Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Optical coherence tomography angiography for glaucoma diagnosis and observation

Glaucoma is a neurodegenerative optic neuropathy characterized by loss of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) and RGCs axons, resulting in atrophy of the optic nerve. Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) is the most recent modality in ophthalmic imaging field for diagnosis of different ophthalmic disorders, providing a high-resolution view of the vascular structures in the retina and optic nerve head. OCTA provides three-dimensional (3D) vascular information with the detection of motion contrast from the blood flow and an advanced approach to visualize retinal vasculature without the need of any dye injections that are non-invasive, fast and reproducible. In contrast to fluorescein angiography (FA) and indocyanine green angiography (ICGA), OCTA is a fast, safe, non-invasive and cost-effective diagnostic method. Another substantial superiority of the OCTA over FA and ICGA methods is that it provides high-resolution, depth-resolved blood flow data and segments the vascular layers in slabs of varying thickness in a few seconds. In addition, OCTA is a reliable and objective imaging technique with high reproducibility compared to the visual field (VF) testing. OCTA is also faster than VF testing and is less dependent on patient collaboration. Given the current population growth trends and hence the increase in glaucoma prevalence, the analysis of FA and ICGA images or VA testing is more likely to be time-consuming, costly, and prone to adverse effects. Therefore, these challenges can only be solved with the help of potentially promising diagnostic analyzes.
Efficiency Determinants and Dynamic Efficiency Changes

This paper investigates the dynamic and the determinants of banking industry efficiency in Latin America. Allocative, technical, pure technical and scale efficiencies are calculated and analyzed in each country. We find that Latin American bank managers have been using resources efficiently, but they are not choosing an optimal input/output. Additionally, we find that traditional banking performance measures are positively correlated with efficiencies while variables that measure banking and financial structure development and macroeconomics present mixed results. About the Authors: Dr. Kabir Hassan is a tenured professor at the University of New Orleans and also holds a visiting research professorship at Drexel University, Philadelphia. He is a financial economist with consulting, research and teaching experiences in development finance, money and capital markets, corporate finance, investments, monetary economics, macroeconomics and international trade and finance. He has published five books, over 70 articles in refereed academic journals and has presented over 100 research papers at professional conferences globally. Dr. Benito Sanchez is an Assistant Professor of Finance at Kean University (Union, NJ.), teaching Corporate Finance, Investment and Financial Institutions and Markets. He has taught finance courses at University of New Orleans and at Loyola University New Orleans. Dr. Sanchez research focuses in asset pricing and banking efficiencies.
Non-Pituitary Down Regulation Protocol for Ovulation Induction in ART (IVF & ICSI)

There significant improvement has been seen in the pregnancy outcome, in the introduction of many ovarian stimulation protocols. The use of pituitary down regulation protocol gives better result in the quality and number of oocytes which leads to more Embryos and more Embryos to be freezed for transfer to the patient uterus latter. From literature we found that pregnancy outcome in minimal stimulation protocol gives almost the same result, especially in advanced patients age with less side effect. In our study on 1652 patients who admitted for ICSI and started their ovarian stimulation by HMG or FSH without pituitary down regulation protocol. This protocol gives the pregnancy outcome same as in the other protocols with less side effects and low coast.
Quantum Astrophysics

The vision that the quantum dynamics for dark matter is behind the formation of the visible structures suggests that the formation of the astrophysical structures could be understood as a consequence of Bohr rules. Since space-time surfaces are 4-surfaces in H = M × CP2, Bohr rules can be formulated in a manner which is general coordinate invariant and Lorentz invariant. The rules are actually for dark matter structures obeying Zn symmetry for very large n characterizing the symmetry of field bodies associated with the structure in question. One can say that orbit becomes particle at the level of dark matter. Circles and spokes representing the dark matter structures, gravi-electric flux quanta, and also circles representing gravi-magnetic flux tubes orthogonal to the quantization plane become basic building blocks of dark matter structures. Simplest of them are rings and cart-wheel like structures. The subgroups of Zn can act as approximate symmetries of visible matter and if one accepts ruler-and-compass hypothesis very powerful predictions follow. Concerning Bohr orbitology in astrophysical length scales, the basic observation is that in the case of a straight cosmic string creating a gravitational potential of form v 1/ρ Bohr quantization does not pose any conditions on the radii of the circular orbits so that a continuous mass distribution is possible. This situation is obviously exceptional. If one however accepts the TGD based vision that the very early cosmology was cosmic string dominated and that elementary particles were generated in the decay of cosmic strings, this situation might have prevailed at very early times. If so, the differentiation of a continuous density of ordinary matter to form the observed astrophysical structures would correspond to an approach to a stationary situation governed by Bohr rules for dark matter and in the first approximation one could neglect the intermediate stages. This general picture is applied by considering some simple models for astrophysical systems involving planar structures. There are several universal predictions. Velocity spectrum is universal and only the Bohr radii depend on the choice of mass distribution. The inclusion of cosmic string implies that the system associated with the central mass is finite. Quite generally dark parts of astrophysical objects have shell like structure like atoms as do also ring like structures. p-Adic length scale hypothesis provides a manner to obtain a realistic model for the central objects meaning a structure consisting of shells coming as half octaves of the basic radius: this obviously relates to Titius-Bode law. Also a simple model for planetary rings is obtained. Bohr orbits do not follow cosmic expansion which is obtained only in the average sense if phase transitions reducing the value of basic parameter v0 occur at preferred values of cosmic time. This explains
CORPORATE ENVIRONMENTAL DISCLOSURE AND ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE OF COMPANIES IN THE LIBYAN MANUFACTURING SECTOR

This paper examines the influence of Corporate Environmental Disclosure (CED) on economic performance in Libya. A representative group of the Libyan accounting community was surveyed to provide their views and perceptions of CED. The study was conducted on 8 largest companies operating in the manufacturing sector in Libya. A survey questionnaire was used to collect data. The results indicate that there is a significant influence of company's environmental disclosure on economic performance, suggesting that, the better the economic performance of a company, the greater its social responsibility. The paper is based on a small sample of manufacturing firms. However, findings will bring efficient contributions to the other studies dealing with the accounting harmonization. The majority of studies on CED are still embedded in the economic and organisational contexts of developed world. This research aims to address this gap by focusing on the CED framework of developing nations such as Libya.
Anemia in patients with high-risk acute coronary syndromes admitted to Intensive Cardiac Care Units

Background Little information exists about the role of anemia in patients with acute coronary syndromes (ACS) admitted to Intensive Cardiac Care Units (ICCU). The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of anemia and its impact on management and outcomes in this clinical setting. Methods All consecutive patients admitted to eight different ICCUs with diagnosis of non-ST segment elevation ACS (NSTEACS) were prospectively included. Anemia was defined as hemoglobin < 130 g/L in men and < 120 g/L in women. The association between anemia and mortality or readmission at six months was assessed by the Cox regression method. Results A total of 629 patients were included. Mean age was 66.6 years. A total of 197 patients (31.3%) had anemia. Coronary angiography was performed in most patients (96.2%). Patients with anemia were significantly older, with a higher prevalence of comorbidities, poorer left ventricle ejection fraction and higher GRACE score values. Patients with anemia underwent less often coronary angiography, but underwent more often intraaortic counterpulsation, non-invasive mechanical ventilation and renal replacement therapies. Both ICCU and hospital stay were significantly longer in patients with anemia. Both the incidence of mortality (HR = 3.36, 95% CI: 1.43–7.85, P = 0.001) and the incidence of mortality/readmission were significantly higher in patients with anemia (HR = 2.80, 95% CI: 2.03–3.86, P = 0.001). After adjusting for confounders, the association between anemia and mortality/readmission remained significant (P = 0.031). Conclusions Almost one of three NSTEACS patients admitted to ICCU had anemia. Most patients underwent coronary angiography. Anemia was independently associated to poorer outcomes at 6 months.
Directional Measures of Postural Sway Applied to the Diagnostic of Postural Stability in the Population of Adult Women with Different Body Mass Index

Neuromechanical control of human erect posture is commonly modeled as an inverted pendulum which dynamics depend on the body's anthropometry, particularly on body height and weight. From a perspective of neuromechanics, neuromuscular control in individuals with excessive body weight is primarily determined by the universal requirement for optimization of the energetic cost of movement. This forces elimination from the behavior of the most energy-consuming movements. Additional reason for reduced motor activity in individuals with excessive body weight might be the associated decline of postural stability. This problem becomes an inspiration for the present research.
Locus of Control at Work: Does Age Matter?

Locus of control is one of the most relevant and important concepts that affects outcomes in modern organizations. It is psychologically connected to how we cope with stress and our overall well-being. Research has shown that as a construct locus of control, specifically whether a person displays an internal or external orientation, plays a substantial role in a person’s attitudes and beliefs in the workplace (Spector, 1988). A person’s age is also interrelated to how they perceive life events. A study was done with a total of 871 participants who were recruited through the use of convenience sampling in order to examine whether there was a significant difference in work locus of control between age groups. Participants completed a survey answering a series of demographic questions as well as several Likert scale type questions measuring a group of nine constructs. The main instrument used for this study was the 8-item abbreviated version of Spector’s Work Locus of Control Scale (WLCS) (1988). Results indicated no significant difference in work locus of control among the four different age groups. The findings of this study have implications for employee performance and HR practices.
A novel bioactive haemodialysis system using dissolved dihydrogen (H 2 ) produced by water electrolysis: a clinical trial

Background. Chronic inflammation in haemodialysis (HD) patients indicates a poor prognosis. However, therapeutic approaches are limited. Hydrogen gas (H 2 ) ameliorates oxidative and inflammatory injuries to organs in animal models. We developed an HD system using a dialysis solution with high levels of dissolved H 2 and examined the clinical effects. Methods. Dialysis solution with H 2 (average of 48 ppb) was produced by mixing dialysate concentrates and reverse osmosis water containing dissolved H 2 generated by a water electrolysis technique. Subjects comprised 21 stable patients on standard HD who were switched to the test HD for 6 months at three sessions a week. dialysis patients mmHg 21%; months, 62%; P < 0.05). Changes in dialysis parameters were minimal, while significant decreases in levels of plasma monocyte chemoattractant protein 1 ( P < 0.01) and myeloperoxidase ( P < 0.05) were identified. Conclusions. Adding H 2 to haemodialysis solutions ame-liorated inflammatory reactions and improved BP control. This system could offer a novel therapeutic option for control of uraemia. Abstract Background. Circulating fibroblast growth factor-23 (FGF23) promotes renal phosphate excretion and is mark-edly increased in patients with chronic kidney disease. High serum FGF23 is associated with cardiovascular risk factors and was recently identified as a predictor of total mortality in haemodialysis patients. Herein, our aim was to evaluate the relation between FGF23 and mortality, in-cluding the impact of gender and cardiovascular disease (CVD), in a Swedish cohort of ‘ incident ’ dialysis patients. Methods. Two hundred and twenty-nine incident dialysis patients (149 males; mean age 55 years) were included. Serum intact FGF23, calcium, phosphate, S-albumin, parathyroid hormone, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein and interleukin-6 were measured at baseline. Cardiovascular disease was defined as clinical symptoms and/or a history of CVD. Results. (29%) levels positively correlated to in subgroup analysis of level above in models 95% 4.60, P = support that the impact of FGF23 on mortality may be modified by gender and CVD and, as previously shown, is blunted in the set-ting of pronounced hyperphosphatemia.
How Much is Privacy Worth Around the World and Across Platforms?

Data privacy has become a controversial policy issue around the world. The EU passed strict privacy rules, the state of California has rules coming into effect in 2020, and the U.S. FTC and Congress are pursuing privacy agendas. However, limited empirical evidence illuminates how much consumers value privacy or how their valuations vary across or within countries and contexts. In this paper, we measure individuals’ valuation of online privacy across a wide range of countries and data types. The online information we consider includes personal information on finances, biometrics, location, networks, communications, and web browsing. The countries we analyze include the United States, Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Argentina, and Germany. We conduct these measures using carefully designed, internationally distributed, discrete choice surveys. These surveys allow us to measure tradeoffs across these aspects of online privacy, and importantly, allow us to make relative comparisons of these tradeoffs across many countries. We find that people in Germany place the highest value on privacy compared to the U.S. and Latin American countries. Across countries, people place the highest value on keeping financial and biometric information private — balance and fingerprint data in particular. Germany’s status as the country with highest value for privacy is driven largely by extremely strong preferences for keeping financial data private. German respondents were willing to share bank balance information in exchange for monthly payments of $15.43 and cash withdrawal information for $13.42/month. People had to be paid the least for permission to receive ads, meaning people are much less concerned about ads than any of the other types of data we explored. Indeed, in Argentina, Colombia, and Mexico, the average respondent was willing to pay small amounts to receive ads, suggesting that people in those countries like receiving ads. Location privacy also turned out to be among the least valuable to people in every country. We also find that women value privacy more than men do across platforms, data types, and countries and older people value privacy more than younger people. We find no real differences across income in privacy preferences. These results are largely robust to a randomly controlled treatment, where a group of survey respondents received a written statement about the value of data collection by these entities. Preferences for privacy are generally unaffected by such a prompt, suggesting that their values of only privacy are reasonably stable and not easily influenced.
On musical identities, social pharmacology and timing in music therapy

How do antidepressants or recreational drugs influence the music experience in the context of therapy or during music performance and listening? Using drugs to enhance performance we can describe a complementary interaction between lifestyle, personal identity and drugs, influencing musical identities in creative processes. Treating depressed clients with individual psychodynamic music therapy (MT) worked well with those also taking anti-depressants, but also initiated a process in which the need for medication started to decrease. While antidepressants may help to keep anxiety, energy loss and rumination within limits, MT induces a process in which emotional limitations are likely to become the target of change, mediated via work on the musical identity of the client, as exemplified in a case example Research on chronobiological mood bias suggests that chronobiological conditions, drug profiles and musical identity should be taken into account. This chronobiological conditions, drug profiles and musical identity into account may help to identify performance peaks and optimise treatment schedules.
The tax paradox and weak tax neutrality Autores:

We introduce the concept of weak tax neutrality which establishes that the relationship between the tax rate and the user cost of capital may be non-monotonic. We show that most existing corporate tax systems allow for weak neutrality. That is, given the tax allowances permitted by these systems, it is possible that neutrality may arise for at least one positive corporate tax rate. Moreover, we show the practical relevance of weak neutrality in realistic situations where there are several asset types and heterogeneous levels of firms’ debt ratios.
Depth-average Estimation of 1D Subsurface Resistivity from MT Data in Los Humeros Geothermal Field, Mexico

Generally, the first stage in the interpretation of magnetotelluric data consists of the construction of 1D resistivity models, i.e., subsurface resistivity versus depth profiles. A commonly used approach is to estimate 1D models with minimal structural complexity, frequently applying a data inversion scheme that uses the Occam ́s razor principle. This type of algorithms uses the measured data (apparent resistivity and phase) to produce a simple distribution of the subsurface resistivity versus depth. As the solution is not unique, a given model is just one of a whole class of models that may fit the measurements equally well. Besides the instability inherent in the inverse problem, the construction of models is based on measured data that are both inaccurate and insufficient. Therefore, it is worthwhile to have some procedure to make statistical inferences about the goodness of the models, in terms of their variance and depth-resolution. In this paper, we apply a known simple method to estimate depth averages of the subsurface resistivity as well as their uncertainty and resolution. This approach uses only the apparent resistivity data and makes no other assumption. We applied this scheme to magnetotelluric data measured in Los Humeros geothermal field, in Mexico, within the frame of the GEMex project. Our estimations are shown together with the minimal-structure Occam-type models obtained from the same data set, in such a way that we can appreciate the 1D resistivity model along with the variance of the subsurface resistivity at different depths. This abstract presents results of the GEMex Project, funded by the Mexican Energy Sustainability Fund CONACYT-SENER, Project 2015-04-268074 and by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programe under grant agreement No. 727550. More information can be found on the GEMex Website: http://www.gemex-h2020.eu.
UNIPOLAR VERSUS BIPOLAR HEMIARTHROPLASTY FOR ELDERLY PATIENTS WITH FEMORAL NECK FRACTURES: A META-ANALYSIS

Aims: To evaluate the effectiveness of hemiarthroplasty for elder with femoral neck fractures. Materials and methods: Randomized Controlled Trials and Controlled Clinical Trails were identified from corresponding database. Results: Bipolar group has advantage at the hip mobility in 6 months postoperatively. Conclusions: Bipolar hemiarthroplasty can improve the hip function better.
Health Problems of the Elderly Population in Some Selected Urban Slums of Dhaka City

Aging is universal and it is inescapable, beginning at birth, which should be regarded as a normal biological process leading to functional deterioration, vulnerability and ultimately culminating to extinction of life. Population ageing is becoming a major concern both in the developed and developing countries. Many health problems are known to increase with age and this demographic trend may lead to an increase in the absolute number of health conditions in this population. To identify health problems of elderly population and assess their socioeconomic condition. This descriptive cross sectional study was carried out over 531 elderly people selected purposively from some urban slums of Dhaka city during July to December, 2013. Each eligible participant was informed about the purpose and procedure of the study. Trained interviewers collected information by face to face interview using a pre-tested questionnaire having both structured and open ended questions. Majority 389 (73.3%) were from the age group of 60-69 years. The mean age of the respondents was found to be 65 years; (SD±7.048). Majority of them were male 68.7%, illiterate 78.8%, employed as small businessman 26% and belonged to joint family 75.0%. Their average monthly income was 4747.02 ± 2796.368 Taka. About 272(51.2%) respondents were dependent on other earning family members. A significantly higher proportion of women suffered from diabetes, hearing impairment, vertigo, joint pain, depression, while chest pain, chronic cough, difficulty in micturation, anxiety were observed more in elderly men. The study sheds new light which may help to provide adequate guideline for the senior citizens to overcome old age health problems. As there is a rapid increase in the number of elderly population, there is an urgent need to develop affordable and accessible health care services. J Bangladesh Coll Phys Surg 2015; 33(4): 202-206