Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
CHALLENGES OF ACCEPTANCE AND USAGE OF A LEARNING MANAGEMENT SYSTEM AMONGST ACADEMICS

Universities across the globe have invested heavily in a Learning Management System (LMS); however, the adoption and usage is hindered by a number of factors. Recently, a University of Technology (UoT) in KwaZulu-Natal embarked on a major re-circulation drive to embrace student-centred learning. However, this process was stalled by slow maturity use of LMS. Therefore, this paper evaluates the acceptance and usage of an approved LMS amongst academics at a UoT. An e-survey in which 111 academics participated, all having teaching designations, was superseded by semi-structured interviews. A significant finding of the technology acceptance model (TAM) was impugned, in reflecting the gap between low actual usage and high acceptance. Assessments seemed to be given lowest priority, with aspects such as communication and course management receiving highest priority. Little utilized were collaboration tools. Such include blogs, wikis, and a discussion forum. Dedicated training on features of the learning management system, covering its educationally progressive aspects, is of the essence. TAM may require closer scrutiny to account for successful LMS usage at universities.
Acoustic Radiation from Instability Waves within Supersonic Jets Obtained via Theory and Large-Eddy Simulation

The impact of large-scale turbulent structures on the aerodynamic flow-field and far-field radiated noise is investigated through analysis of an under-expanded heated supersonic jet. The onset and statistics of these structures are examined via well-established instability wave theory and large-eddy simulation (LES). The jet operating conditions are M j = 1.469, total temperature ratio 3.20, and Reynolds number 6.26 × 105. Predicted instability wave shape functions show good agreement with wavenumber space of LES in near-nozzle regions for azimuthal modes zero and one. A stochastic theory and the Ffowcs Williams-Hawkings equation are used to predict radiated noise from the instability waves and LES, respectively. Sound pressure levels at the peak jet noise frequency in the far-field are in relative agreement between instability theory, LES, and experimental measurement. The noise in the upstream radiation direction is dominated by the fine-scale and broadband shock-associated noise, which is well predicted by LES that agrees with measurement. Acoustic radiation in the upstream direction from the instability waves is dominated by other noise sources but present and quantified. Limitations of linear instability theory are apparent for jet flow-fields that contain shock-cell structures.
Towards Automatic Road Environment Mapping with Sparse Weakly Supervised Localization Models

We propose a novel weakly supervised localization method based on Fisherembedding of low-level features (CNN, SIFT), and model sparsity at the component level. Fisher-embedding provides an interesting alternative to raw low-level features, since it allows fast and accurate scoring of image subwindows with a model trained on entire images. Model sparsity reduces overfitting and enables fast evaluation. We also propose two new techniques for improving performance when our method is combined with nonlinear normalizations of the aggregated Fisher representation of the image. These techniques are i) intra-component metric normalization and ii) first-order approximation to the score of a normalized image representation. We evaluate our weakly supervised localization method on real traffic scenes acquired from driver’s perspective. The method dramatically improves the localization AP over the dense non-normalized Fisher vector baseline (16 percentage points for zebra crossings, 21 percentage points for traffic signs) and leads to a huge gain in execution speed (91× for zebra crossings, 74× for traffic signs).
Elastoplastic constitutive modeling for concrete: a theoretical and computational approach

This article presents a study of the plasticity model applicability to concrete in a theoretical framework that generalizes the formulation of constitutive models for physically nonlinear analysis of structures. In this sense, the theoretical framework for the computational implementation of the plasticity mathematical theory is described, detailing the models formulations capable to describe the inelastic behavior of concrete. The loading surfaces associated to Drucker Prager and Ottosen criterion are highlighted. Furthermore, the Cutting Plane return mapping algorithm, necessary to the integration of constitutive relations that govern the behavior of the material in the context of computational plasticity, is described. Finally, numerical simulations are presented, such as the direct tension loading and three-point bending tests. The results of these simulations are compared with those from the literature to verify the model stability and accuracy.
EXTRA-HEPATIC INVOLVEMENT IN CHRONIC LIVER DISEASES Brain: Looking beyond

Hepatopulmonary syndrome (HPS) is found in 4-47% of patients with chronic liver disease and is characterized by intrapulmonary vascular dilatations, mainly located in the basal parts of the lung, resulting in disturbed gas exchange. The pathogenic basis of HPS consists of a combination of excessive endothelin-1 release and bacterial translocation, resulting from liver injury and/or portal hypertension, that leads to [1] nitric and carbon monoxide mediated and [2] angiogenesis mediated intrapulmonary vasodilation. Mortality is around 30% after liver transplantation for severe HPS, especially if PaO2 is below 50 mmHg. The diagnosis of HPS is made by calculating the alveolar-arterial oxygen gradient and by performing contrast echocardiography or macroaggregated albumin lung scan. Medical therapy fails and the only long-term treatment available is liver transplantation. More than 85% of the patients experience significant improvement or complete resolution of hypoxemia, which however may take more than 1 year. Hepatopulmonary syndrome
Influence of body mass index on patellofemoral pain

Introduction: Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome is characterized by retro-patellar and peripatellar pain during squatting, kneeling and running whose intensity can be related to Body Mass Index (BMI). Objective: To evaluate the relationship between overweight, pain and function in women with Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome (PFPS). Method: Cross-sectional observational study of fifty-four women with PFPS assessed in the period between January and December 2015, in the physiotherapy outpatient clinic of a tertiary hospital in the city of São Paulo. To verify the variables of pain at rest, at effort and function, the Numerical Pain Rating Scale (NPRS) and the Kujala Anterior Knee Pain Scale (AKPS) were used. The participants were divided into two groups, according to the BMI categories defined by the World Health Organization (WHO): Group 1, composed of women with normal BMI (18-24.9 kg/m2), with 36 patients, and group 2 composed of overweight women (25-29.9 k/m2), with 18 patients. Comparison between groups of pain at rest and effort and AKPS were performed using Student's t-test and Mann-Witney with statistical significance p < 0,05.
SOME RESULTS ON IMPLICIT MULTISTEP FIXED POINT ITERATIVE SCHEMES FOR CONTRACTIVE-LIKE OPERATORS IN CONVEX METRIC SPACES

In this paper, we establish and prove strong convergence, T-stability, convergence rate and data dependence results for multistep fixed point iterative schemes using a class of contractive-like operators in convex metric spaces. Our results show that the proposed implicit multistep schemes have better convergence rate than the well-known explicit multistep schemes and multistep SP-iterative schemes. This is shown by analytical processes and validated with numerical examples. Several known results in the literature are embedded in these present results.
COPD_A_217474 1..13

Olaf Holz * David S DeLuca * Stefan Roepcke Thomas Illig Klaus M Weinberger 4–6 Christian Schudt Jens M Hohlfeld 1,2 1Fraunhofer ITEM, Biomedical Research in Endstage and Obstructive Lung Disease Hannover (BREATH), German Center for Lung Research, Hannover, Germany; 2Hannover Medical School, Biomedical Research in Endstage and Obstructive Lung Disease Hannover (BREATH), German Center for Lung Research, Hannover, Germany; 3Department of Biomarker Development, Takeda Pharmaceuticals International GmbH, Zürich, Switzerland; 4Biocrates Life Sciences AG, Innsbruck, Austria; 5Research Group for Clinical Bioinformatics, Private University for Health Sciences, Medical Informatics and Technology, Hall in Tirol, Austria; 6sAnalytiCo Ltd, Belfast, Ireland; 7Department of Biochemistry, ALTANA, Konstanz, Germany
RMHP_A_235580 13..26

1Business School, Guangxi University Nanning, Guangxi, 530004, People’s Republic of China; 2Postdoctoral Station of Statistical, School of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Entrepreneurship Institute, Guangzhou University, Guangzhou 510006, People’s Republic of China; 3Postdoctoral Station of Management Science and Engineering, College of Economics and Management, Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Nanjing 211100, People’s Republic of China Background: This study examines the role of the agriculture and foreign remittances in mitigating rural poverty in Pakistan. Methods: The data used relate to the period 1980–2017 and are sourced from theWorld Bank and the Economic Survey of Pakistan produced annually by the Ministry of Finance. The ARDL technique was used to calculate the effects of agriculture and foreign remittances on rural poverty. Results: The results of this study indicate that agriculture helps to mitigate rural poverty in the long run, but that foreign remittances are more effective in reducing rural poverty in the short run. In this paper, results confirm the existence of correlations between agriculture, foreign remittances and rural poverty. Conclusion: The outcomes of this study support the call for the government to introduce agricultural credit schemes for the rural population of Pakistan. Moreover, the government should take steps to enhance diplomatic relations with other countries and simplify policies and visa application procedures for Pakistani workers. Finally, this study suggests the government should simplify procedures for the transfer of foreign remittances to Pakistan.
Mohammad Reza Koushki.pmd

Pasteurized milk is consumed widely in all socioeconomic classes and consider as the main source of milk for people in Iran. In recent years increased price of pasteurized milk caused by elimination of subsidies resulted decrease in milk consumption and also a possibility of adulterations which may lead to low microbial quality of the products. The present investigation envisaged the microbiological quality of 103 pasteurized milk samples collected randomly from fruit and vegetables markets in Tehran and evaluated them by enumeration of aerobic mesophilic microorganisms, coliforms and detection of Escherichia coli on expiration date. Coliforms, Escherichia coli and aerobic mesophilic microorganisms were in compliance with Iranian National Standard limits in 78.6%, 92/ 9% and 40.8% of the studied samples, respectively. No significant difference was found between pouches and bottles in terms of Escherichia coli. To conclude, the present study confirmed the partial satisfactory quality of pasteurized milk packages in Tehran urban area. Promotion of public awareness about consumption of pasteurized milk and precise implementation of HACCP and its prerequisite programs to achieve high quality pasteurized milk is recommended.
Secondary seed dispersal by ants in Neotropical cerrado savanna: species‐specific effects on seeds and seedlings of Siparuna guianensis (Siparunaceae)

1. Most woody plant species in tropical habitats are primarily vertebratedispersed, but interactions between ants and fallen seeds and fruits are frequent. This study assesses the species-specific services provided by ants to fallen arillate seeds of Siparuna guianensis, a primarily bird-dispersed tree in cerrado savanna. The questions of which species interact with fallen seeds, their relative contribution (versus vertebrates) to seed removal, and the potential effects on seedling establishment are investigated. 2. Seeds are removed in similar quantities in caged and control treatments, suggesting that ants are the main dispersers on the ground. Five ant species attended seeds. Pheidole megacephala (≈0.4 cm) cooperatively transported seeds, whereas the smaller Pheidole sp. removed the seed aril on spot. Large (> 1.0 cm) Odontomachus chelifer, Pachycondyla striata, and Ectatomma edentatum individually carried seeds up to 4 m. Bits of aril are fed to larvae and intact seeds are discarded near the nest entrance. 3. Overall, greater numbers of seedlings were recorded near ant nests than in control plots without nests. This effect, however, was only detected near P. megacephala and P. striata nests, where soil penetrability was greater compared with controls. Soil nutrients did not differ between paired plots. 4. This study confirms the prevalence of ant–seed interactions in cerrado and shows that ant-derived benefits are species-specific. Ant services range from seed cleaning on the spot to seed displacement promoting non-random spatial seedling recruitment. Although seed dispersal distances by ants are likely to be shorter than those by birds, our study of S. guianensis shows that fine-scale ant-induced seed movements may ultimately enhance plant regeneration in cerrado.
CEOR_A_223760 23..33

Katharina Verleger John R Penrod Melinda Manley Daumont Caitlyn Solem 4 Linlin Luo Cynthia Macahilig Nadine Hertel 1Pharmerit International, Berlin, Germany; 2Bristol-Myers Squibb, Princeton, NJ, USA; 3Bristol-Myers Squibb, Braine-L’alleud, Belgium; 4Pharmerit International, Bethesda, MD, USA; 5Medical Data Analytics, Parsippany, NJ, USA; 6Bristol-Myers Squibb, Uxbridge, UK Purpose: Advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (aNSCLC; stage IIIB/IV) presents a substantial clinical burden to society; reliable estimates of its economic burden are lacking. Therefore, this study aimed to quantify real-world health care resource utilization (HCRU) and costs of patients with squamous (SQ) and non-SQ (NSQ) aNSCLC who received two or more lines of treatment (2L+) in Europe, and to describe cost-predictors. Methods: The LENS (Leading the Evaluation of Non-squamous and Squamous NSCLC) retrospective chart review study collected data from 2L+ patients with aNSCLC diagnosed between 07/2009 and 08/2011 (wave 1) or 07/2010 and 09/2012 (wave 2) in France, Germany, Italy, Spain, England, the Netherlands, and Sweden. Patients were followed from diagnosis through most recent visit/death. A weighted average of countryspecific unit costs (2018 Euro) was applied to systemic anti-cancer therapy usage and HCRU (hospital/emergency department visit, surgery, radiotherapy, ancillary care, biomarker testing) to determine the total cost from aNSCLC diagnosis to death. Generalized linear models (gamma distribution, log link) were used to assess clinical and demographic predictors. Results: Of 973 2L+ aNSCLC patients, median overall survival (OS) was 1.5 years from advanced diagnosis (range: 0.2–5.3; median OS: 1.4 [SQ], 1.6 [NSQ]), 79.0% died during follow-up. Weighted mean total per-patient costs were €21,273, ranging from €17,761 (England) to €30,854 (Sweden), and €15,446 (SQ) to €26,477 (NSQ). Systemic drug costs comprised 77.4% of total costs. Insurance status, presence of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutation, SQ histology, age, alcohol abuse, and year of diagnosis were significant predictors for lower total costs per patient-month, Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status (ECOG PS) ≥1 and country for higher costs. Conclusion: In the era pre-immunotherapy, HCRU and costs were substantial in aNSCLC 2L+ patients, with most of the costs accrued prior to start of 2L. NSQ patients incurred significantly higher total costs than SQ patients in all participating countries.
The Attitudes of General Education Teachers toward Inclusion program of Students with Autism in KSA

The study aimed to know The Attitudes of General Education Teachers Toward Inclusion program of Students with Autism in KSA. And use Descriptive method. The sample of the study consisted of (93) male and female with General education teachers in KSA. Questionnaire trends were applied to data collection. The results showed that the did not indicate considerable differences among educators’ attitudes regarding their current grade level, the results did not indicate a considerable overall attitude based on gender. In other words, attitudes concerning inclusion scores did not change between males and females, the higher the number of teaching experience, the less receptive the educators were towards involving learners with autism, especially in the regular education learning environment. In light of the results, the study suggested some recommendations.
Miocene faulting in Sierra Madre Occidental: initial rifting of the southern Gulf of California RMCG

Crustal stretching affecting western Mexico during the Neogene, and its relationship with the opening of the Gulf of California, has been widely studied and discussed for several decades. Nevertheless, the timing and kinematics of the opening is a matter of debate. Most authors essentially agree in considering the rupture of the lithosphere around the Gulf of California, as a fast process that began at ~12.5 Ma and became successful in the early Pliocene, when new oceanic crust began to form in the southern Gulf of California. However, recent studies demonstrated that the crustal stretching processes leading to the Gulf opening began in Late Oligocene as a wide rift, which subsequently focused into the present Gulf area in the early Miocene, accompanied by a slight change in the direction of extension. Eventually, after subduction ceased, highly oblique transtensional deformation broke the previously extended lithosphere. In this work we present a structural study of the kinematics and time of faulting, and of mafic dikes along three transects in the southern Sierra Madre Occidental, along the southeastern margin of the Gulf. We found that the deformation associated with the beginning of the Gulf of California rifting can be grouped in three sets: 1) normal faults formed during a first phase of deformation, beginning at ~24 Ma, characterized by E-W extension; 2) normal faults and dikes formed between ~20 and 11 Ma, associated with a second deformation phase, with ENE-WSW extension; 3) E-W to NE-SW oblique slip and strike-slip faults and dikes, associated with rift accommodation zones that segment the Gulf of California rift. No significant deformation occurred in the study area after 11 Ma, time at which the extension focused in the present Gulf region. The kinematics of faulting in the study area excludes that significant oblique or lateral deformation might have occurred during the initial phase of rifting in the southern Gulf of California, coincident with the last phase of subduction.
Relationship between serum interleukin-21 and disease severity in patients with psoriasis

37 ABSTRACT Background: Psoriasis is a common, chronic cutaneous disorder with a high relapse rate. Current evidence suggests that psoriasis is a complex immune mediated inflammatory multi-factorial skin disease with a complex pathogenesis. IL-21 has an important role in the control of the growth, survival, differentiation and function of both T and B cells, and excessive production of IL-21 has been associated with the development of multiple immune-mediated diseases. IL-21 could play an important role in the production of pathogenic autoantibodies and end-organ damage in multiple immune-mediated diseases. Objective: The aim of this work was to estimate the serum level of IL-21 in psoriatic patients in comparison to normal controls and to detect any correlation between serum IL-21 level and severity of the disease. Subjects and Methods: This study included 40 patients with psoriasis and 25 healthy volunteers as controls. All patients and controls were subjected to full history taking, clinical examination (general and dermatological), severity of psoriasis was assesed by PASI score. Blood sample was collected for determination of serum IL-21 level by ELISA from patients and controls. Results: The results of this study revealed that the serum level of IL-21 in psoriatic patients was significantly higher than control group and there was a significant positive correlation between serum level of IL-21 and severity of the disease which was evaluated by PASI score. Conclusion: Serum level of IL-21 was increased in psoriatic patients in comparison to normal controls. IL-21 was positively correlated with severity of the disease evaluated by PASI score. IL-21 may play a major role in the pathogenesis and development of psoriasis and could be used as a marker for disease severity.
Mulvaney et al., Differential expression of the TPα and TPβ isoforms of the human T Prostanoid receptor during chronic inflammation of the prostate: Role for FOXP1 in the transcriptional regulation of TPβ during monocyte-macrophage

Inflammation is linked to prostate cancer (PCa) and to other diseases of the prostate. The prostanoid thromboxane (TX)A2 is a pro-inflammatory mediator implicated in several prostatic diseases, including PCa. TXA2 signals through the TPα and TPβ isoforms of the T Prostanoid receptor (TP) which exhibit several functional differences and transcriptionally regulated by distinct promoters Prm1 and Prm3, respectively, within the TBXA2R gene. This study examined the expression of TPα and TPβ in inflammatory infiltrates within human prostate tissue. Strikingly, TPβ expression was detected in 94% of infiltrates, including in Band T-lymphocytes and macrophages. In contrast, TPα was more variably expressed and, where present, expression was mainly confined to macrophages. To gain molecular insight into these findings, expression of TPα and TPβ was evaluated as a function of monocyte-tomacrophage differentiation in THP-1 cells. Expression of both TPα and TPβ was upregulated following phorbol-12-myristate-13-acetate (PMA)-induced differentiation of monocytic THP-1 to their macrophage lineage. Furthermore, FOXP1, an essential transcriptional regulator down-regulated during monocyte-to-macrophage differentiation, was identified as a key trans-acting factor regulating TPβ expression through Prm3 in THP-1 cells. Knockdown of FOXP1 increased TPβ, but not TPα, expression in THP-1 cells, while genetic reporter and chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) analyses established that FOXP1 exerts its repressive effect on TPβ through binding to four cis-elements within Prm3. Collectively, FOXP1 functions as a transcriptional repressor of TPβ in monocytes. This repression is lifted in differentiated macrophages, allowing for upregulation of TPβ expression and possibly accounting for the prominent expression of TPβ in prostate tissue-resident macrophages. Mulvaney et al., Differential expression of the TPα and TPβ isoforms of the human T Prostanoid receptor during chronic inflammation of the prostate: Role for FOXP1 in the transcriptional regulation of TPβ during monocyte-macrophage differentiation. (2019) Exp Mol Pathol. 110, 104277; PMID:31271729). Page 2 of 37
Bilateral cerebellar venous angioma

A case of posterior fossa venous angioma involving both cerebellar hemispheres and responsible for a subarachnoid hemorrhage is reported. The computed tomographic appearance was characteristic and closely corresponded to the angiographic findings. One of the draining veins of this angiomatous lesion had a transpontine course.
Inequality Comparisons with Ordinal Data

Non-intersection of appropriately-defined Generalized Lorenz (GL) curves is equivalent to a unanimous ranking of distributions of ordinal data by all Cowell and Flachaire (Economica 2017) indices of inequality and by a new index based on GL curve areas. Comparisons of life satisfaction distributions for six countries reveal a substantial number of unanimous inequality rankings. (Stone Center on Socio-Economic Inequality Working Paper)