed patients who received RFA for BE containing high-grade intraepithelial neoplasia and/or early-stage cancer for 5 years to determine the durability of treatment response. METHODS We followed 54 patients with BE (2-12 cm), previously enrolled in 4 consecutive cohort studies in which they underwent focal endoscopic resection in case of visible lesions (n = 40 [72%]), followed by serial RFA every 3 months. Patients underwent high-resolution endoscopy with narrow-band imaging at 6 and 12 months after treatment and then annually for 5 years (median, 61 months; interquartile range, 53-65 months); random biopsy samples were collected from neosquamous epithelium and gastric cardia. After 5 years, endoscopic ultrasound and endoscopic resection of neosquamous epithelium were performed. Outcomes included sustained complete remission of neoplasia or intestinal metaplasia (IM), IM in gastric cardia, or buried glands in neosquamous epithelium. RESULTS After 5 years, Kaplan-Meier analysis showed sustained complete remission of neoplasia and intestinal metaplasia in 90% of patients; neoplasia recurred in 3 patients and was managed endoscopically. Focal IM in the cardia was found in 19 of 54 patients (35%), in 53 of 1143 gastric cardia biopsies (4.6%). The incidence of IM of the cardia did not increase over time; and IM was diagnosed based on only a single biopsy in 89% of patients. Buried glands were detected in 3 of 3543 neosquamous epithelium biopsies (0.08%, from 3 patients). No endoscopic resection samples had buried glands. CONCLUSIONS Among patients who have undergone RFA with or without endoscopic resection for neoplastic BE, 90% remain in remission at 5-year follow-up, with all recurrences managed endoscopically. This treatment approach is therefore an effective and durable alternative to esophagectomy; www.trialregister. nl number, NTR2938.
Comparison the Life Style between Secondary Infertile and Fertile Women: Considering Potential Socio-Demographic and Reproductive Confounding Factors in a Case-Control Study.

INTRODUCTION Secondary infertility can cause some problems for the couples involved, particularly the women. It is supposed that the life style could influence the fertility status of the couples. This study was aimed to comparison the life style between secondary infertile and fertile women. MATERIALS AND METHODS In this case-control study, 125 secondary infertile women as case group and 140 fertile women as control group were investigated in 2015. The subjects were selected from the fertility clinics and private office of the gynecologists in Zahedan, southeast of Iran. The data were collected using a structured questionnaire including reproductive history, socio-demographic variables, physical activity and Pittsburgh sleep quality. To analyze the data were used Chi-square and multiple logistic regression with Hosmer&Lemeshow method. RESULTS By adjusting for potential confounders the secondary infertile women were more likely to have had higher BMI and be overweight (OR=2.89, 95%CI: 1.15-10.1) than fertile women. The sedentary and low sleep quality were significantly more common in infertile women than fertile women (OR=2.37, 95%CI: 1.005-9.7 and OR=2.92, 95%CI: 1.6-9.3, respectively). Also the chance of nutritional related disease among cases was more that controls (P<0.05). CONCLUSION As life style related factors were associated with some reproductive variables in this study, thus it could be concluded that the life style and nutritional status not only influence the obstetric events, but directly effect on fertility via another paths. However, decreasing weight and increasing physical activity, improvement of sleep quality are all likely to decrease secondary infertility in women.
The Impact of Job Insecurity on Counterproductive Work Behaviors: The Moderating Role of Honesty–Humility Personality Trait

ABSTRACT The detrimental effects of job insecurity on individual and organizational well-being are well documented in recent literature. Job insecurity as a stressor is generally associated with a higher presence of negative attitudes toward the organization. In this article, the moderating role of Honesty–Humility personality trait was investigated. It was assumed that Honesty–Humility would function as a psychological moderator of the job insecurity impact on counterproductive work behaviors. Participants were 203 workers who were administered a self–reported questionnaire. Results confirmed that job insecurity was positively related to counterproductive work behaviors whereas Honesty–Humility was negatively associated to them. More importantly, Honesty–Humility moderated this relationship, even after controlling for gender, age, type of contract, and the other HEXACO personality traits. For individuals with low Honesty–Humility, job insecurity was positively related to counterproductive work behaviors, whereas for individuals with high Honesty–Humility, job insecurity turned out to be unrelated to counterproductive work behaviors.
Beta, Value, and Growth

I propose a Capital Asset Pricing Model in which investor demand exhibits a speculative component. In equilibrium, I find that the relation between risk and return flips sign across assets with extreme book-to-market ratios, which generates predictable patterns for the value premium. Consistent with the model's predictions, I show that value stocks outperform growth stocks not only unconditionally, but especially when investor sentiment is high and economic activity is low, as investors tilt their portfolios towards speculation. The findings support the view that the book-to-market ratio represents, at least to some extent, a measure of mispricing.
The economics of smoking in Russia : evidence from the Russia Longitudinal Monitoring Survey (RLMS-HSE)

This thesis contributes to our understanding of tobacco consumption, one of the leading causes of premature mortality in Russia. While smoking has received less attention in the literature compared to hazardous alcohol consumption in Russia, it is increasingly the focus of government policy, as illustrated by a restrictive anti-smoking law which was passed in 2013 and which, among other things, foresees substantial tax increases, some of which have already been introduced. The few studies examining price responsiveness of smoking in Russia have identified very low price elasticities compared to those found for other countries, thus calling into question the effectiveness of tax increases as a means of reducing consumption. In this thesis we draw on 10 years of individual-level longitudinal data from the Russia Longitudinal Monitoring Survey (RLMS-HSE) and regional-level government statistics to examine the longer-term development of smoking patterns in Russia and to model the demand for cigarettes. After setting out the context of smoking in Soviet and post-Soviet Russia, which in both periods is characterised by high affordability and easy availability of cigarettes, coupled with only minimal tobacco control measures, the second part of the thesis examines patterns of smoking across the life-course over the past 6 decades and establishes some stylised descriptive facts regarding the associations of smoking with important socioeconomic and geographic characteristics. Building on this descriptive evidence, we develop an empirical model of cigarette demand in Russia, starting with a static model capturing the influence of factors such as price, income or education on consumption, and then moving to a dynamic specification that additionally accounts for the habit-forming effects of cigarette consumption. We find that price elasticities are small, but meaningful, that social factors and peer effects are more significant drivers of smoking and that smoking is strongly persistent within individuals. A key theme emerging from both the descriptive and econometric analyses is the strongly gendered nature of consumption patterns, which suggests that to successfully reduce the prevalence of smoking, policy measures should take into account the different gender norms towards smoking.
Alpha 2-antagonist compounds and lipid mobilization: evidence for a lipid mobilizing effect of oral yohimbine in healthy male volunteers.

Investigations were carried out to analyse the interactions of alpha 2-antagonists (yohimbine, idazoxan, SK & F-86,466) with human fat cell alpha 2-adrenoceptors. All the alpha 2-antagonists enhanced the lipolytic potencies of epinephrine with an order of potency: yohimbine greater than idazoxan greater than SK & F-86,466; the same order was also found in 3H-yohimbine competition studies on human fat cell membranes. The most potent agent, yohimbine, was administered orally in humans to define the conditions of appearance and the time-course of a putative lipid-mobilizing action. Oral yohimbine administration (0.2 mg kg-1) elevated plasma glycerol and non-esterified fatty acids in fasting healthy subjects without significant action on heart rate or blood pressure during the time-course of the experiment. The lipid-mobilizing action of yohimbine was reinforced during physical exercise, completely suppressed after a meal and partially blocked by administration of propranolol (0.5 mg kg-1; 60 min before yohimbine). Plasma norepinephrine concentrations were increased (40-50%) after oral yohimbine administration. The rise in plasma catecholamine concentration elicited by yohimbine was not modified by propranolol treatment. The lipid-mobilizing effect of yohimbine could be attributable to: (i) the increase in synaptic norepinephrine with a resultant increment in lipolysis by beta-adrenergic agonism; (ii) a decrease in alpha 2-adrenoceptor stimulation of human fat cell alpha 2-adrenoceptors; (iii) a blockade of presynaptic alpha 2-adrenoceptors. The use of highly selective alpha 2-antagonists will allow investigations into alpha 2-adrenoceptors, which may represent a novel locus for pharmacological intervention in lipid-mobilization strategies. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Lecithin:cholesterol acyl transfer in plasma of normal persons in relation to lipid and lipoprotein concentration.

Information concerning variation in the lecithin:cholesterol acyl transfer (LCAT) rate in normal persons is scanty. We have therefore analyzed the LCAT rate and the lipid and lipoprotein concentrations in the plasma of healthy normolipidemic persons 20-60 years of age, 40 men and 40 women. 10 per decade and sex. Interindividual variation in molar LCAT rate was 57-130 mumol-u(-1)-h-1 (mean +/- 2 S.D.) with no sex difference. Intraindividual variation of molar LCAT rate studied in 8 women and 9 men was shown to be greater than expected from methodological error and was not explainable by the small changes in plasma lipid concentration during the observation period. In the women the molar LCAT rat was lower during the preovulatory phase of the menstrual cycle than during the postovulatory phase. There was positive correlations between the molar LCAT rate and most of the lipid parameters in plasma. By partial correlation analysis a positive correlation was shown between LCAT rate and triglyceride concentration irrespective of other lipid parameters. Keeping triglyceride concentration constant, there was a positive correlation between molar LCAT rate and total phospholipid, unesterified cholesterol, esterified cholesterol, or low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol concentration. No correlation was found between high-density lipoprotein (HDL) lipid concentration and LCAT rate. Thus in normal subjects there seems to be a direct relation between very low density lipoprotein and LDL lipid concentration and molar LCAT rate but no relation between HDL lipid concentration and LCAT rate.
Neuroendocrine–immune disorder in type 2 diabetic patients with retinopathy

1. Diabetes mellitus is usually accompanied by hyperactivity of the hypothalamus–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis. Diabetic retinopathy is one of the most devastating complications in diabetes although little is known with regards to the HPA activity in type 2 diabetic patients (T2DM) with diabetic retinopathy. The present study was designed to evaluate the HPA axis activity in type 2 diabetic patients with diabetic retinopathy.