Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
How Costly are Cultural Biases?

We detect and estimate the costs of cultural biases faced by discriminators by comparing peer-to-peer loans the same lenders make alone or assisted by a robo-advisor in India. We first confirm that discrimination across religions and against low-caste borrowers is substantial. We then find that discrimination is costly to discriminators: when unassisted, lenders face 8% higher default rates and earn 7.3 pp lower returns on loans to their favored groups. Inaccurate statistical discrimination—biased beliefs about borrowers’ quality—can explain our results better than taste-based discrimination because (i) economic incentives do not reduce discrimination, (ii) lenders barely override robo-advised matches to borrowers against whom they discriminated when unassisted, and (iii) low-caste lenders discriminate against low-caste borrowers more than higher-caste lenders. Cultural biases can lead to choices that are detrimental not only to those discriminated but to discriminators as well.
Aspirin and celecoxib revealed anticancer and immunomodulatory effects on colon cancer cells

Colorectal cancer is one of the most common malignancies in the world. Clinical evidence suggests that non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs ) were found to reduce the risk of colonic adenoma and colorectal cancer occurrence or recurrence and are more beneficial in acute inflammatory disorders than in chronic inflammatory diseases, implying that NSAIDs target the early stages of the inflammatory response. Celecoxib inhibits tumor initiation and tumor cell proliferation. Aspirin inhibits the constitutive isoform of the platelet enzyme cyclooxygenase- 1 (COX-1) and the inducible isoform cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) which is expressed by cytokines, and some growth factors. In this study, different concentrations of both Celecoxib and Aspirin in various sets were applied to investigate their effects on colon cancer cells (SW480) proliferation and cytokines production. Our result reported a significant decrease in cells viability after the treatment with aspirin and celecoxib alone or in combination. Celecoxib significantly decreased IL-6 levels, while Aspirin treatment showed no significant change in IL-6, IL-12, and TNF- α levels. In conclusion, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) have pronounced anti-proliferative effects on colorectal cancer cell lines.
Scalable graph kernels

Graph-structured data are becoming more and more abundant in many fields of science and engineering, such as social network analysis, molecular biology, chemistry, computer vision, or program verification. To exploit these data, one needs data analysis and machine learning methods that are able to efficiently handle large-scale graph data sets. Successfully applying machine learning and data analysis methods to graphs requires the ability to efficiently compare and represent graphs. Standard solutions to these problems are either NP-hard, not expressive enough, or difficult to adapt to a problem at hand. Graph kernels have attracted considerable interest in the machine learning community in the last decade as a promising solution to the above-mentioned issues. Despite significant progress in the design and improvement of graph kernels in the past few years, existing graph kernels do not measure up to the current needs of machine learning on large, labeled graphs: Even the most efficient existing kernels need O(n3) runtime to compare a pair of graphs with n nodes, or cannot take into account node and edge labels. Our primary goal in this thesis is the design of efficient and expressive kernels for machine learning on graphs. We first focus on the design of generic graph kernels that can be applied to graphs with or without labels. Our main contributions to this end are the following: First, we speed up the exact computation of graphlet kernels from O(nk) to O(ndk−1) for a pair of graphs, where n is the size of the graphs, k is the size of considered graphlets, and d is the maximum degree in the given graphs. Second, we define a new kernel on graphs, the Weisfeiler-Lehman subtree kernel, which is the first graph kernel scaling linearly in the number of edges in the given graph set. In our experiments on benchmark graph data sets from chemoinformatics and bioinformatics, the Weisfeiler-Lehman subtree kernel gracefully scales up to large graphs, outperforms all existing graph kernels in speed, and yields highly competitive performance in graph classification. Third, we generalize the Weisfeiler-Lehman subtree kernel to a family of kernels that includes many known graph kernels as special cases. This generalization enables existing graph kernels to take into account more information about the graph topology, and thereby become more expressive. In the last part of this thesis, we present two examples of applications: Based on our previous contributions, we propose specialized node kernels for pixel classification in remote sensing images, and graph kernels for chemical shift prediction in structural bioinformatics. Our kernels make it possible for the first time to take advantage of the
The Interaction between Carbon Monoxide and Hydrogen Sulfide during Chronic Joint Pain in Young Female Mice

A relationship between carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrogen sulfide (H2S) has been described in different pathological conditions, but their interaction in modulating joint pain has not yet been investigated. In young female mice with monosodium acetate-induced joint degeneration and pain, we assessed: (1) the effects of CORM-2 (tricarbonyldichlororuthenium(II)dimer), a CO-releasing molecule, and CoPP (cobalt protoporphyrin IX), an inducer of heme oxygenase 1 (HO-1), administered alone and combined with low doses of two slow-releasing H2S donors, DADS (diallyl disulfide) and GYY4137 (morpholin-4-ium 4-methoxyphenyl(morpholino) phosphinodithioate dichloromethane complex) on the mechanical allodynia and loss of grip strength provoked by joint degeneration; (2) the role of Nrf2, NAD(P)H: quinone oxidoreductase 1 (NQO1) and HO-1 in the antinociceptive actions of H2S donors; (3) the impact of DADS and GYY4137 treatment on the expression of Nrf2 and several antioxidant proteins in dorsal root ganglia (DRG) and periaqueductal gray matter (PAG). Our data showed that treatment with H2S donors inhibited allodynia and functional deficits, while CORM-2 and CoPP only prevented allodynia. The Nrf2 pathway is implicated in the analgesic actions of DADS and GYY4137 during joint degeneration. Moreover, the co-administration of low doses of CORM-2 or CoPP with DADS or GYY4137 produced higher antiallodynic effects and greater recovery of grip strength deficits than those produced by each of these compounds alone. The activation of the antioxidant system caused by H2S donors in DRG and/or PAG might explain the enhancement of antinociceptive effects. These data reveal a positive interaction between H2S and CO in modulating joint pain in female mice.
“Wow! It’s Cool”: How Brand Coolness Affects the Customer Psychological Well-Being Through Brand Love and Brand Engagement

In this era of razor-edge competition, marketers strive to outperform their rivals by improving their brands. Increasing brand coolness may be the best way to do it. This study used a stimulus organism response (SOR) model by integration with brand attribution theory to conduct a cross sectional study using purposive sampling technique and surveying young consumers of smart gadgets in Pakistan. A total of 1,178 responses were received and analyzed by structural equation modeling. The results found a positive impact of brand coolness (stimulus) on brand love and brand engagement (both modeled as organism). Brand experience moderated these links. Brand love and brand engagement also mediated the relationship between brand coolness and consumer well-being and delight (both modeled as response). The findings suggest a very important contribution to theory and practice by testing unexploited outcomes of brand coolness. Especially, this study contributes to the consumer well-being literature, again an unexploited aspect of marketing literature. Despite the uniqueness of the findings, the cross sectional design of this study remains a major limitation. Future research may supplement the findings with the help of longitudinal studies. Marketers and practitioners may benefit from this study by improving the coolness of their brands so they may not only increase consumer engagement with the brand but they will also make consumers happy with their brands.
ICT Deployment for Teaching in the COVID-19 Era: A Quantitative Assessment of Resource Availability and Challenges in Public Universities

Despite the changes in human behaviour and interactions occasioned by the COVID-19 pandemic, many institutions are yet to adapt to the new normal fully. While some educational institutions switched entirely to e-learning to promote teaching and learning, others could not offer education due to physical and social restrictions. Previous studies in Africa have identified reasons for the poor ICT adoption for educational purposes. However, the degree to which these factors affect ICT utilisation is barely analysed. Using a quantitative approach, this study assessed ICT deployment for teaching in the COVID-19 era by focusing on their availability and challenges. A sample of 344 respondents from a population of 2,867 academic staff at two Nigerian public universities participated in the study. After receiving face validity from experts, a structured questionnaire was used for data collection. Cronbach alpha reliability indices of the questionnaire ranged from 0.72 to 0.94. Descriptive statistics (simple percentages, mean, and standard deviation) and inferential statistics (one-way ANOVA) were used for data analysis. Findings generally revealed a moderate extent in the availability of ICT resources in public universities. The cost of data, computer literacy, and electricity supply are challenges that significantly affected ICT deployment in the COVID-19 era. Based on this finding, it was concluded that personal and institutional challenges affect how ICT resources are deployed in public universities. It was recommended, among other things, that the management of each tertiary institution should apportion proceeds from internally generated revenue to procure ICT resources specific to the need of the school. The study provides the ground for further research into students’ use of ICT for educational purposes.
The Role of Social Support in Predicting Depression and Task Overload Among College Students

Guided by the Relationships Motivation Theory, this short-term longitudinal study examined associations between social support (i.e., relatedness), depression, and stress in the form of task overload among emerging adult, university students (N = 184 at time one; N = 105 at time two; 69.2% female). Results from a series of path models indicated a significant relationship between decreased perceptions of social support over time and an increase in perceived task overload with significant mediating effects through depressive symptomology. Implications for counseling services as well as intervention and awareness points for university professionals are discussed.
The mean exit time from a small geodesic ball in a Riemannian manifold

Soit Te le temps de sortie d'une boule geodesique de rayon e du brownien d'une variete de Riemann (M n ,g). On obtient 3 termes du developpement asymptotique de la valeur moyenne E m (Te) lorsque e→0. Si ce developpement coincide avec la metrique plate sur R n et n<6, alors g est plate. On donne un exemple d'une metrique non plate avec n=6 qui possede un developpement plat lorsque e→0. On obtient des caracterisations semblables pour les espaces symetriques de rang 1 (s n , CP n , QP n , CaP 2 ) et leurs duaux non compacts
The time-varying lead-lag relationship between index futures and the cash index and its factors

This paper investigates the time-varying lead-lag relationship between CSI 300 index futures and the cash index at intraday and daily frequencies under different market conditions, which is crucial in the price discovery research but rarely examined by the literature. Using a new method that is based on dynamic time warping and can capture the dynamic lead-lag relationship up to the intraday level, we find that index futures tend to lead the cash index by 0 – 5minutes but it occasionally lags the cash index, and this relationship is variably affected by factors according to market conditions. Specifically, at both of the intraday and daily frequencies, the lead of index futures decreases with market volatility and the relative intensity of trading activity of index futures. The results also unveil the asymmetric effects of overnight information from the cash market on the lead times of both index futures and the cash index at a daily frequency. Moreover, the synchronization of trading hours strengthened the link between the two markets. These results have significant implications for price discovery in these markets.
Adopting Voice Assistants in Online Shopping: Examining the Role of Social Presence, Performance Risk, and Machine Heuristic

Abstract Although voice commerce using voice assistants (VA) in shopping is burgeoning, little is known about the effect of the manner of interaction with VAs in shopping. To fill this gap, this study applied the concept of message interactivity by investigating the key factors that influence intention to use VAs embedded in smart speakers for online shopping. Specifically, we analyzed consumers’ responses to the adoption of VAs with the mediating variable, such as social presence and performance risk as well as the moderating variable, machine heuristic using a lab experiment (N = 62). Our results showed that individuals who experienced contingent conversations with Alexa reported greater feelings of social presence, and less perceptions of performance risk. Moreover, these social presence and performance risk mediated the effect of message interactivity on perceived usefulness, which in turn, predicted the intention to use a VA for an online commerce platform. These results also suggested that voice commerce platforms can increase the positive impact of message interactivity by amplifying machine heuristic.
Outcome Prediction in Critically-Ill Patients with Venous Thromboembolism and/or Cancer Using Machine Learning Algorithms: External Validation and Comparison with Scoring Systems

Intensive care unit (ICU) patients with venous thromboembolism (VTE) and/or cancer suffer from high mortality rates. Mortality prediction in the ICU has been a major medical challenge for which several scoring systems exist but lack in specificity. This study focuses on two target groups, namely patients with thrombosis or cancer. The main goal is to develop and validate interpretable machine learning (ML) models to predict early and late mortality, while exploiting all available data stored in the medical record. To this end, retrospective data from two freely accessible databases, MIMIC-III and eICU, were used. Well-established ML algorithms were implemented utilizing automated and purposely built ML frameworks for addressing class imbalance. Prediction of early mortality showed excellent performance in both disease categories, in terms of the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC–ROC): VTE-MIMIC-III 0.93, eICU 0.87, cancer-MIMIC-III 0.94. On the other hand, late mortality prediction showed lower performance, i.e., AUC–ROC: VTE 0.82, cancer 0.74–0.88. The predictive model of early mortality developed from 1651 VTE patients (MIMIC-III) ended up with a signature of 35 features and was externally validated in 2659 patients from the eICU dataset. Our model outperformed traditional scoring systems in predicting early as well as late mortality. Novel biomarkers, such as red cell distribution width, were identified.
Effects of Recombinant Human Epidermal Growth Factor Eye Drops Combined with Phacoemulsification on Short- and Long-Term Visual Acuity Recovery and Related Dry Eye Complications in Patients with Senile Cataract

Objective To investigate the effects of recombinant human epidermal growth factor eye drops combined with phacoemulsification on short- and long-term visual acuity recovery and related dry eye complications in patients with senile cataract. Methods Sixty patients with senile cataract cured from January 2019 to January 2021 were enrolled in our hospital. The patients in the control group were arbitrarily assigned into the control and the research group. The former group received phacoemulsification, and the latter group received recombinant human epidermal growth factor (RhEGF) eye drops combined with phacoemulsification. The curative effect, the incidence of xerophthalmia, short-term and long-term vision improvement, changes of corneal endothelial cells, serum factors, and life quality scores were compared. Results The effective rate of the research group was 90.00%, and the effective rate of the control group was 66.67%; the curative effect of the research group was higher than that of the control group (P < 0.05). The incidence of dry eye in the research group was lower than that in the control group (P < 0.05). The short-term and long-term visual acuity improvement effect of the research group was better than that of the control group (P < 0.05). After treatment, the density of corneal endothelial cells in the research group was higher than that in the control group, while the proportion of hexagonal cells and the coefficient of variation of corneal endothelial cells in the research group were lower than those in the control group (P < 0.05). After treatment, IL-6 and TNF-α in the research group were lower than those in the control group (P < 0.05). Compared with the control group, the physical function, psychological function, social function, and healthy self-cognition scores of the research group were all lower (P < 0.05). Conclusion Cataract is the leading cause of blindness in the world. With the continuous improvement of cataract phacoemulsification technology, the incidence of some serious complications has gradually lessened. Xerophthalmia is one of the most obvious and predictable complications after cataract surgery and may affect the recovery of postoperative visual acuity. Recombinant human epidermal growth factor eye drops can effectively enhance the visual acuity of patients, promote the curative effect, and strengthen the life quality.
Mechanical Properties of Concrete with Steel and Polypropylene Fibres at Elevated Temperatures

Addition of steel fibres to concrete is known to have a significant positive influence on the mechanical properties of concrete. Micro polypropylene (PP) fibres are added to concrete to improve its performance under thermal loads such as in case of fire by preventing the phenomena of explosive spalling. An optimum mixture of steel and micro PP fibres added to concrete may be utilized to enhance both the mechanical and thermal behaviour of concrete. In this work, systematic investigations were carried out to study the influence of elevated temperature on the mechanical properties and physical properties of high strength concrete without and with fibres. Three different mixtures for high strength concrete were used, namely normal concrete without fibres, Steel fibre reinforced concrete and Hybrid fibre reinforced concrete having a blend of hooked end steel fibres and micro PP fibres. The specimens were tested in ambient conditions as well as after exposure to a pre-defined elevated temperature and cooling down to room temperature. For all investigated concrete mixtures the thermal degradation of following properties were investigated: compressive strength, tensile splitting strength, bending strength, fracture energy and static modulus of elasticity. This paper summarizes the findings of the tests performed.
Pharmacogenomics of Methotrexate Pathway in Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients: Approach toward Personalized Medicine

Background: Methotrexate (MTX) is one of the most common medications used for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treatment. Single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) could potentially predict variability in therapeutic outcomes. Aim: This study aims to assess the impact of SNPs in genes encoding for the MTX pathway for predicting clinical and therapeutic responses to MTX in a cohort of Egyptian patients with RA. Subjects and Methods: Data from 107 Egyptian RA patients (aged 44.4 ± 11.4 years) treated with MTX monotherapy, for a duration of 3.7 ± 3.3 years, were collected. Genotypes of 10 SNPs from four different genes were analyzed using the allelic discrimination PCR technique. Results: The ATIC rs3821353 G/T (p = 0.034) and the C/T and C/C of SLC19A1 rs7279445 (p = 0.0018) were associated with a non-response to MTX, while DHFR rs10072026 C/T and C/C were associated with a good response (p < 0.001). Carriers of the ATIC rs382135 3 G (p = 0.001) and ATIC rs4673990 G (p < 0.001) alleles were more likely to develop RA, while the SLC19A1 rs11702425 T (p < 0.001) and GGH rs12681874 T (p = 0.003) allele carriers were more likely to be protected against RA. Carriers of the ATIC rs4673990 A/G genotype (p < 0.001) were at risk of developing RA, while carriers of the following genotypes were mostly protected against RA: ATIC rs3821353 T/T (p < 0.001), ATIC rs3821353 G/G (p = 0.004), SLC19A1 rs11702425 T/T (p = 0.001), SLC19A1 rs11702425 C/T (p = 0.003), GGH rs12681874 C/T (p = 0.004) and GGH rs12681874 T/T (0.002). Conclusion: The genotyping of genes involved in the MTX pathway may be helpful to predict which RA patients will/will not benefit from MTX, and thus, may help to apply a personalized medicine approach in RA.
Elevated CCL25 and CCR9-Expressing T Helper Cells in Salivary Glands of Primary Sjögren's Syndrome Patients: Potential New Axis in Lymphoid Neogenesis

Introduction T follicular helper (Tfh)-cells play a critical role in germinal center formation and B-cell activation, both hallmarks of primary Sjogren's syndrome (pSS). CCR9-expressing Th-cells have “Tfh-like” characteristics and are increased at mucosa-associated sites in several inflammatory conditions. Because of their unique characteristics and limited evaluation we investigated the local and systemic CCL25/CCR9-axis in pSS. Methods CCL25 protein and mRNA levels and CCR9+ Th-cells were assessed in labial salivary glands (LSG) of pSS and non-Sjogren's sicca (nSS) patients and their correlation with inflammatory and clinical parameters was evaluated. Circulating CCR9+ and CXCR5+ Th-cells were compared based on phenotypic and functional properties. Results CCL25 protein and mRNA levels were elevated in LSG from pSS versus nSS patients and associated with B-cell hyperactivity, autoimmunity and levels of IL-21 and soluble IL-7Rα. The frequency of CCR9-expressing cells was increased in the LSG of pSS patients. Circulating CCR9+ Th-cells expressing PD-1 and ICOS were elevated in pSS patients. CCR9+ Th-cells displayed higher expression of IL-7Rα and secreted higher levels of IFN-γ, IL-17, IL-4 and IL-21 as compared to CXCR5+ Th-cells, ex vivo and upon triggering with antigen or IL-7. Both CCR9+ and CXCR5+ Th-cells induced IgG production by B-cells more potently than CCR9-CXCR5- Th-cells. Conclusion Enhanced CCL25 expression in pSS LSG can facilitate attraction of CCR9+ Th-cells, secreting high levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines when triggered with antigen or IL-7. Associations with B-cell hyperactivity, autoimmunity and markers of lymphoid neogenesis indicate the CCL25/CCR9-axis plays a significant role in pSS immunopathology, representing a novel therapeutic target. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.