Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Quantification and comparison of salivary neutrophils in periodontal health and disease

Background: Neutrophils continuously migrate into the oral cavity from various sources like gingival crevicular fluid and saliva both in health and in inflammation. The migration of the neutrophils into the various tissues and into the oral cavity occurs when the host microbial interplay tips the balance favoring the initiation of the inflammatory and immune reactions which depending on the amount of the microbial load results in the development of acute and chronic infections in the susceptible host. Aim: The present study was designed to quantify and compare the oral salivary neutrophil levels in patients with gingivitis and chronic and aggressive periodontitis as well as in healthy controls, before and after scaling and root planing (SRP) and to compare the difference within the selected study groups. Materials and Methods: Forty subjects were classified into four groups, that is, healthy controls, gingivitis, and chronic and aggressive periodontitis. Oral rinse samples were collected using Hank's balanced salt solution from each patient before and after phase I periodontal therapy. Cells in the rinse samples were stained with Acridine orange, and neutrophil counts were carried out using a fluorescence microscope and a hemocytometer. Results: Baseline oral salivary neutrophil levels were maximum in the chronic periodontitis group followed by the aggressive group and then the gingivitis group. Oral salivary neutrophil levels also positively correlated to probing pocket depth, plaque index, calculus index, and gingival index in all four study groups. Maximum reduction in the oral salivary neutrophil levels after phase I periodontal therapy was seen in the gingivitis group. Conclusion: From our study, we conclude that the oral salivary neutrophil levels decreased significantly after SRP. Estimation of changes in the oral salivary neutrophil levels has the potential to aid in monitoring treatment outcomes. Thus, it suggests that it could be used as a simple, noninvasive laboratory technique to monitor the periodontal status and disease progression.
Static and Dynamic Partitions of Inequalities: A Unified Methodology for Supervisor Simplification

In the context of automated manufacturing systems, supervisor simplification is drawing increasing attention. As a special class of state specifications, generalized mutual exclusion constraints (GMECs) are a typical kind of supervisory control of Petri nets. In this note, we first propose static and dynamic partitions to reduce the size of supervisor by partitioning inequalities, i.e., GMECs, into redundant and necessary ones. The former considers the specifications themselves and exhibits higher efficiency; while the latter takes into account both specifications and reachable markings and achieves more economical supervisors. In an incremental manner, we develop Type I supervisor simplification method which has a compromised efficiency and complexity. In an integrated manner, we propose Type II supervisor simplification method that further improves efficiency and eases computational complexity. All techniques proposed in this note can be realized in an algebraic manner. Examples are presented for the sake of illustration as well as demonstration.
The Effect of Organizational Innovation and Information and Communications Technology on Firm Performance

A key lesson from the U.S. literature on the impact of ICT on productivity is that ICT can only be effective if appropriate organizational structures are in place. This article by Surendra Gera of Industry Canada and Wulong Gu of Statistics Canada provides Canadian evidence to support this view. Using the Workplace and Employee Survey, the authors find evidence that firms that implement organizational changes and introduce ICT have a higher incidence of productivity improvement, increased sales and profits, and product and process innovation than firms that do not follow this path. Their findings suggest that to be successful firms typically need to adopt ICT as part of a system or cluster of mutualy reinforcing organizational approaches.
Predictive Modelling of Heavy Metal-Metal Interactions in Environmental Setting: Laboratory Simulative Approach

Aquatic ecosystem pollution by heavy metals is a global problem and requires proactive measures and techniques in tackling the scourge. Exposure to multiple contaminants in water environment now displaces the single action of pollutants and creates a challenge for complex mixture contact management. Heavy metals at individual low acting concentrations can elicit higher toxicity on interactions with other environmental toxicants. In this study, Clariasgariepinus was exposed to the mixture of zinc and copper at predetermined ratio of 1:1 and 1:2 based on 96hLC50 index and binary interactive dynamics of the two metals calculated using the synergistic ratio model. Following the exposure, the 9hLC50 values were 84.683 mg/l and 45.875 mg/L for ratios 1:1 and 1:2, respectively. Physiological responses such as rapid opercula movement, frequent gulping of air and neurological symptoms like jerking movements, frightening and loss of balance were observed throughout the experimental period. There were antagonistic and synergistic reactions between the metalsat the two combinatorial ratios. Antagonism occurs when the metals were mixed at the ratio of 1:1 and synergism at the ratio of 1:2. We therefore recommend that joint action toxicity of metals should be taken into consideration in fixing environmental safe limits for heavy metals in order to have a complete protection of aquatic ecosystems.
A Two-Stage Modality Fusion Approach for Recognizing Human Actions

Human action recognition (HAR) task, as one of the most representative human-centric visual understanding tasks, has received extensive attention from academia and industry. The key issue of this task is to mine the feature representations that can effectively describe the characteristics of human actions. In this article, we make full use of the information from multiple modalities in video, and propose a two-stage modality fusion strategy, which effectively mitigates the modality gaps between different modalities. First, in the first-stage fusion, based on the two-stream network, homogeneous RGB image’s and optical flow’s representations are aligned and integrated through generative adversarial network (GAN) and deep belief networks (DBNs), respectively. Then, in the second-stage fusion, the features obtained in the first stage are fused with the heterogeneous skeleton features through the proposed adaptive bilinear pooling network. Finally, the fused discriminative features are input into the classifier for recognition. Through this two-stage fusion strategy, the consistent and complementary representations between different modalities are fully mined. Experimental results show that our proposed approach outperforms several other methods on NTU-RGB + D (CS 94.5%, CV 98.8%), NTU-RGB + D 120 (CS 93.4%, CSet 94.8%), Northwestern UCLA ( ${V}_{\text {1,2}}^{{3}} 97.2$ %), and Penn Action datasets (Top1 99.8%).
Effect of Trees Cover on Soil Fertility in Western Rajasthan

Investigations were carried on changes in soil fertility status under six different trees vegetation cover over barren sand dunes. Tbe overall fertility improved under trees cover in comparison to barren sand dunes. Organic carbon increaseed from 0.03 to 0.47 per cent and total N from 0.007 to 0.043 per cent under P. cineraria cover wbereas, available P 2 O S increased from 14.95 to 33.68 kg/ha under the same cover. Among all six tree species tried viz. P. juliflora, A. tortilis, P. cineraria, A. senegal and Capparis decidua the minimum improvement was observed under P. juliflora cover.
RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS, ROAD SURFACE CONDITIONS AND WINTER MAINTENANCE MEASURES. ACCIDENT RISKS FOR DIFFERENT QUANTITIES OF SNOW FALL

The knowledge of the impact on traffic safety of different winter maintenance measures is incomplete. A necessary precondition for estimates of such impacts is the knowledge of how the accident risk varies with the amount of snowfall. This study was carried out to provide a better basis for such estimations. More specifically the aim was to quantify differences in traffic accident risk for days with different quantities of snowfall. Large amounts of data were analyzed in the investigation. They comprised data on all accidents on paved national roads during 1977-80 as well as road data and corresponding weather statistics. The data were originally comprised for other purposes which has restricted the analysis. The results show a rapid increase in accident risk for small and moderate amounts of snowfall. For snowfall with more than 5-10 mm precipitation the accident risk stabilizes at a level 3-5 times higher than the normal risk. This level is somewhat lower -2.5-3 times -when precipitation consists of a mixture of rain and snow. When data are subdivided the results show that the increased accident risk is substantially higher for better roads and higher speed limits and -as expected -higher in the South than in the North of Sweden. Even though the results are based on old data they are most likely applicable for the winter road maintenance criteria used today, as only minor adjustments have been made since the seventies. (a)
Rift Valley Fever Virus—Infection, Pathogenesis and Host Immune Responses

Rift Valley Fever Virus is a mosquito-borne phlebovirus causing febrile or haemorrhagic illness in ruminants and humans. The virus can prevent the induction of the antiviral interferon response through its NSs proteins. Mutations in the NSs gene may allow the induction of innate proinflammatory immune responses and lead to attenuation of the virus. Upon infection, virus-specific antibodies and T cells are induced that may afford protection against subsequent infections. Thus, all arms of the adaptive immune system contribute to prevention of disease progression. These findings will aid the design of vaccines using the currently available platforms. Vaccine candidates have shown promise in safety and efficacy trials in susceptible animal species and these may contribute to the control of RVFV infections and prevention of disease progression in humans and ruminants.
THE INFLUENCE OF THE PRESENCE OF IRON IN HIGHLY ALKALINE POLYALUMINIUM CHLORIDES ON THE EFFECTIVENESS OF PRECURSORS OF DISINFECTION BY-PRODUCTS REMOVAL

The mechanism of coagulation with highly alkaline polyaluminum chlorides is well understood, but there is a lack of information on the effect of the presence of iron in these coagulants on the efficiency of purifying water with increased contents of natural organic matters among which humic substances are precursors of disinfection by-products. The dissolved forms of organic substances are the most problematic with regard to water treatment because major concern is the formation of disinfection by products resulting from reactions between dissolved organic matter fractions and disinfectants. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of precursors of disinfection by-products removal using highly alkaline polyaluminium chlorides that had different alkalinity and iron content. In the water after the coagulation process a value of SUVA254 was calculated because this indicator correlates well with dissolved organic matter reactivity and disinfection by-products. The analysis of the obtained results showed that the effectiveness of dissolved organic matter removal was determined by the formation of colored iron-organic complexes.
The “White Layer Approach”: A Graftless Gingival Augmentation Technique following Vertical GBR with Occlusive Titanium Barriers

Guided bone regeneration surgery always leads to a deformation of the soft tissues consequent to passivation of the flap. In this article, a graftless technique for the restoration of the vestibular depth and for the augmentation of adherent soft tissue, called the “white layer approach”, is proposed after a vertical GBR procedure in posterior areas. Six patients (five males and one female) with vertical bone atrophy were enrolled in the study and underwent three-dimensional bone augmentation with titanium barriers. After 6 months, during the second-stage surgery, a 0.5 mm thick layer of white pseudo-periosteum was observed underneath the titanium barrier and over the newly formed bone. The buccal portion of the pseudo-periosteum was left intentionally exposed, in order to promote the spontaneous formation of new adherent gingiva and the restoration of the original depth of the fornix. The implant insertion was then planned 3 months after the WLA in a conventional procedure. The buccal adherent soft tissue height was measured from the crestal point to the most apical point, using a periodontal probe, before the barrier removal at 3 months after the white layer approach (WLA). In all patients, a gain in adherent soft tissue varying from 5 to 8 mm was observed; the average adherent soft tissue gain (ASTG) was 6.75 mm. The vertical bone height was measured by CT scans at baseline and before the implant placement, and showed an average vertical bone gain (AVBG) of 4.08 mm. Within the limitations of this study, vertical GBR with titanium occlusive barriers (OTB) associated with the white layer approach (WLA) may represent a simplified technique for hard and soft tissue augmentation in posterior areas, even without a free gingival graft.
Survivability of freeze- and spray-dried probiotics and their effects on the growth and health performance of broilers

Background and Aim: Many strains of probiotics have been exploited and used as animal dietary supplements for broiler production. The efficacy and survival of probiotics during production may reflect better activities of the probiotics in the host. This study investigated the effects of freeze- and spray-drying on the survivability and properties of probiotics and their ability to improve the growth and health performance of broilers. Materials and Methods: Probiotic powders of four strains of lactic acid bacteria, Enterococcus faecium CA4, Enterococcus durans CH33, Ligilactobacillus salivarius CH24, Pediococcus acidilactici SH8, and Bacillus subtilis KKU213, were prepared using rice bran/chitosan/carboxy methyl cellulose as the carrier. The survival of each probiotic strain was investigated under stress conditions, including freeze-drying, spray-drying, and simulated gastrointestinal conditions. The body weight gain (BWG) and intestinal histomorphology were determined to assess broiler growth performance. Results: All dried probiotics yielded a high survival rate during freeze-drying (95.8–98.6%) and spray-drying (94.4–98.2%). In addition, an analysis of the main effect revealed that the effectiveness of freeze-drying was higher than that of spray-drying in minimizing the loss of cell viability. The antimicrobial activity of all immobilized dried probiotic strains against Salmonella was maintained. The immobilized probiotics tolerated a low pH value of 2.0 and 0.5% (w/v) bile salt. Probiotic administration of a mixture of the five dried probiotics to 1-day-old hatched male broilers at early and late ages resulted in potential colonization in the broiler intestine, and enhancements in the BWG, lipid metabolism, and gut health (villus height and cryptal depth) were observed in the probiotic-treated groups. Conclusion: The administration of three doses of the spray-dried probiotic mixture at days 15, 17, and 19 after hatching was sufficient to achieve long-term growth and health benefits in broilers. This finding might provide a cost-effective alternative to the administration of commonly used antibiotics in broiler production.
The Curious Case of Neural Text Degeneration

Despite considerable advancements with deep neural language models, the enigma of neural text degeneration persists when these models are tested as text generators. The counter-intuitive empirical observation is that even though the use of likelihood as training objective leads to high quality models for a broad range of language understanding tasks, using likelihood as a decoding objective leads to text that is bland and strangely repetitive. In this paper, we reveal surprising distributional differences between human text and machine text. In addition, we find that decoding strategies alone can dramatically effect the quality of machine text, even when generated from exactly the same neural language model. Our findings motivate Nucleus Sampling, a simple but effective method to draw the best out of neural generation. By sampling text from the dynamic nucleus of the probability distribution, which allows for diversity while effectively truncating the less reliable tail of the distribution, the resulting text better demonstrates the quality of human text, yielding enhanced diversity without sacrificing fluency and coherence.
Well-being, character strengths, and depression in emerging adults

Introduction Emerging adulthood is a period of transition between adolescence and adulthood, during which individuals explore different roles and possibilities. This period is often characterized by high levels of stress and uncertainty, which can increase the risk of depression. The aim of this study was to investigate the associations between emerging adulthood dimensions, well-being, character strengths and depression, as well as to verify the differences in the levels of these elements among different groups of depressive symptomatology. Methods Participants were 1,060 individuals (741 females, 305 males) between the ages of 18 and 30 years (M = 22.3, SD = 3.72). Spearman’s correlation, linear regression, and Kruskal- Wallis with pairwise post-hoc analyses were used to analyze the data. Results There were significant positive correlations between emerging adulthood dimensions, well-being, and character strengths, and negative correlations between these variables and depression. There were also significant differences in the means of the evaluated constructs among the symptomm groups. Discussion The findings suggest that emerging adulthood dimensions, well-being, and character strengths are all associated with depression in emerging adults and have important implications for the provision of interventions in health and education for emerging adults. The study provides a deeper understanding of the factors influencing depression during emerging adulthood and emphasize the importance of promoting positive psychology elements and developing personalized interventions for emerging adults. This also suggest that public policies related to mental health and education should take into account the unique needs of emerging adults.
Field test of a new snow-particle counter (SPC) system

The optical system of the snow-particle counter (SPC), which was developed by Schmidt in 1977, has been improved. A laser diode is used as a light source, achieving uniform sensitivity to a blowing snow particle regardless of the location of particle trajectory within a sampling volume. The light entering a slit, which may be affected by a blowing snow particle, is perfectly detected by use of a piano-cylindrical lens and a dual-type photodiode. A signal processor has been developed to get output voltage proportional to the mass flux of blowing snow. From the estimates based on blowing snow characteristics and wind speed profile, the new SPC system can accurately detect all the particles of effective sizes at least at a height above 0.1 m when the wind speed at a height of 1 m is less than 15 m s−1. Considering the Fraunhofer diffraction by both the wire and the particle, the relation between a particle diameter and sensor output of the new SPC system is derived from the calibration with spinning wires. Mass flux obtained with the new SPC system was found to be close to that with a snow trap. The system was operated continuously for at least nine days using two 35 A h lead batteries.
Sarcopenia Transitions and Influencing Factors Among Chinese Older Adults With Multistate Markov Model

Abstract Background and Objectives Little is known about the sarcopenia transition process across different stages among Chinese community-dwelling older adults. We aimed to explore dynamic transitions of sarcopenia and its influencing factors in Chinese older adults. Research Design and Methods Data were derived from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study. A total of 2856 older adults with complete data in the 2011, 2013, and 2015 waves were included in our study. Participants were categorized into 3 states: no sarcopenia, possible sarcopenia, and sarcopenia according to the Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia 2019 (AWGS 2019) criteria. Continuous-time multistate Markov model was performed to estimate the 1-year transition probabilities and the associated factors of sarcopenia transitions. The association strength was expressed as hazard ratio and 95% confidence interval. Results The progression and reversion rates between no sarcopenia and sarcopenia state were 6.01 and 9.20 per 100 person-years, respectively. The 1-year progression probability to possible sarcopenia was higher compared with the likelihood of moving to the sarcopenia state (0.127 vs 0.034). The reversion probability to no sarcopenia was also higher among those with possible sarcopenia (0.281 vs 0.157). Older age, rural living, worse cognition status, higher chronic disease numbers, and lower nutrition status measured by body mass index accelerated the sarcopenia progression. Cognition status and body mass index level were related to higher chances of reverting. Discussion and Implications Possible sarcopenia might be a critical time window to promote sarcopenia reversion. Timely interventions aimed at delaying the progression and facilitating sarcopenia recovery should focus on improving cognitive function and nutrition levels.
The Safety of a High-Flow Nasal Cannula in Neuromuscular Disease Patients with Acute Respiratory Failure: A Retrospective Case-Series Study

(1) Background: Although Non-Invasive Ventilation (NIV) is effective in preventing mortality and endotracheal intubation in patients with Acute Respiratory Failure (ARF) linked to a neuromuscular disorder, its efficacy can be affected by patient intolerance. A High-Flow Nasal Cannula (HFNC) appears to have a significant advantage over NIV as far as patient tolerance is concerned. The aim of the study was to investigate HFNC’s safety profile in a group of consecutive Neuromuscular Disease (NMD) patients intolerant to NIV who were admitted to an Intermediate Respiratory Care Unit (IRCU) for ARF. (2) Methods: The clinical course of nine NMD patients intolerant to NIV and switched to HFNC was reported. HFNC was provided during daytime hours and NIV during the night-time to the NIV-intolerant patients. HFNC was utilized 24 h a day in those patients who were intolerant of even nocturnal NIV. (3) Results: HFNC was simple to use and it was well tolerated by all of the patients. Three out of nine patients experienced treatment failure, consisting of the need for ETI and/or death during their IRCU stay. The remaining 6 had a favorable outcome. Treatment failure was linked to the utilization of HFNC 24 h a day. (4) Conclusion: HFNC during the daytime hours, together with nocturnal NIV, seems to be a safe therapeutic approach for NMD patients with ARF. A round-the-clock use of HFNC tends to be linked to a high likelihood of failure.