Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
COSMOS + TAXIS | Vol 5 issue 3 + 4 | 2018

I depict civil society as a complex and adaptive phenomenon. Individuals and groups within civil society interact with each other to achieve mutually agreeable outcomes, and this gives rise to identifiable spontaneous orders of economic, communal and political relationships. Civil society is not a mere aggregation of these sub-orders but a combinatorial ensemble of them in that a multiplicity of dispositions, interests and values, and relevant feedback mechanisms, co-exist tenuously, often contradictorily and in entangled fashion. This paper describes the general processes in which alternative perspectives within civil society continuously vie against each other for widespread support, and critically appraises the suggestion that certain aspects of economic, social or political evolution portend the “decline” of civil society itself. The distinct value of the civil society concept lies in the capacity of diverse individuals to arrange mutually agreeable adjustments in the absence of domination or subjection.
Ecological preference by Anopheles gambiae complex (Diptera: Culicidae) in small natural microcosms in Maiduguri, Borno State, Arid Zone of North-E astern Nigeria

A study on ecological preference of breeding sites of Anopheles gambiae compared to other mosquito species were carried out in small natural microcosms. A total of sixteen small ponds, four each from North, South, East and West of Maiduguri Metropolitan were surveyed for the breeding and non-breeding sites for mosquitoes. In each pond mosquito larvae samples were collected by dip method after identifying species by their angular positions and later confirmed by Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR). Water samples from which collection of A. gambiae and non-Anopheles gambiae larvae were also collected and analyzed for physico-chemical properties following the standard laboratory procedures. The results revealed that, preference of breeding site of A. gambiae is dependent on the physico-chemical nature of water habitat. Of a total of 30 parameters analyzed, pairwise comparison using SPSS software revealed that 11of the physico-chemical parameters significantly varied (P<0.05) between A. gambiae and non-A. gambiae breeding sites. These parameters include Turbidity, pH, Conductivity, Temperature, Suspended solid, Sodium, Chloride, Sulphate, Calcium, Magnesium, Total hardness and Magnesium hardness. The proportion of A. gambiae in larval habitats were significantly (P<0.05) and positively correlated to these parameters. However, of the eleven parameters, PH (r = 0.429, P = 0.001), temperature (r = 0.269, P = 0.050), calcium(r = 0.256, P = 0.048) and turbidity (r = 0.515, P = 0.000), were found to be the most influential parameters that determine habitat selection for breeding. Key words: Arid zone, ecological preference, physico-chemical, Anopheles gambiae, distribution.
Filipinos' Views on the Disaster Information for the 2013 Super Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines

Super Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda) struck Visayas, the central region of the Philippines, in November 2013 and caused approximately 6,300 deaths. Despite a typhoon warning announcement, many people did not evacuate to safer places. This study focuses on the reasons behind the events that took place from the warning until the evacuation period, with the research objective of understanding how people view disaster warnings. After conducting a pretest and a pilot test, a questionnaire was distributed in both the English and Filipino languages. The survey was conducted in the affected areas in the Philippines in December 2013, which was less than 2 months after the disaster. All of the respondents experienced this typhoon because they remained in Tacloban, Cebu, Tagbilaran, and Talalora during the impact period. The results shed light on issues related to preferred disaster information, source, message, problems in receiving warnings and responses to the warnings. The findings improve the current understanding of warning systems and provide some suggestions for enhancing warnings and people’s responses to
RCLinker: Automated Linking of Issue Reports and Commits Leveraging Rich Contextual Information

Links between issue reports and their corresponding commits in version control systems are often missing. However, these links are important for measuring the quality of various parts of a software system, predicting defects, and many other tasks. A number of existing approaches have been designed to solve this problem by automatically linking bug reports to source code commits via comparison of textual information in commit messages with textual contents in the bug reports. Yet, the effectiveness of these techniques is oftentimes sub optimal when commit messages are empty or only contain minimum information, this particular problem makes the process of recovering trace ability links between commits and bug reports particularly challenging. In this work, we aim at improving the effectiveness of existing bug linking techniques by utilizing rich contextual information. We rely on a recently proposed tool, namely Change Scribe, which generates commit messages containing rich contextual information by using a number of code summarization techniques. Our approach then extracts features from these automatically generated commit messages and bug reports and inputs them into a classification technique that creates a discriminative model used to predict if a link exists between a commit message and a bug report. We compared our approach, coined as RCLinker (Rich Context Linker), to MLink, which is an existing state-of-the-art bug linking approach. Our experiment results on bug reports from 6 software projects show that RCLinker can outperform MLink in terms of F-measure by 138.66%.
Divided Landscapes of Economic Opportunity: The Canadian Geography of Intergenerational Income Mobility

Intergenerational income mobility varies significantly across Canada, with the landscape clustering into four broad regions. These are not geographically contiguous, and provincial boundaries are not the dividing lines. The important exception is Manitoba, which has noticeably less intergenerational mobility among eight indicators derived from a large administrative data set for a cohort of men and women born between 1963 and 1970. These indicators are derived for each of the 266 Census Divisions in the 1986 Canadian Census. They show that higher mobility communities are located in Southwestern Ontario, Alberta, and Saskatchewan, and tend to be correlated with lower poverty, less income inequality, and a higher share of immigrants.
Active thrusting of the Longquan Fault in the central Sichuan basin, China, and the seismotectonic behavior in the Longmen Shan fold‐and‐thrust belt

Present‐day convergence within the Longmen Shan fold‐and‐thrust belt (LSFTB) was released by the 2008 Mw 7.9 Wenchuan earthquake, which ruptured multiple thrust ramps beneath the range front structures. However, it is still unclear whether fault slip propagated eastward into the foreland, closer to densely populated areas around Chengdu. In this study, we provide constraints on the 3‐D subsurface structure, fault activity, and seismic hazards of the Longquan fault located in the central Sichuan basin, ~100 km east of the range front structures of the LSFTB. We develop a seismotectonic model and assess the activity of the Longquan fault by a combination of methods, including interpretation of seismic reflection profiles, analysis of satellite images, field mapping, trench logging, and radiocarbon dating. Our survey reveals that at least two surface‐rupturing events occurred on the Longquan fault. Our 3‐D structural model and evidence for Holocene faulting events on the Longquan fault reveals that upper crustal shortening in the Sichuan basin is accommodated by a frontal thrust system that is linked to the recently active range front blind structures by a shallow detachment. We suggest that dynamic weakening following fault activity at the Longmen Shan range front might unlock the updip portion of this shallow detachment, sending slip eastward into the foreland and to the surface along the Longquan thrust ramps. Our results have important implications for seismic hazards assessment of active frontal thrusts linked by upper crustal detachments in active fold‐and‐thrust belts around the world.
The Effect of Familism Emotions on Post-Traumatic Growth Among the Elderly in China: The Mediating Roles of Taoist Personality and Sense of Community

Purpose Post-traumatic growth is a significant social issue in the management of active aging in elderly people. This study investigates the influence of familism emotions on post-traumatic growth (PTG) of the elderly, and the mediating role of Taoist personality and sense of community (SOC) therein, to provide a scientific basis for the development of positive aging in the elderly. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted in several communities of Hubei Province in China. A total of 338 elderly people were investigated with the Familism Emotion Scale, PTG Scale, Taoist Personality Scale and SOC Scale. SPSS 23.0 was used to derive descriptive statistics and conduct a common method bias test, Pearson correlation analysis, and multiple stepwise regression analysis. Mplus 7.3 was used for structural equation modeling to test the significance of parallel mediation effects on the data. Results The results show that: (1) Familism emotions, Taoist personality and SOC are positively correlated with PTG; (2) Familism emotions, Taoist personality and SOC can all positively predict PTG in the elderly; (3) Both Taoist personality and SOC partially mediated the link between familism emotions and PTG in the elderly. Conclusion In the context of particularly constraining societal events such as COVID-19, it is necessary to pay careful attention to the impact of external environmental influences upon the elderly, such as family and community, and to encourage elderly people to cultivate a more Taoist personality. The formation of a Taoist personality offers a promising new focus for research in elderly healthcare.
Healthy aging alters the oscillatory dynamics and fronto‐parietal connectivity serving fluid intelligence

Abstract Fluid intelligence (Gf) involves logical reasoning and novel problem‐solving abilities. Often, abstract reasoning tasks like Raven's progressive matrices are used to assess Gf. Prior work has shown an age‐related decline in fluid intelligence capabilities, and although many studies have sought to identify the underlying mechanisms, our understanding of the critical brain regions and dynamics remains largely incomplete. In this study, we utilized magnetoencephalography (MEG) to investigate 78 individuals, ages 20–65 years, as they completed an abstract reasoning task. MEG data was co‐registered with structural MRI data, transformed into the time–frequency domain, and the resulting neural oscillations were imaged using a beamformer. We found worsening behavioral performance with age, including prolonged reaction times and reduced accuracy. MEG analyses indicated robust oscillations in the theta, alpha/beta, and gamma range during the task. Whole brain correlation analyses with age revealed relationships in the theta and alpha/beta frequency bands, such that theta oscillations became stronger with increasing age in a right prefrontal region and alpha/beta oscillations became stronger with increasing age in parietal and right motor cortices. Follow‐up connectivity analyses revealed increasing parieto‐frontal connectivity with increasing age in the alpha/beta frequency range. Importantly, our findings are consistent with the parieto‐frontal integration theory of intelligence (P‐FIT). These results further suggest that as people age, there may be alterations in neural responses that are spectrally specific, such that older people exhibit stronger alpha/beta oscillations across the parieto‐frontal network during abstract reasoning tasks.
Retrospective Review of Complications and Revision Rates Between Isolated Talonavicular vs Talonavicular and Subtalar (Double) Arthrodesis vs Triple Arthrodesis

Background: Hindfoot fusion procedures are common for the treatment of end-stage arthritis or deformity. Surgical treatments for these conditions include talonavicular joint (single) arthrodesis, talonavicular and subtalar (double) arthrodesis, or talonavicular, subtalar, and calcaneocuboid (triple) arthrodesis. This study evaluated the complication rate, revision surgery rate, and hardware removal rate for those treated with either single, double, or triple arthrodesis. Methods: A retrospective review was conducted for patients who underwent single (Current Procedural Terminology [CPT] code 28740), double (CPT 28725 and 28740), or triple (CPT 28715) arthrodesis to treat hindfoot arthritis/deformity (International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision [ICD-9] code: 734, International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision [ICD-10] codes: M76821, M76822, and M76829) from 2005 to 2022 using the South Carolina Revenue and Fiscal Affairs databank. Data collected included demographics, comorbidities, procedure data, and postoperative outcomes within 1 year of principal surgery. Student t test, chi-squared test, and multivariable logistic regression analysis were utilized during data analysis. Results: A total of 433 patients were identified, with 248 undergoing single arthrodesis, 67 undergoing double arthrodesis, and 118 undergoing triple arthrodesis. There was no significant difference between single, double, and triple arthrodesis in the rate of complications, hardware removals, revision surgeries, or 30-day readmission when controlling for confounding variables. However, a decrease in Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) was found to be predictive of an increase in the revision surgery rate (OR = 0.46, 95% CI 0.22-0.85, P = .02). Conclusion: We found no difference in the rate of complications, hardware removals, or revision surgeries in those undergoing single, double, or triple arthrodesis. Surprisingly we found that a lower Charlson Comorbidity Index, indicating a healthier patient had a significant relationship with a higher rate of revision surgery. Further study including radiographic indications for surgery or the impact of overall health status on revision surgery rates may further elucidate the other components of this relationship. Level of Evidence: Level III, cohort study.
Patient-Reported Experiences and Associated Factors in a Norwegian Radiotherapy Setting: An Explorative Cross-Sectional Study

Introduction Radiotherapy is the main treatment modality in cancer. There is sparse knowledge on how patients with cancer experience their radiotherapy trajectory, and which factors might be associated with patients’ experiences. Objectives The aim of the present study was to explore how adults with cancer receiving radiotherapy evaluate the quality of their care, utilizing a patient-reported experience measure, and how patient- and service-related characteristics are associated with their evaluation. Methods An explorative cross-sectional study using a self-completed questionnaire to assess patients’ radiotherapy experiences was performed. Participants were recruited consecutively, within their last week of treatment, from two different hospitals in Norway from January 2021 to January 2022. Four hundred and eighty paper questionnaires were distributed to recruited patients, 240 at each hospital. Questionnaires were self-completed at home and returned by mail. The instrument person-centered coordinated care experience questionnaire (P3CEQ) was used. In addition to this, participants completed the European Organization of Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire-C30 (EORTC QLQ-C30) and The Sense of Coherence 13 scale (SOC-13). Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, parametric tests, and unadjusted/adjusted linear regression models were estimated. Results The study included 373 patients. Patients evaluated quality of care in terms of P3CEQ scores, with a mean score of 19.5 (standard deviation = 5.4). Lowest scores were identified in areas concerning person-centeredness and service coordination. There were no significant differences in P3CEQ scores between the younger and older groups. Having a partner and better SOC-13 scores were independently associated with the overall patient-reported experience score, whereas age was not. Conclusion Patient-reported experience scores indicate that improvements are needed in some areas, such as informing and involving patients in the planning and coordination of their care. Findings suggest paying special attention to patients without a partner to offer patients the best possible care.
Effect of topical naringenin and its combination with minoxidil on enhancing hair growth in a mouse model

This study aimed to investigate the efficacy of naringenin (NAR) in reducing hair loss. Twenty-four adult Wistar Albino mice, weighing between 25-35 g and aged 6-7 weeks, were used in this research. The dorsal hair of these mice was meticulously clipped and stained subsequently. The mice were randomly divided into four groups (n=6 for each group): (1) negative control group, treated with absolute ethanol alcohol as the vehicle (2) minoxidil (5%) treated group; (3) 0.5% naringenin treated group, and (4) naringenin plus minoxidil treated group. The treatment groups had significantly higher total antioxidant capacity in tissue levels and increased serum levels of vascular endothelial growth factor compared to the control group. No significant differences were observed in keratinocyte growth factor tissue levels between the treatment and control groups. However, the medication significantly increased hair growth, hair follicle diameter expansion, and hair follicle quantity compared to the control group. The finding suggests that the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties of NAR significantly reduced hair loss in adult male mice.
Investigating the Impact of Stress on Pain: A Scoping Review on Sense of Control, Social-Evaluative Threat, Unpredictability, and Novelty (STUN Model)

Background Stress can have paradoxical effects on pain, namely hyperalgesia and hypoalgesia. Four situational characteristics activate the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis, leading to a physiological stress response: lacking Sense of control, social-evaluative Threat, Unpredictability and Novelty (STUN). This scoping review reports on the types of evidence published on the effects of STUN characteristics on pain outcomes. Databases/Data Treatment Searches of primary electronic databases were performed to identify articles published on adults between 1990 and 2021 that contained search terms on pain and stress/STUN characteristics. A total of 329 articles were included in the analysis. Results Only 3.3% of studies examined simultaneously >1 STUN component. Almost all observational studies (177/180) examined the association between perceived stress and pain without measuring physiological stress responses. Of the 130 experimental studies, 78 (60.0%) manipulated stressful characteristics through nociception, and only 38.5% assessed if/how stress manipulation impacted perceived stress. Conclusion There is a clear lack of integration of the characteristics that trigger a physiological stress response in the pain field. Only 3.3% of studies examined simultaneously more than one STUN component and there is an unequal attention given to individual components of the STUN framework. Recommendations for future research include selection of stress manipulations/measurements that are more precisely inducing/reflecting neurobiological mechanisms of stress responses to insure valid integration of scientific knowledge.
Directional multiscale modeling of images using the contourlet transform

The contourlet transform is a new extension to the wavelet transform in two dimensions using nonseparable and directional filter banks. Because of its multiscale and directional properties, it can effectively capture the image edges along one-dimensional contours with few coefficients. This paper investigates image modeling in the contourlet transform domain and its applications. We begin with a detail study of the statistics of the contourlet coefficients, which reveals their non-Gaussian marginal statistics and strong dependencies. Conditioned on neighboring coefficient magnitudes, contourlet coefficients are found to be approximately Gaussian. Based on these statistics, we constructed a contourlet hidden Markov tree (HMT) model that can capture all of contourlets' inter-scale, inter-orientation, and intra-subband dependencies. We experiment using this model in image denoising and texture retrieval. In denoising, contourlet HMT outperforms wavelet HMT and other classical methods in terms of both visual quality and peak signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR). In texture retrieval, it shows improvements in performance over wavelet methods for various oriented textures.
Molecular and serological biomarkers to predict trastuzumab responsiveness in HER-2 positive breast cancer

HER-2-positive breast cancer is characterized by its aggressive nature, poor prognosis, and reduced overall survival. The emergence of trastuzumab resistance is currently considered a global problem. The immune system plays a pivotal role in tumor progression and development. Cytotoxic T lymphocyte-associated protein-4 (CTLA-4) and other immune checkpoint proteins may be potential prognostic factors and therapeutic targets for breast cancer. This study aimed to determine the correlation between CTLA-4 expression in peripheral blood and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) serum levels and their impact on trastuzumab responsiveness in HER-2-positive patients with breast cancer. CTLA-4 expression was analyzed in peripheral blood cells using quantitative PCR, while IGF-1 serum levels were assessed through electrochemiluminescence assays. There was a significant increase in CTLA-4 expression at cycle 9, which continued to increase until it reached 4.6 at cycle 17. High IGF-1 levels were observed in newly diagnosed HER-2 positive patients before trastuzumab therapy, significantly decreasing post-therapy (p=0.001). Co-targeting HER-2 and IGF-1 receptors may reduce the risk of recurrence and improve outcomes. In addition, targeted CTLA-4 molecules may improve patient survival and prevent recurrence.
Epidemiological profile of hemophilia A in Karbala-Iraq

Hemophilia is an X-linked congenital bleeding disorder caused by a deficiency of coagulation factor VIII (FVIII) (in hemophilia A) or factor IX (FIX) (in hemophilia B) and is one of the most important hereditary conditions in Iraq. The current study tried to provide a glimpse into the epidemiological and clinical status, as well as complications and treatment used for patients with hemophilia A in Karbala, Iraq. This retrospective research was carried out by reviewing the medical records of 90 male patients diagnosed with hemophilia A registered at the Hereditary Blood Disease Center in Karbala Teaching Hospital for children in Karbala, Iraq. The data was collected from May 10, 2023, until June 15, 2023, and included age, severity, type of bleeding, therapeutic approach, chronic viral infections including hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The median age of the patients was 15 years (18.86±14.42). In this study, one-third of patients' presentations started in the first year of life. The most common type was severe hemophilia A (factor VIII activity < 1%). Consequently, more than half of the patients were treated with factor VIII concentrate. Four patients had hepatitis C, while HIV was confirmed in one patient. The epidemiological or clinical parameters of hemophilia A patients in Karbala seem similar to those in other cities in Iraq. By considering this preliminary data, further comprehensive studies for patients with hemophilia and associated complications in other provinces or cities in Iraq are highly suggested to provide a clear perspective about the prevalence and epidemiological burdens.