Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Long-Term Follow-Up of Anterior Spinal Fusion for Thoracolumbar/Lumbar Curves in Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis.

STUDY DESIGN Retrospective patient series analysis with update of long-term data. OBJECTIVE To define the long-term prognosis of the thoracolumbar/lumbar correction after selective Anterior Spinal Fusion (ASF) in Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis (AIS). SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA The ASF is a well-described procedure for the treatment of AIS. The correction reliability over time, the consequences in adjacent spinal levels and patient's quality of life are fundamental for the characterization of AIS treatment. METHODS 107 patients were submitted to single-rod ASF for thoracolumbar/lumbar (ThL/L) AIS between 1993 and 2016 in a single-surgeon experience. 75 were available for final follow-up evaluation 9 years ±4 (2-23) after surgery. A clinical and sequential radiographic evaluations were performed. RESULTS The mean age at surgery was 16 years ± 2.33 (14-20) and 94 (87%) were females. The mean final follow-up of the 75 patients available was 9 years ± 4 (2-23). 65 patients had a Lenke type 5C curve and 10 had a type 6C curve. The mean values of the SRS-22 questionnaire in Lenke 5C was 92 ± 9 (71-109) and in Lenke 6C 90.3 ± 9 (75-107). In Lenke 5C group, the mean preoperative ThL Cobb angle was 38.4°±9.3 (21-60) and the postoperative was 5.9°±4.5 (0-18; p<0.001) being similar at the final follow-up (p>0.05). In Lenke 6C group, the mean preoperative ThL Cobb angle was 58.6°±13.9 (40-90) and the postoperative ThLCobb was 22.6°±14.5 (5-48, p<0.001) being similar at the final follow-up (p>0.05). The mean preoperative Thoracic (Th) Cobb angle was 39°±7.6 (30-50), the postoperative was 30.6°±10.1 (14-49, p<0.008) and in the final follow-up was 29.3°±10.7 (11-48, p<0.011). CONCLUSIONS ASF is a safe procedure in the treatment of ThL/L with good long-term results and high rates of satisfaction among patients with AIS Lenke type 5C. The partial correction was frequent in Lenke type 6C despite the absence of progression in the non-instrumented curves. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE 4.
Synthesis of iron oxide nanoparticles for hyperthermia application: effect of ultrasonic irradiation assisted co-precipitation route

In this research, maghemite (γ-Fe2O3) and magnetite (Fe3O4) nanoparticles (NPs) were synthesised by co-precipitation route with the aid of ultrasonic irradiation. The morphology, crystallite size, particle size, and structural analysis of magnetic NPs were investigated by transmission electron microscope (TEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Thermal properties of magnetic NPs were also investigated by specific loss power (SLP) measurements. The X-ray diffraction patterns determined the formation of maghemite and magnetite phases. The results obtained from the TEM analysis indicated that the mean particle size of maghemite and magnetite NPs was 20 ± 0.2 nm and 22 ± 0.3 nm, respectively. Moreover, the crystallite size was calculated by modified Scherrer method. Vibration sample magnetometer (VSM) was used to evaluate magnetic behaviour of the synthesised NPs. The magnetic saturation for both γ-Fe2O3 and Fe3O4 was 44 emu g−1 and 55 emu g−1, and coercivity field was 2 Oe and 70 Oe, respectively. The SLP values for synthesised NPs were significant, and the temperature of these magnetic NPs reached 44 °C–47 °C within 10 min in the existence of an external magnetic field with an intensity of about 6 kA/m. This temperature range seems to be appropriate for hyperthermia application and destruction of cancerous cells. In addition, the size of these magnetic NPs was less than 50 nm, which facilitates better penetration of these NPs into the cancerous tumours.
Strong triaxial coupling and anomalous Poisson effect in collagen networks

Significance Networks of collagen fibers are the primary mechanical component of the extracellular matrix of many soft tissues. In common pathological and physiological conditions, collagen networks experience a combination of multiaxial and shear deformation modes. Here, we show that the fibrous nature of the extracellular matrix leads to strong coupling between these modes due to bending, buckling, and stretching of the fibers. We have developed a 3D framework to describe the unusual nonlinear mechanics of these networks, in particular, the abnormally large lateral contraction and concomitant stiffening when stretched. Our model can guide improved design of engineered tissues for regenerative medicine and identify the mechanisms of pathological stiffening of extracellular matrices and their interactions with cells in cancer and fibrosis. While cells within tissues generate and sense 3D states of strain, the current understanding of the mechanics of fibrous extracellular matrices (ECMs) stems mainly from uniaxial, biaxial, and shear tests. Here, we demonstrate that the multiaxial deformations of fiber networks in 3D cannot be inferred solely based on these tests. The interdependence of the three principal strains gives rise to anomalous ratios of biaxial to uniaxial stiffness between 8 and 9 and apparent Poisson’s ratios larger than 1. These observations are explained using a microstructural network model and a coarse-grained constitutive framework that predicts the network Poisson effect and stress–strain responses in uniaxial, biaxial, and triaxial modes of deformation as a function of the microstructural properties of the network, including fiber mechanics and pore size of the network. Using this theoretical approach, we found that accounting for the Poisson effect leads to a 100-fold increase in the perceived elastic stiffness of thin collagen samples in extension tests, reconciling the seemingly disparate measurements of the stiffness of collagen networks using different methods. We applied our framework to study the formation of fiber tracts induced by cellular forces. In vitro experiments with low-density networks showed that the anomalous Poisson effect facilitates higher densification of fibrous tracts, associated with the invasion of cancerous acinar cells. The approach developed here can be used to model the evolving mechanics of ECM during cancer invasion and fibrosis.
Initial Mass Function Variation in Two Elliptical Galaxies Using Near-infrared Tracers

Using integral field spectroscopy, we demonstrate that gravity-sensitive absorption features in the zJ band (0.9–1.35 μm) can constrain the low-mass stellar initial mass function (IMF) in the cores of two elliptical galaxies, M85 and M87. Compared to the visible bands, the near-infrared (NIR) is more sensitive to light from low-mass dwarf stars, whose relative importance is the primary subject of the debate over IMF variations in nearby galaxies. Our analysis compares the observed spectra to the latest stellar population synthesis models by employing two different methods: equivalent widths and spectral fitting. We find that the IMF slopes in M85 are similar to the canonical Milky Way IMF with a median IMF-mismatch parameter αK = 1.26. In contrast, we find that the IMF in M87 is steeper than a Salpeter IMF with αK = 2.77. The derived stellar population parameters, including the IMF slopes, are consistent with those from recent results in the visible bands based on spectroscopic and kinematic techniques. Certain elemental abundances, e.g., Na and Fe, have dramatic effects on the IMF-sensitive features and therefore the derived IMF slopes. We show evidence for a high [Na/H] ∼ 0.65 dex in the core of M85 from two independent Na i absorption features. The high Na abundance may be the result of a recent galactic merger involving M85. This suggests that including [Na/H] in the stellar population model parameters is critical for constraining the IMF slopes in M85. These results confirm the viability of using NIR absorption features to investigate IMF variation in nearby galaxies.
Examining the Preliminary Effects of a Summer Social Emotional Learning Program for Young Children

This quasi-experimental pilot study examined the use of the Preschool Promoting Alternative Thinking Strategies (PATHS) curriculum during the summer prior to kindergarten entry for preschool-age children. The purpose of the study was to examine if participation in the summer Preschool PATHS curriculum would lead to increased levels of social–emotional competence for the participating children, particularly as they prepared to transition into formal school settings. Preliminary results of pilot data indicate positive outcomes for preschool-age children participating in the intervention. These preliminary results suggest that the Preschool PATHS curriculum could potentially be delivered immediately prior to school enter with the potential for promoting competencies and strengths to put young children on a path toward a positive trajectory as they start school. Limitations of the study are discussed as well as practical implications and future research needs.
Ego- and Allocentric Visuospatial Neglect: Dissociations, Prevalence, and Laterality in Acute Stroke

Objective: Visuospatial neglect, whereby patients are unable to attend to stimuli on their contralesional side, is a neuropsychological condition commonly experienced after stroke. We aimed to investigate whether egocentric and allocentric neglect are functionally dissociable and differ in prevalence and laterality in the early poststroke period. Method: A consecutive sample of 366 acute stroke patients completed the Broken Hearts test from the Oxford Cognitive Screen. We evaluated the association between egocentric and allocentric neglect and contrasted the prevalence and severity of left-sided versus right-sided neglect. Results: Clinically, we found a double dissociation between ego- and allocentric neglect, with 50% of the neglect patients showing only egocentric neglect and 25% only allocentric neglect. Left-sided egocentric neglect was more prevalent and more severe than was right-sided egocentric neglect, though right-sided neglect was still highly prevalent in the acute stroke sample (35%). Left-sided allocentric neglect was more severe but not more prevalent than was right-sided allocentric neglect. At 6 months, in a representative subsample of 160 patients, we found neglect recovery rates to be 81% and 74% for egocentric and allocentric neglect, respectively. Conclusion: Dissociable ego- and allocentric neglect symptoms support a heterogeneous account of visuospatial neglect, which was shown to be highly prevalent for both the left and the right hemifields.
Hydrodynamic forces on assemblies of non-spherical particles: orientation and voidage effects

This work provides a recipe for creating drag, lift and torque closures for static assemblies of axisymmetric, non-spherical particles. Apart from Reynolds number $Re$ and solids volume fraction $\epsilon_s$, we propose four additional parameters to characterize the flow through non-spherical particle assemblies. Two parameters consider the mutual orientations of particles (the orientation tensor eigenvalues $S_1$ and $S_2$) and two angles represent the flow direction (polar and azimuthal angles $\alpha$ and $\beta$). Interestingly, we observe that the hydrodynamic forces on the particles are independent of the mutual particle orientations. Rather, the most important parameter representing the particle configuration itself is the incident angle $\phi$ of the individual particles with respect to the incoming flow. Moreover, we observe that our earlier finding of sine-squared scaling of drag for isolated particles (Sanjeevi & Padding 2017) holds on average even for a multiparticle system in both the viscous and inertial regimes. Similarly, we observe that the average lift for a multiparticle system follows sine-cosine scaling, as is observed for isolated particles. Such findings are very helpful since the pressure drop of a packed bed or porous media can be computed just with the knowledge of orientation distribution of particles and their drag at $\phi=0^\circ$ and $\phi=90^\circ$ for a given $Re$ and $\epsilon_s$. With the identified dependent parameters, we propose drag, lift and torque closures for multiparticle systems.
Stock Characteristics and Stock Returns: A Skeptic’s Look at the Cross Section of Expected Returns

The correlation between stock characteristics and the cross section of stock returns plays a central role in empirical implementations of modern asset pricing models and has important implications for investment management. This remains true whether the correlation is due to investor preferences regarding the characteristics directly or whether the characteristics are proxies for state variables, the risk of which investors are attempting to hedge. This article asks what we know about the relation between these characteristics and the cross section of returns. The skeptic’s answer is, not much. A combination of lack of persistence in the characteristics and problems caused by model uncertainty, data snooping, and nonstationarity means that our knowledge is sketchy at best. Investors should be forewarned when considering any strategies such as smart beta that are premised on the correlation between characteristics and the cross section of returns. TOPICS: Portfolio management/multiasset allocation, performance measurement Key Findings • Many investment strategies, including smart beta, are premised on the existence of predictable correlations between stock characteristics and expected returns. • The skeptic’s view is that those correlations are not predictable owing to a combination of lack of persistence, model uncertainty, data snooping, and nonstationarity. • Empirical results and a review of the published literature offer support for the skeptic’s view and serves as a warning for investors.
Existence and uniqueness of positive solutions for nonlinear fractional mixed problems

Abstract This paper is devoted to study the existence and uniqueness of solutions of a one parameter family of nonlinear Riemann–Liouville fractional differential equations with mixed boundary value conditions. An exhaustive study of the sign of the related Green’s function is carried out. Under suitable assumptions on the asymptotic behavior of the nonlinear part of the equation at zero and at infinity, and by application of the fixed point theory of compact operators defined in suitable cones, it is proved that there exists at least one solution of the considered problem. Moreover, the method of lower and upper solutions is developed and the existence of solutions is deduced by a combination of both techniques. In particular cases, the Banach contraction principle is used to ensure the uniqueness of solutions.
Experiences With Video Consultations in Specialized Palliative Home-Care: Qualitative Study of Patient and Relative Perspectives

Background The work of specialized palliative care (SPC) teams is often challenged by substantial amounts of time spent driving to and from patients’ homes and long distances between the patients and the hospitals. Objective Video consultations may be a solution for real-time SPC at home. The aim of this study was to explore the use of video consultations, experienced by patients and their relatives, as part of SPC at home. Methods This explorative and qualitative study included palliative care patients in different stages and relatives to use video consultations as a part of their SPC between October 2016 and March 2017. Data collection took place in the patients’ homes and consisted of participant observations followed by semistructured interviews. Inclusion criteria consisted of patients with the need for SPC, aged more than 18 years, who agreed to participate, and relatives wanting to participate in the video consultations. Data were analyzed with Giorgi’s descriptive phenomenological methodology. Results A number of patients (n=11) and relatives (n=3) were included and, in total, 86 video consultations were conducted. Patients participating varied in time from 1 month to 6 months, and the number of video consultations per patient varied from 3 to 18. The use of video consultations led to a situation where patients, despite life-threatening illnesses and technical difficulties, took an active role. In addition, relatives were able to join on equal terms, which increased active involvement. The patients had different opinions on when to initiate the use of video consultations in SPC; it was experienced as optional at the initiating stage as well as the final stage of illness. If the video consultations included multiple participants from the SPC team, the use of video consultations could be difficult to complete without interruptions. Conclusions Video consultations in SPC for home-based patients are feasible and facilitate a strengthened involvement and communication between patients, relatives, and SPC team members.
Precise optical timing of PSR J1023+0038, the first millisecond pulsar detected with Aqueye+ in Asiago

We report the first detection of an optical millisecond pulsar with the fast photon counter Aqueye+ in Asiago. This is an independent confirmation of the detection of millisecond pulsations from PSR J1023+0038 obtained with SiFAP at the Telescopio Nazionale Galileo. We observed the transitional millisecond pulsar PSR J1023+0038 with Aqueye+ mounted at the Copernicus telescope in January 2018. Highly significant pulsations were detected. The rotational period is in agreement with the value extrapolated from the X-ray ephemeris, while the time of passage at the ascending node is shifted by $11.55 \pm 0.08$ s from the value predicted using the orbital period from the X-rays. An independent optical timing solution is derived over a baseline of a few days, that has an accuracy of $\sim 0.007$ in pulse phase ($\sim 12$ $\mu$s in time). This level of precision is needed to derive an accurate coherent timing solution for the pulsar and to search for possible phase shifts between the optical and X-ray pulses using future simultaneous X-ray and optical observations.
Robot for health data acquisition among older adults: a pilot randomised controlled cross-over trial

Background /Objectives Healthcare professionals (HCP) are confronted with an increased demand for assessments of important health status measures, such as patient-reported outcome measurements (PROM), and the time this requires. The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness and acceptability of using an HCP robot assistant, and to test the hypothesis that a robot can autonomously acquire PROM data from older adults. Design A pilot randomised controlled cross-over study where a social robot and a nurse administered three PROM questionnaires with a total of 52 questions. Setting A clinical outpatient setting with community-dwelling older adults. Participants Forty-two community-dwelling older adults (mean age: 77.1 years, SD: 5.7 years, 45% female). Measurements The primary outcome was the task time required for robot–patient and nurse–patient interactions. Secondary outcomes were the similarity of the data and the percentage of robot interactions completed autonomously. The questionnaires resulted in two values (robot and nurse) for three indexes of frailty, well-being and resilience. The data similarity was determined by comparing these index values using Bland-Altman plots, Cohen’s kappa (κ) and intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC). Acceptability was assessed using questionnaires. Results The mean robot interview duration was 16.57 min (SD=1.53 min), which was not significantly longer than the nurse interviews (14.92 min, SD=8.47 min; p=0.19). The three Bland-Altman plots showed moderate to substantial agreement between the frailty, well-being and resilience scores (κ=0.61, 0.50 and 0.45, and ICC=0.79, 0.86 and 0.66, respectively). The robot autonomously completed 39 of 42 interviews (92.8%). Conclusion Social robots may effectively and acceptably assist HCPs by interviewing older adults.
A novel watermarking algorithm for three-dimensional point-cloud models based on vertex curvature

A new blind watermarking scheme for three-dimensional point-cloud models is proposed based on vertex curvature to achieve an appropriate trade-off between transparency and robustness. The root mean square curvature of local set of every vertex is first calculated for the three-dimensional point-cloud model and then the vertices with larger root mean square curvature are used to carry the watermarking information; the vertices with smaller root mean square curvature are exploited to establish the synchronization relation between the watermark embedding and extraction. The three-dimensional point-cloud model is divided into ball rings, and the watermarking information is inserted by modifying the radial radii of vertices within ball rings. Those vertices taking part in establishing the synchronization relation do not carry the watermarking information; therefore, the synchronization relation is not affected by the embedded watermark. Experimental results show the proposed method outperforms other well-known three-dimensional point-cloud model watermarking methods in terms of imperceptibility and robustness, especially for against geometric attack.
Conceptualizing Fixed-Interval Praise Delivery

This article provides a conceptual framework for using fixed-interval praise delivery in the educational setting. Fixed-interval praise delivery can be conceptualized as an antecedent-based strategy that disrupts the natural behavior to contingency relationship in a four-term contingency model (Establishing operation–Antecedent–Behavior–Consequence). Historically, teachers are trained to deliver praise as a consequence-based practice (i.e., contingently). This article describes how teachers can also use praise on a fixed interval as an antecedent-based practice. When praise is delivered on a fixed-interval schedule, educators directly manipulate the level of praise delivered to maintain or increase appropriate student behavior. Using praise as an antecedent-based strategy has the potential to establish and maintain high-quality student–teacher relationships, which positively impacts student behavior. Practical, applied examples and discussion of fixed-interval praise delivery are provided.
Adjoint-based SQP method with block-wise quasi-Newton Jacobian updates for nonlinear optimal control

Nonlinear model predictive control (NMPC) generally requires the solution of a non-convex dynamic optimization problem at each sampling instant under strict timing constraints, based on a set of differential equations that can often be stiff and/or that may include implicit algebraic equations. This paper provides a local convergence analysis for the recently proposed adjoint-based sequential quadratic programming (SQP) algorithm that is based on a block-structured variant of the two-sided rank-one (TR1) quasi-Newton update formula to efficiently compute Jacobian matrix approximations in a sparsity preserving fashion. A particularly efficient algorithm implementation is proposed in case an implicit integration scheme is used for discretization of the optimal control problem, in which matrix factorization and matrix-matrix operations can be avoided entirely. The convergence analysis results as well as the computational performance of the proposed optimization algorithm are illustrated for two simulation case studies of NMPC.