Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Motor Imagery and Mental Practice in the Subacute and Chronic Phases in Upper Limb Rehabilitation after Stroke: A Systematic Review

Introduction Motor imagery and mental practice can be defined as a continuous mechanism in which the subject tries to emulate a movement using cognitive processes, without actually performing the motor action. The objective of this review was to analyse and check the efficacy of motor imagery and/or mental practice as a method of rehabilitating motor function in patients that have suffered a stroke, in both subacute and chronic phases. Material and Methods. We performed a bibliographic search from 2009 to 2021 in the following databases, Medline (PubMed), Scopus, WOS, Cochrane, and OTSeeker. The search focused on randomized clinical trials in which the main subject was rehabilitating motor function of the upper limb in individuals that had suffered a stroke in subacute or chronic phases. Results We analysed a total of 11 randomized clinical trials, with moderate and high methodological quality according to the PEDro scale. Most of the studies on subacute and chronic stages obtained statistically significant short-term results, between pre- and postintervention, in recovering function of the upper limb. Conclusions Motor imagery and/or mental practice, combined with conventional therapy and/or with other techniques, can be effective in the short term in recovering upper limb motor function in patients that have suffered a stroke. More studies are needed to analyse the efficacy of this intervention during medium- and long-term follow-up.
Principal self-efficacy and school climate as antecedents of collective teacher efficacy

ABSTRACT The importance of collective teacher efficacy (CTE) has been increasingly emphasised, but few studies have focused on how it can be enhanced. Since CTE is assumed to be related to factors that differ between schools, the belief-shaping sources of CTE could be related to principals’ beliefs of their efficacy. Moreover, a school climate that centralises teachers’ attempts to improve student learning could enhance CTE. This paper examines a proposed analytical model that links principal self-efficacy (PSE) to CTE, as mediated by the school climate. The model is tested via a multilevel analysis with data from 70 Finnish schools and 767 educators. The analysis revealed that PSE is partially and indirectly related to CTE via the school climate at the school level. Based on these results, theoretical and practical implications for future research and teaching development efforts are discussed.
COVID-19 Lockdowns and Air Quality in the United States

Using a difference-in-differences approach, I test whether the U.S. COVID-19 lockdowns influenced air pollution levels. I hypothesize that the halt in human mobility stemming from lockdowns caused transportation sector activity to decrease, leading to a reduction in related pollutants such as PM2.5, PM10, and NO2. I investigate whether counties with strict lockdown policies experienced greater improvements in air pollution relative to before the lockdowns than counties with lenient lockdown policies. I use lockdown stringency data from the University of Oxford to identify strict versus lenient counties, and data from the Environmental Protection Agency to capture air pollution outcomes. The main results provide insufficient evidence of differential air pollution levels between the strict and lenient groups. An examination of only metropolitan counties produces similar results, suggesting stricter lockdowns may not be associated with lower pollution levels, even in urban areas where transportation sector activity is typically elevated.
Association of Serum Omentin-1 Concentration with the Content of Adipose Tissue and Glucose Tolerance in Subjects with Central Obesity

Omentin is one of the few adipokines with potentially beneficial metabolic effects. The main aim of this study was to determine the association between serum omentin-1 levels and the occurrence of central obesity and abnormal glucose tolerance, taking into account gender. The study involved 88 participants aged 30–60, including 47 women and 41 men. Two subgroups among the obese subjects were distinguished—those with normal and abnormal glucose tolerance. Anthropometric and biochemical examinations and blood pressure measurements were performed. Omentin-1 concentrations were significantly lower among patients with obesity compared to those without obesity (p = 0.027) and, similarly, comparing men with abnormal glucose tolerance with men with normal glucose tolerance (p = 0.035). In contrast, no such pattern was observed in women. The multivariable regression model showed a significant effect of gender status and important factors of tissue insulin sensitivity, such as OGGT results, WHR and amount of body fat, on the variability of serum omentin-1 concentration in the entire study population (R2adj. = 13.7%; p = 0.003). High omentin-1 levels found in men with obesity and normal glucose tolerance suggest that omentin-1 protects against metabolic disorders associated with obesity in the male population.
Exposure to Volatile Organic Compounds in Paint Production Plants: Levels and Potential Human Health Risks

A wide range of volatile organic solvents, including aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbons, alcohols, and ketones, are used in the production of paints, and they comprise more than 30% of the ingredients of paints. The present study was designed to evaluate the occupational exposure to 15 volatile organic compounds (VOCs, including benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, xylene, styrene, n-hexane, n-heptane, n-nonane, trichloroethylene, tetrachloroethylene, n-butyl acetate, n-octane, n-decane, dichlorofluoromethane, and acetone) in Iranian paint production factories and subsequently, the associated health risks. The samples were collected from the respiratory zone of workers using the NIOSH 1501 method, and their qualitative and quantitative characterization was performed using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and gas chromatography-flame ionization detector, respectively. The individual concentrations of VOCs ranged from 23.76 ± 0.57 µg m−3 (acetone) to 92489.91 ± 0.65 µg m−3 (m,p-xylene). The predominant compounds were m,p-xylene (up to 92489.91 ± 0.65 µg m−3), ethylbenzene (up to 91188.95 ± 0.34 µg m−3), and toluene (up to 46088.84 ± 0.14 µg m−3). The non-cancer risks of benzene, n-nonane, trichloroethylene, tetrachloroethylene, xylene, and ethylbenzene surpassed the reference value in most of the sectors. In addition, total lifetime risks of cancer were in the range of 1.8 × 10−5–3.85 × 10−3, suggesting that there was a risk of carcinogenesis in all studied sections, mainly due to ethylbenzene and benzene. Considering their high exposure concentrations and their associated non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic risks, biological monitoring of workers and the use of technical and modern engineering control measures are recommended.
Immunohistochemistry of the Gut-Associated Lymphoid Tissue (GALT) in African Bonytongue (Heterotis niloticus, Cuvier 1829)

Heterotis niloticus is a basal teleost, belonging to the Osteoglossidae family, which is widespread in many parts of Africa. The digestive tract of H. niloticus presents similar characteristics to those of higher vertebrates, exhibiting a gizzard-like stomach and lymphoid aggregates in the intestinal lamina propria. The adaptive immune system of teleost fish is linked with each of their mucosal body surfaces. In fish, the gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT) is generally a diffuse immune system that represents an important line of defense against those pathogens inhabiting the external environment that can enter through food. The GALT comprises intraepithelial lymphocytes, which reside in the epithelial layer, and lamina propria leukocytes, which consist of lymphocytes, macrophages, granulocytes, and dendritic-like cells. This study aims to characterize, for the first time, the leukocytes present in the GALT of H. niloticus, by confocal immuno- fluorescence techniques, using specific antibodies: toll-like receptor 2, major histocompatibility complex class II, S100 protein, serotonin, CD4, langerin, and inducible nitric oxide synthetase. Our results show massive aggregates of immune cells in the thickness of the submucosa, arranged in circumscribed oval-shaped structures that are morphologically similar to the isolated lymphoid follicles present in birds and mammals, thus expanding our knowledge about the intestinal immunity shown by this fish.
LAGUERRE SERIES IN CONTINGENT CLAIM VALUATION, WITH APPLICATIONS TO ASIAN OPTIONS

This paper pursues the role of Laguerre series in the explicit valuation of contingent claims in general and Asian options in particular. Motivated by Dufresne (2000) , we study how they permit one to reduce these questions to computing moments. Two alternative such Laguerre reduction approaches are proposed and analyzed. Sufficient conditions for their validity are developed as a further novel feature; these are in terms of local growth measures for the payoff functions and the densities that the paper introduces for this purpose. Our methods are exemplified by considering the benchmark valuation of Asian options. Our explicit formulas for the negative moments of the integral of geometric Brownian motion in terms of theta functions are instrumental here. They have been derived in Schröder (2003c) building on work of Dufresne (2000) , and this paper now finally develops their pertinent computational aspects.
Caring for Canines: A Survey of Dog Ownership and Parasite Control Practices in Ireland

Simple Summary Dogs are the most common pet chosen by families. Not only are they fun to be around, but they can even benefit our health by encouraging us to exercise when taking them for a walk. They can also reduce our levels of stress and anxiety by acting as a source of comfort and contact. However, living so closely with an animal comes with certain risks. People can catch a number of diseases from pets. These risks can be minimised with proper care and management of our pet dogs. In this study, we aimed to establish if owners were aware of the risks involved in keeping a pet dog and if they were taking the appropriate steps to minimise their own risk of acquiring an illness from their pet. Our results have shown that the majority of owners do not adhere to recommended parasite control practices. Many owners also do not dispose of their dogs’ faeces correctly, further increasing their infection risk. These results indicate that we, as researchers and veterinarians, need to do a better job educating the public about the risks involved in dog ownership and the simple steps that we can take to minimise those risks. Abstract Dogs are an important part of life for many people. Dog ownership can confer various health benefits to their owners, but it also presents some risks. In order to establish if dog owners were aware of these risks, an online survey of dog ownership practices was carried out. The survey was open during the month of January 2022 and received 662 responses regarding 850 individual dogs. Overall, 52% of people reported deworming their dog between zero and twice a year, which is unlikely to reduce the risk of infection to humans. The majority of dog owners (71%) reported disposing of faeces correctly; however, when comparing urban and rural environments, 33% of those in rural environments did not dispose of their dogs’ faeces at all, compared with 3% of people in urban locations. People who obtained their dog during the pandemic brought their dog to the vet and dewormed them more frequently than those who obtained their dog before the pandemic. There were no differences in how faeces was disposed of between these groups. These results indicate that we, as researchers and veterinarians, have much work to do in terms of educating dog owners about the ways in which we can reduce the risk of infection to ourselves and our communities.
Vaccination Coverage and Associated Factors of COVID-19 Uptake in Adult Primary Health Care Users in Greece

In our study, attitudes and perceptions of adult primary health care users regarding COVID-19 vaccination were evaluated. A single-center, cross-sectional study was conducted during a 1-year period (March 2021–March 2022) in a rural area in Crete, Greece. A sample of 626 self-reported questionnaires was collected at the end of the study period. Overall, 78% of respondents stated that they had received the COVID-19 vaccine. The reasons behind vaccine uptake were mainly personal beliefs and the desire to avoid professional constraints. The presence of diabetes type 2, fear of infection, and high perceived efficacy of vaccine previous flu vaccination, living with vulnerable persons, and the influence of scientific information were all significant predictors of COVID-19 vaccine uptake. On the contrary, unwillingness and/or uncertainty to be vaccinated was associated with fear of vaccine side effects, information insufficiency, media/internet information, older age, the presence of inflammatory arthritis, previous COVID-19 infection, the belief that infection confers much greater immunity than the vaccine, and attitudes against vaccinations in general were predictors against COVID-19 vaccination. In conclusion, taking into account all of the above predictors and particularly those regarding safety and vaccine effectiveness may guide future strategies appropriately tailored to specific characteristics and needs of different geographic populations.
How Pharmacists and Physicians Reach the Win/ Win

Physicians & pharmacists are partners for a common goal; they are trying to highlight the best available evidence for pharmacological treatment of a certain disease. In this short paper, I’ll concentrate on the marketing section of any pharmaceutical company which is the Drug Promotion (DP), and the importance of the medical representatives (Med Rep.) for the pharma co. when he/ she is dealing with the target physician; be very determined, I mean the situation while presenting the evidence that supports the pharmaceutical product. Incomplete or exaggerated information in DP carry the potential of misleading the physicians especially junior ones& generalists and it may result in an irrational prescription, and on the other hand it affects on both short& long term the way an expert physician is dealing or looking to you. In this short paper, I’m trying to reach a common ground of thinking between 2 different mind agendas: the physician & the Med rep.
Improving Performance of Hardware Accelerators by Optimizing Data Movement: A Bioinformatics Case Study

Modern hardware accelerator cards create an accessible platform for developers to reduce execution times for computationally expensive algorithms. The most widely used systems, however, have dedicated memory spaces, resulting in the processor having to transfer data to the accelerator-card memory space before the computation can be executed. Currently, the performance increase from using an accelerator card for data-intensive algorithms is limited by the data movement. To this end, this work aims to reduce the effect of data movement and improve overall performance by systematically caching data on the accelerator card. We designed a software-controlled split cache where data are cached on the accelerator and assessed its efficacy using a data-intensive Bioinformatics application that infers the evolutionary history of a set of organisms by constructing phylogenetic trees. Our results revealed that software-controlled data caching on a datacenter-grade FPGA accelerator card reduced the overhead of data movement by 90%. This resulted in a reduction of the total execution time between 32% and 40% for the entire application when phylogenetic trees of various sizes were constructed.
The Use of Artificial Intelligence in the Diagnosis and Classification of Thyroid Nodules: An Update

Simple Summary The amount of diagnosed thyroid nodules increases every year. Many researchers have tried to optimize the process of classifying and diagnosing thyroid nodules using artificial intelligence. The aim of this study was to assess the latest applications of artificial intelligence in diagnosing and classifying thyroid nodules. The focus was on innovations in the use of artificial intelligence in the field of ultrasonography and microscopic diagnosis, although other applications were reviewed as well. In total, we analyzed 930 papers published from 2018 to 2022. Abstract The incidence of thyroid nodules diagnosed is increasing every year, leading to a greater risk of unnecessary procedures being performed or wrong diagnoses being made. In our paper, we present the latest knowledge on the use of artificial intelligence in diagnosing and classifying thyroid nodules. We particularly focus on the usefulness of artificial intelligence in ultrasonography for the diagnosis and characterization of pathology, as these are the two most developed fields. In our search of the latest innovations, we reviewed only the latest publications of specific types published from 2018 to 2022. We analyzed 930 papers in total, from which we selected 33 that were the most relevant to the topic of our work. In conclusion, there is great scope for the use of artificial intelligence in future thyroid nodule classification and diagnosis. In addition to the most typical uses of artificial intelligence in cancer differentiation, we identified several other novel applications of artificial intelligence during our review.
The Role of Prior Online Learning Experience on Student Community of Inquiry, Engagement, and Satisfaction Scores

The increase in online education creates a need to explore how learning outcomes, student satisfaction, and student perceptions about online courses are affected by prior online learning experiences. This study examined the role of prior online learning experience on students’ perceived cognitive presence, social presence, teaching presence, engagement, and satisfaction. The archival data of online learners at a large midwestern university (a total n=878), including survey responses related to Community of Inquiry (CoI), engagement, and satisfaction, were utilized to conduct statistical analyses to determine whether student responses differed by the number of online courses taken previously. We found that only social presence scores (CoI sub-scale) and emotional engagement scores (engagement sub-scale) differed by the number of the online courses taken. However, the effect size was small. We concluded that student satisfaction, engagement, and perceptions of cognitive and teaching presence are not related to prior online course experiences. Implications are discussed.
Dispersion Performances and Fluorescent Behaviors of Naphthalic Anhydride Doped in Poly(acrylic acid) Frameworks for pH-Sensitive Ibuprofen Delivery via Fractal Evolution

The pH-responsive fluorescent P(1,8-naphthalic anhydride (NA)-acrylic acid (AA)) matrix was successfully prepared by a doping method using poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) as a pH-sensitive polymer and NA as a fluorescent tracer. The fluorescent behaviors of the used NA dispersed in PAA frameworks were demonstrated based on fractal features combined with various characterizations, such as small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) patterns, photoluminescence (PL) spectra, scanning electron microscope (SEM) images, thermogravimetry (TG) profiles, Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, and time-resolved decays. The effects of NA-doping on the representative fluorescent P(NA-AA) were investigated, in which the fluorescent performance of the doped NA was emphasized. The results indicated that aggregated clusters of the doped NA were gradually serious with an increase in NA doping amount or extension of NA doping time, accompanied by an increase in mass fractal dimension (Dm) values. Meanwhile, the doped NA presented stable fluorescent properties during the swelling–shrinking process of PAA. Ibuprofen (IBU) was used as a model drug, and fractal evolutions of the obtained P(NA-AA) along with the drug loading and releasing behaviors were evaluated via SAXS patterns, in which the drug-loaded P(NA-AA) presented surface fractal (Ds) characteristics, while the Dm value varied from 2.94 to 2.58 during sustained drug-release in pH 2.0, indicating occurrences of its structural transformation from dense to loose with extension of IBU-releasing time. Finally, the cytotoxicity and cellular uptake behaviors of the obtained P(NA-AA) were preliminarily explored. These demonstrations revealed that the resultant P(NA-AA) should be a potential intelligent-responsive drug carrier for targeted delivery.
Analyzing Mixing in Periodic Flows by Distribution Matrices: Mapping Method

A novel mapping method presented analyzes the long-term efficiency of distributive mixing in Stokes flows. It uses the results of an accurate front tracking technique to calculate a distribution or mapping matrix. For the first time, it is possible to efficiently investigate the influence of geometric configurations and operating conditions on overall mixing quality. The technique was tested using the mixing dynamics of a model time periodic prototype flow; namely Stokes flow in a 2-D, lid-driven cavity. The method however, can also be extended to examine more realistic spatially periodic flows such as static mixers or twin screw extruders.
High-energy gamma radiation from Geminga observed by EGRET

The Energetic Gamma Ray Experiment Telescope (EGRET) on the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory (CGRO) has carried out extensive studies of the gamma-ray source Geminga. Following the detection of pulsed X-rays (Halpern and Holt 1992) from Geminga, Bertsch et al. (1992) reported the same 237 ms periodicity to be visible in the EGRET data. A full analysis of the Geminga source shows that the energy spectrum is compatible with a power law with a spectral index of -1.50 +/- 0.08 between 30 MeV and 2 GeV. A falloff relative to the power law is observed for energies above 2 GeV. Phase-resolved spectra also show power laws with high-energy cutoffs, but with significant variation of the spectral index with phase. No unpulsed emission is observed. No evidence for time variation was found within the EGRET observations.
Mechanical Properties, Microstructural, and Deep Drawing Formability Analysis on the Annealed CuZn35 Brass Alloy for Cartridge Application

Deep drawing has become the most general method in cartridge manufacturing process which use brass alloy as the main component. To perform deep drawing on this type of alloy, there are several physical and mechanical properties re-quired, especially the ductility and hardness. In this paper, the CuZn35 brass alloy, which still does not fulfill the requirements, had been annealed in the several annealing parameters (holding time and annealing temperature) to achieve the re-quired properties. It also discussed the microstructure evolution in every annealing parameter and the affiliation to its mechanical properties. The temperature annealing process of CuZn35 brass alloy was conducted in 300, 400, 500, and 600°C for 60 minutes. Then, the heat-treated product will be observed to get the composition, microstructure, hardness, strength, and also deep drawing formability. The-ꞵ precipitation was successfully eliminated by annealing process which significantly decrease its hardness and tensile strength whereas the increased grain size affect the ductility.
Atlantic Undersea Test and Evaluation Center (AUTEC)

The Navy's Atlantic Undersea Test and Evaluation Center in the Bahama Islands is one of the largest facilities in the world in which acoustics plays a major role as both a measurement variable and measurement tool. The aims, activities, and purposes of AUTEC will be presented in a 20‐min film that will serve as an introduction to the three following papers on the weapons, acoustic, and sonar ranges.