Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Infecções por Acinetobacter baumannii em adultos admitidos em unidades de terapia intensiva (UTIs) de Goiânia e Aparecida de Goiânia

O Acinetobacter baumannii (Ab) tem importante papel nas infeccoes relacionadas a assistencia a saude e apresenta emergencia rapida e global de cepas multidrogarresistentes (MDR), atingindo varios paises. No Brasil, o Ab e responsavel por surtos de infeccoes em unidades de terapia intensiva (UTIs) desde 1996, com elevadas taxas de resistencia aos antimicrobianos. Esse estudo foi delineado como uma coorte descritiva de pacientes adultos infectados por Ab no periodo de junho a dezembro de 2010. Avaliou o perfil clinico e epidemiologico das infeccoes causadas por Ab e analisou geneticamente, por eletroforese em gel de campo pulsado (PFGE), os isolados clinicos destes pacientes em cinco UTIs de Goiânia e Aparecida de Goiânia. Foram identificados 64 casos de pacientes infectados ou colonizados por Ab no periodo do estudo, 84 amostras de cultura positivas para Ab e taxa global de infeccao de 4,8 %. A frequencia de infeccoes por UTIs foi de: 10% na UTI-1; 4,3% na UTI-2; 7,8% na UTI-3 e 1,3% na UTI-4 e 7,5% na UTI-5. A media de idade dos pacientes foi de 53,2 anos (dp=19) sendo 59,4% (38) do sexo masculino. Infeccao sintomatica ocorreu em 90,6% dos casos. O sitio de infeccao mais frequente foi o pulmonar com 53,1%, seguido de infeccao do sitio cirurgico 10,9% e trato urinario 7,8%. As doencas de base mais comuns foram neoplasia (34,4%) e AIDS (17,2%). Dos pacientes com infeccao pelo Ab, 98,4% receberam antibacteriano previo. Os antibacterianos mais usados foram: cefalosporinas 71,4% (45); carbapenemicos 50,8% (32), glicopeptideos 46,0% (29) e fluorquinolonas 33,3% (21). Dos procedimentos invasivos realizados previamente a infeccao pelo Ab, cateter vascular central e sondagem vesical de demora (93,7%) foram os mais comuns. A letalidade global foi de 79,7% (51/64), e a relacionada as infeccoes pelo Ab foi de 67,2% (39/58). Avaliando os resultados de cultura positiva, a resistencia aos carbapenemicos foi de 73,4%, a ampicilina/sulbactam de 60,9% (39/64), amicacina de 20,3% (13/64), polimixinas de 6,2% (4/64) e tigeciclina de 3,1% (2/64). A analise por PFGE das isolados bacterianos dos pacientes (56), demonstrou a disseminacao clonal de Ab dentro das UTIs, e entre as diferentes UTIs, com identificacao de um surto por Ab MDR entre quatro das cinco UTIs investigadas no periodo do estudo, envolvendo 12 pacientes. Constatamos alto indice de Ab MDR e alta letalidade nas UTIs avaliadas, com necessidade de intensificar o controle deste agente, alem de racionalizacao do uso de antimicrobianos nas UTIs.
Subverting the Organizational Cartel: Explaining Cross-Party Leadership Selection in U.S. State Houses

In the U.S. House of Representatives, the majority party constitutes an organizational cartel that monopolizes the selection of chamber leaders. But in state legislatures, that cartel power is sometimes circumvented by a bipartisan bloc that outvotes the leadership preferences of a majority of the majority party. Drawing from an original data set of instances of cross-party organizational coalitions at the state level, I use statistical analysis to test various hypotheses for when these coalitions are more likely to form. The analysis reveals that party ideology does not adequately explain the violation of these cartels; rather, violations depend on the costs associated with keeping the party unified and the benefits that come from selecting the chamber’s top leadership post. This finding underscores the potential vulnerability of organizational cartels and suggests that governing parties are strategic when deciding how fiercely to defend their cartel power.
A 1.02-pJ/b 20.83-Gb/s/Wire USR Transceiver Using CNRZ-5 in 16-nm FinFET

An energy-efficient (1.02 pJ/b) and high-speed (20.83 Gb/s/wire, 417 Gb/s/mm) link for ultra-short reach (USR) applications (up to 6-dB channel loss at the Nyquist frequency of 12.5 GHz) is presented. Correlated non-return to zero (CNRZ) signaling with low sensitivity to inter-symbol interference (ISI) has been developed to improve the link budget. In addition to high pin efficiency (5b6w: 5 bits over 6 wires), the proposed signaling method provides very good resistance against common-mode and crosstalk noise sources, allowing for dense routing. A very wide-band (1.3 GHz) jitter tracking mechanism has been employed to reduce the sensitivity of the system to random and deterministic jitter and relax design constraints on transmitter. A slicer with low kick-back noise and a circuit topology well matched to the continuous-time linear equalizer (CTLE) has been designed to provide both high input sensitivity and Process, supply Voltage, and Temperature (PVT) variations tolerance. The link operates with more than 22-ps (42.5% UI) eye opening at BER = 1E-15. Calibration loops are running in background for quadrature mismatch error correction, clock and data alignment (CDA), and offset removal.
Adverse events following immunization with pentavalent vaccine in a tertiary care hospital

Background: Immunizations currently save 3 million lives per year throughout the world and is one of the most costeffective health interventions. The Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunizations (GAVI) and WHO recommended the use of pentavalent to replace the DPT vaccine in developing countries. Vaccines related most side effects are mild and non-serious. Surveillance of adverse events following immunization will enable us to monitor the safety of immunization programs and thereby contribute to validating the immunization program. The main aim of this study is to analyze all suspected adverse events in children reported for pentavalent vaccination. Methods: A prospective, observational epidemiological study was conducted in the department of Paediatrics OPD at tertiary care teaching institute during October 2016 to December 2016. The study was conducted amongst 190 children attending the department of Paediatrics OPD for the second or third dose of pentavalent vaccine. Results: The study shows the following adverse effects after pentavalent injection 127 (66.8%) children had pain at the site of injection, 103(54.2%) mild fever, Swelling at injection site 84(44.2%) and 55(28.9%) children held their leg back due to pain. In majority 85 (44.7%) of children antipyretic and in 65 (34.2%) children analgesic was given was given to relieve the symptoms. The parents were very positive for completing their children’s immunization schedule even though they have faced few symptoms. Conclusions: It can be concluded that all the adverse events reported were mild and could be managed easily without any complications.
Performance Analysis of MIMO-NOMA Systems Based on Dynamic User Pairing Scheme

Multiple input multiple output (MIMO) structure can enhance the total capacity of the modern communication systems without using consuming excess power or bandwidth. Non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) configuration is a good nominee to accommodate with MIMO structure to fulfil the demands to extra user data rates and enriched spectral efficiencies. The dynamic uniform channel gain difference (DUCGD) user pairing technique plays an important role to maximize the capacity of all the paired and served users. The DUCGD is implemented by calculating the channel gain of every prospected user and sorting it in descending order to pair ones with the highest difference in channel gains to be functioned together. In this paper, the performance analysis of MIMO-NOMA systems by means of DUCGD is presented. The numerical analysis showed that, the increase of the number of users leads to an increase in the systems’ gain and the total achieved sum rates. This improvement is shown to be due to using DUCGD and an increased number of transmitting and receiving antennas, jointly.
Unobtrusive Stress Assessment Using Smartphones

Stress assessment is a complex issue and numerous studies have examined factors that influence stress in working environments. Research studies have shown that monitoring individuals’ behaviour parameters during daily life can also help assess stress levels. In this study, we examine assessment of work-related stress using features derived from sensors in smartphones. In particular, we use information from physical activity levels, location, social-interactions, social-activity, and application usage during working days. Our study included 30 employees chosen from two different private companies, monitored over a period of 8 weeks in real work environments. The findings suggest that information from phone sensors shows important correlation with employees perceived stress level. Second, we used machine learning methods to classify perceived stress levels based on the analysis of information provided by smartphones. We used decision trees obtaining 67.57 percent accuracy and 71.73 percent after applying a semi-supervised method. Our results show that stress levels can be monitored in unobtrusive manner, through analysis of smartphone data.
Understanding the Dynamics of Intergroup Relations from the Perspectives of Western Immigrants Living in Korea

Abstract The literature on intergroup contact has mainly focused on how the majority group members reduce negative stereotypes and prejudice toward minority groups, also exploring the dynamics of intergroup contact in Western countries. The purpose of this study is to explore the dynamics of intergroup contact and interactions from the perspective of Western immigrants, and to understand how they interact with host individuals in South Korea. Using a constructivist grounded theory, three themes were identified associated with intergroup contact: (a) experiencing cultural growth and cultural conflicts, (b) reducing ethnocentric behaviors, and (c) experiencing cultural distance and boundaries. This study suggests that participants experienced the dynamics of intergroup contact with the host individuals.
HIV-1 Vpr antagonizes innate immune activation by targeting karyopherin-mediated NF-κB/IRF3 nuclear transport

HIV-1 must replicate in cells that are equipped to defend themselves from infection through intracellular innate immune systems. HIV-1 evades innate immune sensing through encapsidated DNA synthesis and encodes accessory genes that antagonize specific antiviral effectors. Here we show that both particle associated, and expressed HIV-1 Vpr, antagonize the stimulatory effect of a variety of pathogen associated molecular patterns by inhibiting IRF3 and NF-κB nuclear transport. Phosphorylation of IRF3 at S396, but not S386, was also inhibited. We propose that, rather than promoting HIV-1 nuclear import, Vpr interacts with karyopherins to disturb their import of IRF3 and NF-κB to promote replication in macrophages. Concordantly, we demonstrate Vpr dependent rescue of HIV-1 replication in human macrophages from inhibition by cGAMP, the product of activated cGAS. We propose a model that unifies Vpr manipulation of nuclear import and inhibition of innate immune activation to promote HIV-1 replication and transmission.
The pharmacology of d-Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD)

My PhD thesis consisted of two different scientific parts, each supervised by one of my advisors, Prof. Dr. med. Matthias Liechti and Prof. Dr. sc. nat. Katharina Rentsch. One part was to develop liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) methods to measure d-lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) and its main metabolites in plasma, serum, and urine samples. We established the pharmacokinetics of LSD and collected data from emergency toxicological cases. Therefore we have developed and validated two analytical methods using LC-MS/MS which resulted in several publications. All analytical work was performed in the Toxicology Lab of the Laboratory Medicine at the University Hospital Basel under the supervision of Prof. Dr. sc. nat. Katharina Rentsch. The second part included planning, conduction, and analysis of clinical phase I trials with LSD. We investigated the acute psychological and physiological effects of LSD in healthy humans what resulted in several publication. These projects were supervised by Prof. Dr. med. Matthias Liechti at the Department of Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology of the University Hospital Basel. One LSD study included a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) assessment, to investigate the neural correlates of altered states of consciousness and emotion processing under the influence of LSD. The fMRI study was done in close collaboration with the team of Prof. Dr. med. Stefan Borgwardt from the Department of Psychiatry of the University of Basel.
Characterisation of physicochemical properties of gum arabic powder at various particle sizes

F U L L P A P E R Characterisation of physicochemical properties of gum arabic powder at various particle sizes Rosland Abel, S.E, 1, *Yusof, Y.A. , Chin, N.L. , Chang, L.S. , Mohd Ghazali, H. and Manaf, Y.N. Department of Process and Food Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia Laboratory of Halal Services, Halal Products Research Institute, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia Department of Food Science, Faculty of Food Science and Technology, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
Spatial distribution of undulating flight displays of territorial Golden Eagles Aquila chrysaetos in Lewis, Scotland

ABSTRACT Capsule: The undulating display flight of Golden Eagles Aquila chrysaetos has a territorial function on current consensus: we found that displays could occur at any location within a home range of territorial birds and were not more frequent at the territorial limits (as documented by a previous study) or around the nest site. Aims: To test the null hypothesis that display activity does not spatially differ within the home range of territorial Golden Eagles. Methods: We used 1488 h of observations of Golden Eagles between April 2003 and October 2004 (excluding November through January inclusive) on the Isle of Lewis, northwest Scotland involving primarily four territories. Territorial boundaries and nest sites were determined by the behaviour of the focal territorial birds. All flight activity was cast into three spatial categories (near-boundary, near-nest and elsewhere) and the relative occurrence of displays was referenced by overall flight activity recorded in these spatial categories. Results: We failed to reject the null hypothesis. Prior findings of greater display rate at territory limits were not confirmed. Territorial Golden Eagles apparently displayed wherever they happened to be in their home range. There was no difference in display frequency between successful and failed breeding pairs and, within pairs, between successful and failed breeding seasons. Monthly changes in display activity did not differ from monthly changes in the presence of ‘intruding’ sub-adults. A peak in non-territorial bird activity in August and September was not reflected by a peak in display, however, we could not distinguish recently fledged ‘non-threatening’ birds in this period. Conclusions: Undulating flight displays of Golden Eagles focused neither on territory boundaries nor the nest. Displays may be spontaneous or occur in response to the detection of potential trespassers or neighbours, however, we could not rule out any role of pair-bonding.
Spatial Statistics Analysis with Artificial Neural Network

The spatial autoregressive model has been widely applied in science, in areas such as economics, public finance, political science, agricultural economics, environmental studies and transportation analyses. The classical spatial autoregressive model is a linear model for describing spatial correlation. In this work, we expand the classical model to include time lagged observations, related exogenous variables, possibly non-Gaussian, high volatility errors, and a nonlinear neural network component. The nonlinear neural network component allows for more model flexibility — the ability to learn and model nonlinear and complex relationships. We use a maximum likelihood approach for model parameter estimation. We establish consistency and asymptotic normality for these estimators under some standard conditions on the spatial/space-time model and neural network component. We investigate the quality of the asymptotic approximations for finite samples by means of numerical simulation studies. Next, we discuss the model selection in the proposed space-time autoregressive model. We employ the Shakeout noise injection method to conduct feature selection and use the likelihood ratio test for the time lag order selection. We evaluate the performance of Shakeout noise injection technique in a simulated dataset and also investigate the asymptotic approximation of the likelihood
Comparative analysis of spatio-temporal dynamics in the plain and mountain argan ecosystems, Morocco

ABSTRACT The argan tree area is one of the regions of Morocco strongly affected by the desertification. It has an estimated population of more than two million people, 60% of whom live in rural areas. This population, coupled with the aridity of the climate, puts increased pressure on the argan tree area whose yield seems to be decreasing. The extent of degradation is variable throughout the argan tree area. There has been a lack of reliable information. Accordingly, the researchers made a comparative study over the last 30 years between plain and mountain argan ecosystems in Essaouira under a mainly semi-arid bio-climate, then, in Tiznit under an arid bio-climate. It appears that the argan forest degradation is greater in the plains than in the mountains. In addition, the results showed an increase in the area occupied by argan tree cultivation against a decrease in natural argan ecosystems. In Essaouira, the argan forest has lost about 1065 ha/year during the first fifteen years against only 376 ha/year during the second. In Tiznit, where the climate is more arid and where the argan tree is present mainly in the plain, the loss was about 1,140 ha/year during the first fifteen years against 1,533 ha/year during the second.
Investigating blend morphology of P3HT:PCBM bulk heterojunction solar cells by classical atomistic simulations – Progress and prospects

ABSTRACT This report presents recent progress in computational modeling efforts on blend morphology of P3HT:PCBM-based bulk heterojunction (BHJ) thin-film organic solar cells (OSCs). Improving power conversion efficiency (PCE), developing cost-effective fabrication methods and designing suitable electron donor and acceptor materials have been the most critical issues related to organic solar cell research in the past decade. Mixtures of poly-(3-hexyl-thiophene) (P3HT) and phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM) as electron-donor and electron-acceptor materials, respectively, have been widely investigated over the past decade. Despite the advances in experimental techniques, like atomic force microscopy (AFM), transmission (TEM) and scanning (SEM) electron microscopy and electron tomography, acquiring three-dimensional (3D) nanoscale morphological information from BHJ devices is challenging due to poor contrast in electron microscopy techniques of organic materials. Atomistic simulations are able to provide insights into the dynamics of blend morphology of OSCs and overcome the experimental challenges. In addition, coarse-grained molecular dynamics (CGMD) simulation is able to simulate structures approaching experimental length scales and processing conditions. Here we discuss about the insights that have been gained from classical atomistic simulations with an emphasis on CGMD modeling techniques developed in recent years. Effect of solution processing conditions and thermal annealing process on the morphology and dynamics of BHJ devices are reviewed as well. Finally, the future scope of molecular modeling efforts to tackle current and anticipated challenges in organic photovoltaic technologies are suggested, with a goal to identify the opportunities that remain open to be addressed by atomistic computations of OSCs.
The Relationship Between Personality Features and Academic Performance in Medical Students

Background: Investment in improving the quality of education can pave the way for sustained development. There are several studies, which have shown that personality features are important factors in predicting academic performance such as intelligence and cognitive ability. Mental disorders are one of the most severe complications of personality disorders, which influence academic performance, as well as students’ quality of life. Therefore, early diagnosis and treatment of personality disorders can help prevent students’ academic failure. Objectives: This study can provide a better understanding of the prevalence of personality features and disorders among students. This may be of great value for providing mental health care for the students who demonstrate certain traits. Furthermore, this may be helpful for education policymakers to provide guidelines and update their student health monitoring process for the universities. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2015 at Tehran University of Medical Sciences, School of Medicine. We have used convenience sampling. A total of 107 questionnaires were administered to the students, and overall 96 valid questionnaires were collected from the participants. The association between personality features and academic performance in medical students was evaluated through Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI-2), which assesses personality features and psychopathology. Thus, the 370-item MMPI-2, as well as the academic performance questionnaire (including national university entrance exam rank, grade point average (GPA) of the first five terms, National Basic Science Exam Grade), was given to the students. Results: The results were statistically analyzed using Spearman’s correlation and Independent sample t-test. Among the Clinical scales, the highest scores belonged to the following scales: Hypomania (%24), depression (%23), hysteria (%20.8), masculinity-femininity (%17.8), hypochondriasis (%17.7), and social introversion (%13.5), respectively. Concerning the relationship between each of these scale scores and academic performance, the scores of clinical scales of hypomania, hysteria, masculinity-femininity, hypochondriasis, and paranoia, had a significant relationship (all of the P values were < 0.05) with academic performance. Moreover, the scores of validity scales of Infrequency and Lie had significant negative correlations (P values < 0.05) with academic performance. Conclusions: The scores of Hypomania, Hysteria, Masculinity-Femininity, Hypochondriasis, and Paranoia scales correlated with students’ academic performance.
Tree Canopy Coverage Predicts Lower Conduct Problem Severity in Children with ASD

ABSTRACT Introduction: Conduct problems are commonly reported among individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and children with other special health care needs (CSHCN). Environmental research indicates that exposure to natural environments can lead to decreased conduct problems; opposite effects (i.e., increased problems) are associated with built “gray” environments (e.g., roadways). Methods: This exploratory study analyzed the association between Zip-code level tree canopy coverage and severity of conduct problems in typical children, children with ASD, and CSHCN. Tree canopy data came from National Land Cover Database and ASD data came from the cross-sectional National Survey of Children’s Health (2011/2012). Results: Percent tree canopy coverage predicted a decreased risk of severe conduct problems in youth with ASD, but not CSHCN; “gray” space was unassociated with conduct problems in any children. Conclusions: Community tree canopy coverage is negatively associated with conduct problems in children with ASD. More research using individual assessments and street level metrics will help better determine the relationship between canopy coverage and conduct problems in ASD.