Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Effect of Spinal Shortening After Total En Bloc Spondylectomy: A Biomechanical Study in the Thoracic Spine

Study Design: A biomechanical study using human cadaveric thoracic spine specimens. Objective: To evaluate and compare the biomechanical effects of spinal shortening and cross‐links in reconstruction after total en bloc spondylectomy (TES). Summary of Background Data: There have been no studies that have examined the biomechanical effects of spinal reconstruction after multilevel TES or the biomechanical effects of spinal shortening in reconstruction after TES. Methods: Eight human cadaveric spines (T2‐T9) were used. After the intact specimen had been biomechanically tested to determine the stiffness in compression, flexion, extension, left and right lateral bending, and left and right axial rotation, a TES at T5‐6 was carried out. Three reconstruction methods were tested biomechanically (same as for the intact specimen) for their ability to restore stiffness to the specimen: (1) anterior short cage and multilevel posterior instrumentation at T3‐8 with 2 cross‐links (S2C), (2) anterior short cage and multilevel posterior instrumentation at T3‐8 with 1 cross‐link (S1C), and (3) anterior long cage and multilevel posterior instrumentation at T3‐8 with 2 cross‐links (L2C). A cage that was 6–10 mm shorter in height than the space created by the TES at T5‐6 was selected as the “short cage” and a cage 10 mm taller in height than the short cage was selected as the “long cage” in each specimen. Results: All 3 reconstruction methods using an anterior cage and multilevel posterior instrumentation provides a stiffer construct than that shown by the intact specimen. The reconstruction method using the 10‐mm shorter cage (S2C vs. L2C) provided more stiffness than the one using the longer cage. The reconstruction using 2 cross‐links (S2C vs. S1C) did not provide a stiffer construct than the one using 1 cross‐link. Conclusions: The reconstructions using an anterior cage and multilevel posterior instrumentation provided a stiffer construct than that shown by the intact specimen. The reconstruction using a 10‐mm shorter cage provided a stiffer construct than the reconstruction using the longer cage.
Étude des mouvements oculaires au cours de l’imagerie mentale visuelle, chez les sujets sains et chez ceux atteints d’une négligence représentationnelle ou d’une hémianopsie latérale homonyme

L'imagerie mentale visuelle est generalement accompagnee de mouvements spontanes des yeux qui ne sont pas arbitraires mais refletent le contenu spatial de cette imagerie. Ce travail de these avait pour principal objectif l'utilisation de l'enregistrement des mouvements oculaires afin d'etudier les representations mentales chez les sujets sains et les sujets atteints de lesions cerebrales et ainsi d'en explorer les mecanismes, la dynamique, les referentiels et les substrats neuronaux. Nous avons enregistre les mouvements des yeux pendant le rappel des villes de France a partir de la memoire a long terme, soit en ayant recours a l'imagerie mentale de la carte de France, soit avec un acces semantique (tâche de fluence verbale). Ce paradigme a ete realise dans 3 situations differentes : chez les sujets sains avec le regard libre, chez les sujets sains avec le regard fixe et chez les sujets atteints de negligence spatiale unilaterale et/ou hemianopsie laterale homonyme (HLH) avec le regard libre. En utilisant la correlation bi-dimensionelle (BDR) entre les positions oculaires et les positions GPS des villes evoquees par le sujet, nous avons pu realiser dans ces trois situations une analyse individuelle. Chez les sujets sains en regard libre, nous avons demontre que l'imagerie mentale se construit de facon sequentielle, et fragmentee, et que la correlation significative est une signature individuelle de l'utilisation de l'imagerie visuelle. Chez les sujets sains avec le regard fixe, nous avons mis en evidence l'existence de microsaccades qui refletent toujours le contenu spatial de l'imagerie mentale pour la plupart des individus. Chez les negligents, la representation mentale de la carte de France etait perturbee aussi bien dans le referentiel allocentrique (absence de coherence spatiale pour les villes de la moitie gauche) que dans le referentiel egocentrique (carte mentale decalee du cote ipsilesionnel). Chez les patients avec HLH, la representation mentale etait decalee du cote contra-lesionnel, mais etait spatialement coherente dans le referentiel allocentrique. Cette nouvelle approche methodologique et statistique a permis de discuter les differentes interpretations theoriques de la litterature concernant les liens entre mouvements des yeux et imagerie mentale, et d'etudier les troubles de representation spatiale faisant suite a la lesion du cortex visuel primaire et du reseau parieto-frontal droit, substrats respectifs du tampon visuel et de la fenetre attentionnelle / analyse des relations spatiales dans le modele d'imagerie de Kosslyn
Isolation and Preliminary Characterization of Bacteriophages for Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus

Ten bacteriophages that attack and lyse saprophytic strains of Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus were isolated. Morphological, serological, and host-range studies revealed that there were four different bdellovibrio phages present among the isolates. One of the phages lysed a strain of B. bacteriovorus that requires the presence of a suitable bacterial host for growth. The phage attached to the bdellovibrio cells in the absence of the bacterial host cells; lysis occurred only in the presence of host cells. The 19 saprophytic bdellovibrio strains employed in the phage host-range studies were grouped on the basis of their susceptibility to phage lysis.
NetWare 4 as an example of role-based access control

In [SAND96a], the second author describes a taxonomy of role-based access control (RBAC) models, divided into four classes shown in Figure 1 l-l(a), Taxonomy of RBAC Models. A complementary set of models is used for administrative role-based access control (ARBAC), as shown in Figure 1 l-l(b), Taxonomy of ARBAC Models. In this position paper, we describe how the RBAC and ARBAC models can be partially implemented using unmodified NetWare 4 servers.
Effect of Tropospheric Ozone on Morphological Characteristics of Nicotiana Tabacum L., Phaseolus Vulgaris L. and Petunia×Hybrida L. in Ambient Air Conditions

The cumulative ozone effect on morphological parameters (visible leaf injury, plant height and leaf growth, number of bean pods, petunia flowers and stalks) was examined in this study. Well-known ozone-sensitive (Bel W3) and ozone-resistant (Bel B) tobacco cultivars as well as bean cv. Nerina and petunia cv. White cascade, both recognized as ozone sensitive, were used in the experiment. Investigations were carried out at two exposure sites varying in tropospheric ozone levels. Ozone negatively affected the leaf growth of both tobacco cultivars and bean. A negative relation was also found for ozone concentration and tobacco plant height. Number of petunia flowers and stalks and bean pods was positively correlated with ozone concentration. This could have been connected with earlier plant maturation due to faster generative development of plants in ozone-stress conditions.
MPRhuman for MTBE HUMAN-TOXICOLOGICAL MAXIMUM PERMISSIBLE RISK LEVELS FOR METHYL-tertiair-BUTYLETHER (MTBE)

Methyl-t-butylether (MTBE) is a synthetic ether that is mainly used as a fuel additive: it replaces lead in gasoline, increasing the anti-knock rating. Next to this it serves as an intermediate in the production of isobutylene and as a process solvent in the pharmaceutical industry. In clinical practice MTBE is used to dissolve gallstones. At room temperature MTBE is a colourless liquid with a typical terpene-like odour. Table 1 summarises the physical-chemical properties of MTBE.
How satisfying is the practice of internal medicine? A national survey.

OBJECTIVE To survey members of the American College of Physicians about their level of satisfaction and sources of dissatisfaction with practice, the extent to which their satisfaction is reflected in their counseling of students about careers in internal medicine, the prevalence of their concerns about patients' access to care, and their attitudes toward changes in the health care system. DESIGN A questionnaire survey of a random sample of members of the College. PARTICIPANTS Members (2254) of the College were surveyed; 1446 (64%) responded and 1290 (57%) of the responses were usable. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS More than 80% of respondents were satisfied with their relationships with patients, professional challenges, and opportunities to interact with colleagues. Only about half were satisfied with their potential income, and most were dissatisfied with their autonomy or loss of control over clinical decision making. Major sources of concern were administrative burdens, the threat of malpractice litigation, loss of income, and loss of clinical autonomy. Forty percent of internists say that they discourage students from careers in internal medicine, and only 39% would once again pursue such a career. "Pain in the practice" seems generalized among internists: logistic regression analysis failed to show any specific groups who were most dissatisfied or concerned. With regard to access, 18% of internists had many patients without health care insurance; 69% had some patients without coverage; and the majority (61%) had some patients who lost their insurance because of changing jobs or location. Assuring universal access to care received the highest priority rating of a set of criteria for health care reform. CONCLUSIONS There is growing dissatisfaction with the practice of internal medicine, primarily related to concerns over loss of clinical autonomy, the increase in administrative burdens, the potential loss of income, and the threat of malpractice litigation. Although physicians are concerned about patients' access to care, proposals to improve access should be examined for their effects on the major sources of physicians' dissatisfaction with practice.
Tobacco and the Malays: ethnicity, health and the political economy of tobacco in Malaysia

ABSTRACT Objectives: To identify the historical nexus between Malaysia’s largest and politically dominant ethnic group and the political economy of tobacco, and to consider the implications of this connection for tobacco control. Design: Primary and secondary documentary sources in both English and Malay were analysed to illuminate key events and decisions, and the discourse of industry and government. Sources included: speeches by Malaysian political and industry actors; tobacco industry reports, press releases and websites; government documents; World Health Organization (WHO) tobacco control literature; and press reports. Results: Malays have the highest smoking prevalence among Malaysia’s major ethnic groups. The tobacco industry has consistently been promoted as furthering Malay economic development. Malays play the major role in growing and curing. Government-owned Malay development trusts have been prominent investors in tobacco corporations, which have cultivated linkages with the Malay elite. The religious element of Malay ethnicity has also been significant. All Malays are Muslim, and the National Fatwa Council has declared smoking to be haram (forbidden); however, the Government has declined to implement this ruling. Conclusion: Exaggerated claims for the socio-economic benefits of tobacco production, government investment and close links between tobacco corporations and sections of the Malay elite have created a conflict of interest in public policy, limited the focus on tobacco as a health policy issue among Malays and retarded tobacco control policy. More recently, ratification of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, regional free trade policies reducing the numbers of growers, concerns about smoking from an Islamic viewpoint, and anxieties about the effects of smoking upon youth have increasingly challenged the dominant discourse that tobacco furthers Malay interests. Nevertheless, the industry remains a formidable political and economic presence in Malaysia that is likely to continue to proclaim that its activities coincide with Malay socio-economic interests.
Reliability of the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale. Extension to non-neurologists in the context of a clinical trial.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The reliability of the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) has been established through testing its use in live and videotaped patients. This reliability testing has primarily focused on the use of the scale by neurologists. We sought to determine the reliability of the NIHSS as used by non-neurologists in the context of a clinical trial. METHODS In anticipation of the initiation of a randomized trial of a new therapy for patients with acute ischemic stroke, 30 physician investigators (30% of whom were not neurologists) and 29 non-physician study coordinators were trained in the use of the NIHSS at an informational and training conference using standardized videotaped patient examinations. A series of 4 patients were rated initially. After 3 months, the same 4 patients were rerated, providing a measure of intraobserver reliability. An additional series of 4 new patients were also rated after 3 months and, with the initial 4 ratings, provided data for assessment of interobserver reliability. RESULTS Overall, 28% of the raters had previous experience with the NIHSS, and 22% had previously used the videotapes as used in the present trial. The coefficients of determination (r2) were each greater than . 95 when the means of the two ratings of the same 4 cases were compared between (1) neurologists and other types of physicians, (2) physicians and study coordinators, (3) raters who had prior experience with the NIHSS and those without prior experience, and (4) raters who had used the videotapes in the past and those who had never viewed the tapes. The calculated r2s were greater than . 98 for the initial rating of the first 4 cases and for the later rating of the 4 new cases. The slopes of the regression lines were all near 1, indicating that the raters were similarly calibrated. The intraclass correlation coefficients were . 93 and . 95, reflecting high levels of intraobserver and interobserver reliability. CONCLUSIONS These data extend the previously demonstrated reliability of the NIHSS to non-neurologists and show that both a variety of physician investigators and nurse study coordinators can be rapidly trained to reliably apply the scale in the context of an actual clinical trial.
Real‐time depth‐of‐field rendering using single‐layer composition

In this paper, we propose a single‐layer post‐processing method for real‐time depth‐of‐field rendering that uses single‐layer composition. In the proposed method, blurring is achieved by gathering background pixels and scattering foreground pixels. Major artifacts in post‐filtering techniques such as intensity leakage and blurring discontinuity are reduced by using two different blurring functions and the controllable parameter in the gathering process. The method can be entirely implemented in GPU parallelization to achieve the real‐time performance required for virtual reality. The results of comparisons of our method with recent post‐processing methods in terms of rendering quality and rendering performance indicate that our method generates realistic natural images and is also the fastest in terms of frames per second. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Transgenic mice with SCA10 pentanucleotide repeats show motor phenotype and susceptibility to seizure: A toxic RNA gain‐of‐function model

Spinocerebellar ataxia type 10 (SCA10) is an autosomal dominant neurodegenerative disorder manifested by ataxia and seizure. SCA10 is caused by a large expansion of an intronic ATTCT pentanucleotide repeat in the ATXN10 gene. We have recently postulated a toxic RNA‐mediated gain of function in the pathogenesis of spinal cerebellar ataxia type 10 (SCA10). The spliced intron‐9 RNA containing the expanded AUUCU repeat aggregates in SCA10 cells and sequesters hnRNP K. hnRNP K sequestration triggers the translocation of protein kinase Cδ (PKCδ) to mitochondria, leading to activation of caspase‐3 and apoptosis. To confirm the toxic RNA‐mediated gain of function, we generated a new transgenic mouse model in which the expanded pentanucleotide repeats are constructed in the 3′‐untranslated region (3′UTR) to ensure transcription without translation of the repeat. We constructed an artificial transgene containing the SCA10 (ATTCT)500 track within the 3′UTR of the LacZ gene driven by the rat prion promoter (PrP) and used this to generate a new transgenic mouse model for SCA10. We then examined these mice for neurological phenotypes and histopathological, molecular, and cellular changes. The transgenic mice showed irregular gait and increased seizure susceptibility at the age of 6 months, resembling the clinical phenotype of SCA10. The cerebral cortex, hippocampus, and pontine nuclei showed neuronal loss. The brains of these animals also showed molecular and cellular changes similar to those previously found in an SCA10 cell model. Expression of the expanded SCA10 AUUCU repeat within the 3′UTR of a gene results in neuronal loss with associated gait abnormalities and increased seizure susceptibility phenotypes, which resemble those seen in SCA10 patients. Moreover, these results bolster the idea that the SCA10 disease mechanism is mediated by a toxic RNA gain‐of‐function mutation of the expanded AUUCU repeat. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Attributions and Misconceptions in Angina: An Exploratory Study

Although there have been a number of studies regarding attributions and misconceptions in people following a heart attack, there have been no comparable studies in people with angina. Semi-structured interviews were held with 20 people suffering from angina to discover their beliefs about angina, particularly those that may be misconceived or associated with maladaptive coping. Nineteen of the 20 participants held such beliefs. Stress was the most frequent causal attribution and misconceived angina avoidance strategies were cited by the majority. The beliefs about angina held by this sample may have implications for their health-related quality of life, if their experience mirrors that found within heart attack populations.
Minimum wages: boon or bane?

Die vorliegende Dissertation untersucht unter Verwendung mikrookonometrischer Methoden die existierenden Branchenmindestlohne in Deutschland. Im ersten Teil werden zwei Studien vorgestellt, welche die Beschaftigungseffekte einer Lohnuntergrenze analysieren. Die Identifikation kausaler Effekte erfolgt im Rahmen eines Differenz-von-Differenzen Ansatzes, wobei die Kontrollgruppen entweder in anderen Branchen gefunden werden oder ein Vergleich von unterschiedlich stark betroffenen Regionen vorgenommen wird. Der zweite Teil der Dissertation geht auf den Zusammenhang zwischen Mindestlohnen und der Wettbewerbssituation auf dem Produkt- sowie dem Arbeitsmarkt ein. Auf der Basis einer eigenen Betriebsbefragung wird gezeigt, dass Mindestlohne von Firmen als Markteintrittsbarriere verwendet werden konnen. Gleichzeitig scheint es keinen direkten Zusammenhang zwischen dem Grad des monopsonistischen Wettbewerbs auf Branchenebene und den Beschaftigungseffekten der existierenden Mindestlohne zu geben.
Experimental definition of the lowest usable frequency (LUF) of an aluminum made reverberation chamber with reference to the IEC 61000-4-21 standard

In this paper the results of a calibration measurements campaign on an aluminum made reverberation chamber are reported, together with additional considerations regarding the calibration methods suggested in the recently issued IEC 61000-4-21 Standard (1). It is worth to mention that the chamber here analyzed is rather uncommon, being a relatively large, fully aluminum enclosure, and there is no reference in literature for such a chamber. Therefore, as the authors were not able to find in literature consolidated procedures to evaluate the performance of this kind of chamber, they decided to adopt two different methods, indicated in the above mentioned Standard, to define with better precision the value of the Lowest Usable Frequency - the so called LUF - and to verify the performances of the chamber at frequencies below the LUF indicated by the Supplier of the chamber. The first method adopted for improving the uniformity of the field data consisted in increasing and/or decreasing the number of the tuner steps; the second is based on the "loading effect" to lower the Q factor of the chamber. The authors verified that for the chamber in analysis the first method could not yield any useful result, while the second one offered a really effective way to improve the LUF, that in the case here described decreased from a good 80 MHz to an excellent 66.76 MHz. As the effect of loading the chamber has resulted in an improved performance of the chamber at frequencies below 80 MHz, the authors are confident that the reverberation chamber of CISAM can be classified as an enclosure with high Q factor as stated by the reference Standard.
Cognitive function and other risk factors for mild traumatic brain injury in young men: nationwide cohort study

Objective To investigate cognitive function and other risk factors for mild traumatic brain injury in young men. Design Nationwide prospective cohort study. Setting Sweden. Participants 305 885 men conscripted for military service from 1989 to 1994. Main outcome measure mild traumatic brain injuries in relation to cognitive function and other potential risk factors assessed at conscription and follow-up. Results Men with one mild traumatic brain injury within two years before (n=1988) or after cognitive testing (n=2214) had about 5.5% lower overall cognitive function scores than did men with no mild traumatic brain injury during follow up (P<0.001 for both). Moreover, men with at least two mild traumatic brain injuries after cognitive testing (n=795) had 15% lower overall cognitive function scores compared with those with no such injury (P<0.001). Independent strong risk factors (P<1×10−10) for at least one mild traumatic brain injury after cognitive testing (n=12 494 events) included low overall cognitive function, a previous mild traumatic brain injury, hospital admission for intoxications, and low education and socioeconomic status. In a sub-cohort of twin pairs in which one twin had a mild traumatic brain injury before cognitive testing (n=63), both twins had lower logical performance and technical performance compared with men in the total cohort with no mild traumatic brain injury (P<0.05 for all). Conclusion Low cognitive function, intoxications, and factors related to low socioeconomic status were strong independent risk factors for mild traumatic brain injuries in men. The low cognitive function in twin pairs discordant for mild traumatic brain injury suggests a genetic component to the low cognitive function associated with such injuries. The study included only men, so inferences to women should be made with caution.