Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The influence of culture on open defaecation in some basic schools in selected districts in Ghana: A preliminary study

Open defaecation has remained a major public and environmental health concern which has gained global attention. This study explored cultural factors including superstition, taboo, norms and values influencing open defaecation behaviour among basic school pupils in the Eastern and Volta Regions all within Southern Ghana. Self-reported data were collected from 400 pupils using structured questionnaire and focus group discussions. Descriptive, bivariate and multivariate statistics were used to analyze the quantitative data. The qualitative data was analyzed using thematic content analytical procedure. The results of the study showed, superstitions, traditional norms and taboo yielded statistically significant effect sizes with pupils’ open defaecation behaviour: and superstition: r = 0.728, p< 0.05; traditional norms: r = 0.425, p <0.05; taboos: r = 0.462, p<0.05. The study concluded that superstitions and traditional norm and taboo constituted the key cultural drivers influencing pupils’ open defaecation behaviour in the Eastern and Volta Regions. It is recommended that the Ministry of Education should incorporate open defaecation issues into the educational curriculum and develop culturally sensitive educational programs for a massive educational campaign to stop open defaecation in the schools. To ensure that the messaging for these campaigns resonate with target audience, communication campaigns should promote a number of positive emotional and social issues related to improved social status and positive self-esteem, better growth and economic opportunities with toilet use.
Patients’ Experiences of Informed Consent and Preoperative Education

The aim of this descriptive cross-sectional study was to determine adult surgery patients’ experiences of informed consent and preoperative education. Research was conducted between September 2018 and February 2019. The sample consisted of 201 adult patients of a university hospital in Turkey. Data were collected using a 48-item questionnaire developed by the researchers based on literature. More than half of the participants (54.2%) were fully informed while 36.8% were partially informed about their surgery process and 61.2% were informed by physicians. Overall, 33.3% had unanswered questions about surgery, with questions relating mostly to the type of surgery (26.8%) and its effect on their body (25.4%). Participants were least informed about preoperative deep breathing and cough exercises (47.8%). More than half (58.4%) of participants expected healthcare professionals to avoid using medical terminology when informing them. Physicians and nurses perform invasive interventions on patients and, therefore, should be sensitive about informing patients.
Development and validation of a prediction model for early identification of critically ill elderly COVID-19 patients

In this study, we established a simple and practical tool for early identification of potentially high-risk individuals among elderly COVID-19 patients. Included were 2106 laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 patients aged 60 years and above in 30 provinces of mainland China. Using discrimination (the area under the receiver-operator characteristic curve [AUC]) and calibration (Hosmer-Lemeshow goodness-of-fit test and calibration plots), a nomogram for predicting critically ill cases was developed, and its performance was examined using an internal validation cohort (444 patients) and external cohort (770 patients). The proportion of critically ill patients was 11.8% (248/2106). The most common symptoms at the onset of illness were fever (66.6%), cough (34.1%), fatigue (23.3%), and expectoration (23.6%). Older age, history of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, fever, fatigue, shortness of breath, and lymphocyte percentage lower than 20% at admission were associated with increased risk of becoming critically ill. The AUCs for the six-variable-based nomogram were 0.77 (95% CI: 0.73-0.82), 0.73 (95% CI: 0.67-0.79), and 0.77 (95% CI: 0.71-0.83) in the development, internal validation, and external validation cohorts, respectively. This six-variable-based nomogram could potentially serve as a practical and reliable tool for early identification of elderly COVID-19 patients at high risk of becoming critically ill.
Alterations in the Intestinal Morphology, Gut Microbiota, and Trace Mineral Status Following Intra-Amniotic Administration (Gallus gallus) of Teff (Eragrostis tef) Seed Extracts

The consumption of teff (Eragrostis tef), a gluten-free cereal grain, has increased due to its dense nutrient composition including complex carbohydrates, unsaturated fatty acids, trace minerals (especially Fe), and phytochemicals. This study utilized the clinically-validated Gallus gallus intra amniotic feeding model to assess the effects of intra-amniotic administration of teff extracts versus controls using seven groups: (1) non-injected; (2) 18Ω H2O injected; (3) 5% inulin; (4) teff extract 1%; (5) teff extract 2.5%; (6) teff extract 5%; and (7) teff extract 7.5%. The treatment groups were compared to each other and to controls. Our data demonstrated a significant improvement in hepatic iron (Fe) and zinc (Zn) concentration and LA:DGLA ratio without concomitant serum concentration changes, up-regulation of various Fe and Zn brush border membrane proteins, and beneficial morphological changes to duodenal villi and goblet cells. No significant taxonomic alterations were observed using 16S rRNA sequencing of the cecal microbiota. Several important bacterial metabolic pathways were differentially enriched in the teff group, likely due to teff’s high relative fiber concentration, demonstrating an important bacterial-host interaction that contributed to improvements in the physiological status of Fe and Zn. Therefore, teff appeared to represent a promising staple food crop and should be further evaluated.
Respiration of Amphibian Eggs

Amphibian embryos develop within the perivitelline space, which is bounded by the vitelline membrane and jelly envelopes, collectively called the egg capsule. Diffusion of oxygen through the capsule is described by the Fick equation, V̇o2 = Go2ΔPo2, in which V̇o2 is the oxygen consumption rate, Go2 is the oxygen conductance of the capsule, and ΔGo2 is the oxygen partial pressure diference across the capsule. The oxygen conductance of the capsule increases during development in parallel to V̇o2, and Po2 in the perivitelline space usually remains high enough to avoid limitation of V̇o2. The oxygen conductance of the capsule at the hatching stage is also matched with V̇o2 in species with small- to moderate-sized eggs, but there is evidence indicating that Go2 limits maximal V̇o2 in larger eggs. Compared to birds and reptiles, amphibians have a low allometric exponent for the relationship between V̇o2 and egg size, and there is a jump in V̇o2 at hatching. Trends toward incubation of larger eggs for longer periods, at lower temperatures, and out of water can be traced to problems of oxygen uptake. The oxygen conductance of the capsule in large eggs becomes constrained by a conflict between requirements for respiration (a large, thin capsule) and support (a small, thick capsule). The largest amphibian capsule that can supply sufficient oxygen contains somewhat less than 1 mL volume, so amphibian eggs must be small. The evolution of reptilian eggs involved functional abandonment of the capsule in favor of fibrous "shell membranes" in which respiratory gases could diffuse through air-filled channels. Loss of the capsule removed the constraints on Go2, V̇o2, and egg size. Respiration by an amphibian embryo in an egg mass is affected by its distance from the free environment and the oxygen uptake by other embryos in the mass. The respiratory role ofjelly is to separate the eggs, which reduces the "respiratory density" (volume-specific V̇o2) and therefore permits a larger number of embryos to occupy the mass. Nevertheless, the size of globular gelatinous egg masses is severely limited in aquatic and terrestrial environments. Limits to egg mass size can be extended by (1) spreading the eggs out to expose them more closely to the environment, either at oviposition or during development, (2) perforating the egg mass with channels in which water is convected, (3) depositing the eggs in foam, which supplies oxygen directly from the bubbles and augments the coeficient of oxygen diffusion, and (4) incorporating symbiotic algae into the mass. The vast diversity of amphibian reproductive mode ofers further opportunities to investigate the evolution of embryonic respiration within the physical constraints of the jelly capsule and the incubation environment.
Influences of lower limb edema on daily lives of elderly individuals in an elderly day care center.

AIM The purpose of this study is to describe the influences of lower limb edema on the daily lives of elderly individuals in elderly day care to describe the necessity of care for lower limb edema. METHODS Semi-structured interviews based on a quality of life questionnaire for limb lymphedema were conducted. Two types of text mining analysis methods were used: a frequent word analysis and a content analysis. The edema severity was graded on a scale of 0 to 3, and the sum of the numerical values of the grades for each person was defined as the pitting score. RESULTS The seven participants had a mean age of 83.4 ± 4.6 years (mean ± SD). The pitting scores ranged from 1 to 25 in the participants. The words "think" (389 times), "walk" (136 times), and "put on" (135 times) were extracted frequently. The content analysis focused on the words "walk" and "put on. " The participants complained of difficulty walking, pain, and numbness when walking, weakness of their lower limbs, difficulty putting on shoes, restrictions on shoe types, and difficulty finding shoes. CONCLUSIONS These results demonstrate that elderly individuals experienced troubles during their daily lives caused by lower limb edema, which highlights the necessity of symptom management. Active interventions for edema by nurses are necessary to improve quality of life in elderly individuals.
Nauplii, Antennular Ontogeny, and the Position of the Ascothoracida within the Maxillopoda

ABSTRACT The external anatomy of over 25 species of ascothoracid nauplii, and the later ontogeny of their antennules, are reviewed and compared to other maxillopodan subclasses. The brooded nauplii are of the nonbranchiopod type. Although lacking frontolateral horns, generalized ascothoracid nauplii (Lauridae, Petrarcidae, Synagoga) are most similar to early instar cirriped nauplii, but many of the features in common are probably symplesiomorphies. Ascothoracids and cirripeds may have a common basic naupliar ontogeny, but features of later cirriped instars, many of which are associated with feeding, are delayed or entirely suppressed in ascothoracids due to brooding. A planktonic metanauplius from the South China Sea that combines ascothoracid features with late cirriped naupliar limbs is tentatively identified as a postbrooding ascothoracid, perhaps of the Lauridae. Lack of postmaxillular limb buds in metanauplii is a possible synapomorphy of the Ascothoracida, Cirripedia, and Facetotecta (Hansen's y-larvae). The 6 apparent segments in a generalized ascothoracid naupliar antennule are not the same as the 6 in the adults. The 3 distal segments fuse (the adult's movable claw does not represent a segment) and 2 new segments appear basally, so that there are 8 segments altogether in ontogeny. Eight-segmented antennules are proposed as a new diagnostic feature of the Maxillopoda. The positional homology of the ascothoracid claw and the cirriped cyprid attachment disc is shown by following supposedly homologous setae in the nauplii through later development. The antennular claws of cypris y and of branchiurans may also be of similar origin. These findings, together with other published data, tend to contradict a spermatology-based phylogeny of the Maxillopoda, but do not wholly resolve the AscothoracidaCirripedia relationship.
The Negative Effect of Smartphone Use on Academic Performance May Be Overestimated Evidence From a 2-Year Panel Study

This study monitored 470 university students’ smartphone usage continuously over two years to assess the relationship between in-class smartphone use and academic performance. We utilize a novel dataset where smartphone use and grades were recorded across multiple courses, allowing us to examine this relationship at the student level and the student-in-course level. In accordance with the existing literature, we ﬁnd that students’ in-class smartphone use is negatively associated to their grades, even when controlling for a broad range of observed student characteristics. However, the magnitude of the association de-creases substantially in a ﬁxed eﬀects model, which leverages the panel structure of the data to control for all stable student and course characteristics, including those not observed by researchers. This suggests that the size of the eﬀect of smartphone usage on academic performance is overestimated by studies that only control for observed student characteristics.
Association of obesity and pulse pressure with hypertension in an Iranian urban population

Objective: Nowadays, obesity is an important health problem and pulse pressure (PP) is a good predictor of cardiovascular events. The aim of study was to determine the association of obesity and PP with hypertension (HTN) in individuals aged 30 years or older in the urban population of Jahrom, Iran. Materials and Methods: In this study, we used a multistage stratified sampling method to select participants among the urban population aged 30 years or older. Height, weight, and blood pressure were obtained by a trained physician. Obesity was defined according to the World Health Organization classification. Angina was assessed with reliable and validate Rose questionnaire. Data were record by SPSS-16. Categorical and continues variables analyzed by Chi-squared, independent t-test, and one-way ANOVA test. Binary logistic regression analysis method was used for the association of PP and obesity with HTN and Rose angina that adjusted for age, gender, education class, marital status, smoking, total cholesterol, triglyceride, low-density lipoprotein, and high-density lipoprotein. A P < 0.05 was considered as statistical significance. Results: The prevalence of obesity was 18.1% that was greater in women (24.8% vs. 9.9%, P < 0.001). The prevalence of Rose angina and HTN in obese individuals were more than in normal weight individuals (24.8% vs. 16.4%, P = 0.027) and (42.0% vs. 31.1%, P < 0.001), respectively. Furthermore, patients in higher PP groups were older, were more possible to had HTN and had greater diastolic blood pressure (DBP), systolic blood pressure (SBP), and mean arterial pressure (MAP) in compared to individuals in the lower PP group. The individuals with HTN had greater DBP, SBP, MAP, PP, and body mass index (BMI) than individuals without HTN. However, individuals who had Rose angina, only had higher PP and BMI in compared to ones without Rose angina. The obese individuals had 1.97 (1.22–3.17, P = 0.005) fold for HTN risk than individuals with normal weight. In addition, PP weakly increased the risk of HTN about 1.09 fold (1.07–1.10, P < 0.001). However, Rose angina was associated only to overweight status (odds ratio = 1.51, confidence interval 95%: 1.03–2.20), P = 0.035) than individuals in normal weight group. Conclusion: Obesity and PP were higher in hypertensive individuals and overweight in individuals with Rose angina. It is time to pay more attention to abnormal BMI.
Rainfall and seasonal changes in arthropod abundance on a tropical oceanic island

Weekly sweeps for arthropods were taken and compared for an entire year (1977) on Grenada, West Indies, where there is a marked wet and dry season. The average wet-season abundance of arthropods was 2.3 times greater, and the wet-season biomass (grams) was 3.1 times greater, than that for the dry season. A significant correlation between biomass and abundance existed for the entire year. There was no change in arthropod size between wet and dry season. Intra-seasonal variations in arthropod abundance occurred, and were significantly correlated with seven-day accumulated rainfall following a three-week interval. Abundance of seven of 10 taxa showed the same three-week response to rainfall. Coleoptera were identified to species, so that species diversity, species overlap, and feeding guilds for the entire year could be compared to Central American Coleoptera. The results indicate the Coleoptera fauna on Grenada are more generalized compared to the tropical mainland, and composed of the same species whose abundance fluctuates seasonally throughout the year. MOST STUDIES OF SEASON ALITY in insect assemblages have been conducted on the tropical mainland (Bigger 1976; Buskirk and Buskirk 1976; Janzen 1973a, b 1976; Janzen and Pond 1975; Janzen et al. 1976; Janzen and Schoener 1968; Ricklefs 1975; Robinson and Robinson 1970; Smythe 1974; Wolda 1977, 1978). In contrast, there are only a few such studies of seasonality on tropical islands (Allan et al. 1973; Frith 1975; Janzen 1973a, b; Pipkin 1953). Data collected on a reguar basis throughout the wet and dry seasons have not been gathered for any oL the neotropical island insects. Such a study would be useful in detailing the basic difference between island and mainland ecology, as well as in adding new information to the subject of tropical seasonality. The purpose of this paper is to, investigate the seasonal changes that occur in tropical arthropods on an oceanic Caribbean island with a marked wet and dry season. Species diversity, overlap, and feeding guilds of the Coleoptera are compared to similar data from Central American studies.
Topographic Variation in the Abundance of Hieracium Floribundum: Relative Importance of Differential Seed Dispersal, Seedling Establishment, Plant Survival and Reproduction

(1) The perennial herb Hieracium floribundum was found less often at the bottoms of small depressions (1-4 m diameter and 0-5-1 m deep) than at the tops in an abandoned pasture in Ontario, Canada. This study was to determine whether this variation was due to differential seed dispersal, seedling establishment, plant survival or reproduction. (2) More wind-dispersed seeds landed at the top of depressions (9300 m-2) than at the bottom (4100 m-2). (3) Topographic position had little effect on seedling establishment within a particular habitat type (i.e. vegetated or canopy removed or bare soil). However, the best habitat type for seedling establishment (bare soil) was more abundant at the top of depressions (6.7-26.4%) than at the bottom (0.4%). Consequently, seedling establishment would be more likely to occur at the top of depressions. (4) Seedlings planted at the top and bottom of depressions died at about the same rate during a 4-year period. The percentage of the transplants reproducing during this period was greater at the bottom of depressions. (5) Differential seed dispersal and seedling establishment were more likely responsible for the greater frequency of occurrence of H. floribundum at the tops of depressions than either differential survival or differential reproduction. This supports the view that critical factors determining plant distribution and abundance are those operating early in the life cycle.
Comparative study of the composition and genetic diversity of the picoeukaryote community in a Chinese aquaculture area and an open sea area

Picoeukaryotes (<2–3 μm) perform key roles for the functioning of marine ecosystems, but little is known regarding the composition and diversity of picoeukaryotes in aquaculture areas. In this study, the Illumina MiSeq platform was used for sequencing the V4 variable region within the 18S rDNA gene to analyse genetic diversity and relative abundance of picoeukaryotic communities in the Qinhuangdao scallop cultivation area of the Bohai Sea. The community was dominated by three super groups, the alveolates (54%), stramenopiles (41%) and chlorophytes (3%), and three groups, dinoflagellates (54%), pelagomonadales (40%) and prasinophytes (3%). Furthermore, a contrasting station with open water away from the eutrophic aquaculture area was chosen. The communities collected from the two stations exhibited significant differences, with higher diversity in the aquaculture area. These results provide the first snapshot of the picoeukaryotic diversity in surface waters of the Qinhuangdao scallop cultivation area, and basic data for future studies on picoeukaryote community in an aquaculture region.
Physical fitness cognition, assessment, and promotion: A cross-sectional study in Taiwan

Introduction Many health organizations have promoted the importance of the health-related benefits of physical fitness and physical activity. Studies have evaluated effective public health practice aiming to understand the cognition of physical activity among youths and adolescents. However, studies investigating the level of cognition and knowledge of physical fitness among Asian adults are lacking. Purpose This study aimed to investigate the self-awareness level of physical fitness and exercise prescription and the demand for physical fitness assessment among Taiwanese adults. Methods In January–July 2019, a cross-sectional anonymous survey was conducted using Research Electronic Data Capture to gather data on demographic data, cognition investigation of physical fitness and exercise prescription, cognitive test of physical fitness and exercise prescription, and demand for physical fitness assessment. Results The questionnaire was answered by 200 respondents. The rating for cognition investigation of physical fitness was 2.63–3.13 (unclear to mostly clear) and for exercise prescription was 2.05–2.76 (unclear) (rated on a 5-point Likert scale). Results show that lack of awareness was highest for health-related physical fitness, exercise prescription, and exercise progress planning. 98% of subjects did not know the latest recommended guidelines for physical activity, despite most agreeing that physical fitness and exercise are good for health. Most subjects (72%) indicated a willingness to accept self-pay service for physical fitness assessments. Conclusions This is the first study to report on the demand for cognition, assessment, and promotion of physical fitness among Taiwanese adults. The study shows that the subjects widely lack knowledge in the cognition of physical fitness and exercise prescription. Furthermore, a self-pay service for the physical fitness assessment and individualized exercise prescription were acceptable to most subjects, especially those undergoing regular health examinations. The findings are encouraging and will aid support for health organizations and professionals in the development and management of promotion strategies on health-related physical fitness in preventive medicine and health promotion.