Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Maternal smokeless tobacco use in Alaska Native women and singleton infant birth size

Objective. To examine the effects of maternal prenatal smokeless tobacco use on infant birth size. Design. A retrospective medical record review of 502 randomly selected deliveries. Population and Setting. Singleton deliveries to Alaska Native women residing in a defined geographical region in western Alaska, 1997–2005. Methods. A regional medical center's electronic records were used to identify singleton deliveries. Data on maternal tobacco exposure and pregnancy outcomes were abstracted from medical records. Logistic models were used to estimate adjusted mean birthweight, length and head circumference for deliveries to women who used no tobacco (n=121), used smokeless tobacco (n=237) or smoked cigarettes (n=59). Differences in mean birthweight, length and head circumference, 95% confidence intervals and p‐values were calculated using non‐users as the reference group. Main Outcome Measures. Infant birthweight, crown–heel length and head circumference. Results. After adjustment for gestational age and other potential confounders, the mean birthweight of infants of smokeless tobacco users was reduced by 78g compared with that of infants of non‐users (p=0.18) and by 331g in infants of smokers (p<0.01). No association was found between maternal smokeless tobacco use and infant length or infant head circumference. Conclusions. We found a modest but non‐significant reduction in the birthweight of infants of smokeless tobacco users compared with infants of tobacco non‐users. Because smokeless tobacco contains many toxic compounds that could affect other pregnancy outcomes, results of this study should not be construed to mean that smokeless tobacco use is safe during pregnancy.
Male–female conflict and genitalia: failure to confirm predictions in insects and spiders

Some recent models suggest a new role for evolutionary arms races between males and females in sexual selection. Female resistance to males is proposed to be driven by the direct advantage to the female of avoiding male‐imposed reductions in the number of offspring she can produce, rather than by the indirect advantage of selecting among possible sires for her offspring, as in some traditional models of sexual selection by female choice. This article uses the massive but hitherto under‐utilized taxonomic literature on genitalic evolution to test, in a two‐step process, whether such new models of arms races between males and females have been responsible for rapid divergent evolution of male genitalia. The test revolves around the prediction that‘new arms races’are less likely to occur in species in which females are largely or completely protected from unwanted sexual attentions from males (e.g. species which mate in leks or in male swarms, in which males attract females from a distance, or in which females initiate contact by attracting males from a distance).
HDAC Inhibition Upregulates PD-1 Ligands in Melanoma and Augments Immunotherapy with PD-1 Blockade

Combining other agents with immune-based approaches can enhance treatment for melanoma. PDL-1 gene expression was increased after inhibition of histone deacetylases. Combining PD-1–blockade immunotherapy with histone deacetylase inhibition increased responses in a mouse model of melanoma. Expression of PD-1 ligands by tumors and interaction with PD-1–expressing T cells in the tumor microenvironment can result in tolerance. Therapies targeting this coinhibitory axis have proven clinically successful in the treatment of metastatic melanoma, non–small cell lung cancer, and other malignancies. Therapeutic agents targeting the epigenetic regulatory family of histone deacetylases (HDAC) have shown clinical success in the treatment of some hematologic malignancies. Beyond direct tumor cell cytotoxicity, HDAC inhibitors have also been shown to alter the immunogenicity and enhance antitumor immune responses. Here, we show that class I HDAC inhibitors upregulated the expression of PD-L1 and, to a lesser degree, PD-L2 in melanomas. Evaluation of human and murine cell lines and patient tumors treated with a variety of HDAC inhibitors in vitro displayed upregulation of these ligands. This upregulation was robust and durable, with enhanced expression lasting past 96 hours. These results were validated in vivo in a B16F10 syngeneic murine model. Mechanistically, HDAC inhibitor treatment resulted in rapid upregulation of histone acetylation of the PD-L1 gene leading to enhanced and durable gene expression. The efficacy of combining HDAC inhibition with PD-1 blockade for treatment of melanoma was also explored in a murine B16F10 model. Mice receiving combination therapy had a slower tumor progression and increased survival compared with control and single-agent treatments. These results highlight the ability of epigenetic modifiers to augment immunotherapies, providing a rationale for combining HDAC inhibitors with PD-1 blockade. Cancer Immunol Res; 3(12); 1375–85. ©2015 AACR.
The Influence of Sexual Attitudes on Mid-to Late-Life Sexual Well-Being: Age, Not Gender, as a Salient Factor

The influence of sexual attitudes on sexual activity and expression has been relatively understudied in older populations. In the current study, we sought to understand the role sexual attitudes have on sexual well-being among middle-aged and young-old adults. Using a diverse sample of participants over the age of 45 (N = 384), a path model was analyzed to determine whether sexual attitudes contributed to sexual well-being. The model was then compared by gender. Results indicated: a) only age-relative sexual attitudes significantly contributed to sexual well-being; and b) the model was equally robust for both men and women, even though women held slightly more positive age-relative sexual attitudes than men. Therefore, among middle-aged and young-old adults, sexual well-being may be reduced by harboring negative ageist sexual attitudes. Efforts should be made to reduce stigma surrounding continued sexual activity and expression among the aged.
Scalar field probes of power-law space-time singularities

We analyse the effective potential of the scalar wave equation near generic space-time singularities of power-law type (Szekeres-Iyer metrics) and show that the effective potential exhibits a universal and scale invariant leading inverse square behaviour ~ x−2 in the ``tortoise coordinate'' x provided that the metrics satisfy the strict Dominant Energy Condition (DEC). This result parallels that obtained in [1] for probes consisting of families of massless particles (null geodesic deviation, a.k.a. the Penrose Limit). The detailed properties of the scalar wave operator depend sensitively on the numerical coefficient of the x−2-term, and as one application we show that timelike singularities satisfying the DEC are quantum mechanically singular in the sense of the Horowitz-Marolf (essential self-adjointness) criterion. We also comment on some related issues like the near-singularity behaviour of the scalar fields permitted by the Friedrichs extension.
Reliable Fixed-Point Implementation of Linear Data-Flows

In this article, we propose a complete methodology to implement a signal processing or control-engineering algorithm described with a linear data-flow into numerical code using fixed-point arithmetic. Our approach is based on a reliable determination of the Worst-Case Peak gain of a filter as well as on rigorous error analysis of roundoff error propagation. It guarantees that no overflow will occur and that the output error due to the finite precision implementation is less than a given bound. Without loss of generality, we consider the linear data-flows given in the form of Simulink block diagram. It is first transposed into an internal matrix-based representation and then the reliable evaluation of the magnitudes of each internal variable is performed. Our approach allows determining the minimum word-length required to achieve a given accuracy. Finally, the methodology is illustrated with numerical examples.
Centrality as a Method for the Evaluation of Semantic Resources for Disaster Risk Reduction

Clear and straightforward communication is a key aspect of all human activities related to crisis management. Since crisis management activities involve professionals from various disciplines using different terminology, clear and straightforward communication is difficult to achieve. Semantics as a broad science can help to overcome communication difficulties. This research focuses on the evaluation of available semantic resources including ontologies, thesauri, and controlled vocabularies for disaster risk reduction as part of crisis management. The main idea of the study is that the most appropriate source of broadly understandable terminology is such a semantic resource, which is accepted by—or at least connected to the majority of other resources. Important is not only the number of interconnected resources, but also the concrete position of the resource in the complex network of Linked Data resources. Although this is usually done by user experience, objective methods of resource semantic centrality can be applied. This can be described by centrality methods used mainly in graph theory. This article describes the calculation of four types of centrality methods (Outdegree, Indegree, Closeness, and Betweenness) applied to 160 geographic concepts published as Linked Data and related to disaster risk reduction. Centralities were calculated for graph structures containing particular semantic resources as nodes and identity links as edges. The results show that (with some discussed exceptions) the datasets with high values of centrality serve as important information resources, but they also include more concepts from preselected 160 geographic concepts. Therefore, they could be considered as the most suitable resources of terminology to make communication in the domain easier. The main research goal is to automate the semantic resources evaluation and to apply a well-known theoretical method (centrality) to the semantic issues of Linked Data. It is necessary to mention the limits of this study: the number of tested concepts and the fact that centralities represents just one view on evaluation of semantic resources.
SPITZER 24 μm IMAGES OF PLANETARY NEBULAE

Spitzer MIPS 24 μm images were obtained for 36 Galactic planetary nebulae (PNe) whose central stars are hot white dwarfs (WDs) or pre-WDs with effective temperatures of ∼100,000 K or higher. Diffuse 24 μm emission is detected in 28 of these PNe. The eight nondetections are angularly large PNe with very low Hα surface brightnesses. We find three types of correspondence between the 24 μm emission and Hα line emission of these PNe: six show 24 μm emission more extended than Hα emission, nine have a similar extent at 24 μm and Hα, and 13 show diffuse 24 μm emission near the center of the Hα shell. The sizes and surface brightnesses of these three groups of PNe and the nondetections suggest an evolutionary sequence, with the youngest ones being brightest and the most evolved ones undetected. The 24 μm band emission from these PNe is attributed to [O iv] 25.9 μm and [Ne v] 24.3 μm line emission and dust continuum emission, but the relative contributions of these three components depend on the temperature of the central star and the distribution of gas and dust in the nebula.
Understanding the Differences Between Oncology Patients and Oncology Health Professionals Concerning Spirituality/Religiosity

AbstractThis study investigated whether spirituality/religiosity (S/R) plays an important role in the lives of cancer patients and in the work of health professionals who provide care for these patients. The correlations between spiritual quality of life (QOL) and the other QOL domain scores of patients and health professionals were also assessed. Moreover, QOL domain scores were compared between patients and health professionals. In this cross-sectional study, 1050 participants (525 oncology patients and 525 health professionals) were interviewed. Quality of life was assessed with the World Health Organization quality of life spiritual, religious, and personal beliefs (WHOQOL-SRPB). To compare the groups with respect to the instruments’ domains, a quantile regression and an analysis of covariance model were used. The WHOQOL-Bref and WHOQOL-SRPB domains were correlated by performing Pearson and partial correlation tests. It was demonstrated that 94.1% of patients considered it important that health professionals addressed their spiritual beliefs, and 99.2% of patients relied on S/R to face cancer. Approximately, 99.6% of the patients reported that S/R support is necessary during cancer treatment; 98.3% of health professionals agreed that spiritual and religious support was necessary for oncology patients. Positive correlations between spiritual QOL and the other QOL domains were observed. When compared among themselves, patients exhibited significantly higher levels of spiritual QOL. In conclusion, S/R was an important construct in the minds of cancer patients and health professionals. Both groups often use S/R resources in their daily lives, which seems to positively affect their perceptions of QOL. Further studies are needed to determine how health professionals effectively address S/R during oncology practice.
Game theoretic multi-agent approach to traffic flow control

In this paper, the researchers have made an attempt to address the problem of traffic network congestion to speed up the disaster response activity during a disaster. A dynamic environment is made up of static and moving obstacles. Each moving vehicle acts as a dynamic obstacle for other moving vehicle. There by increasing the network congestion. It is shown that the game theoretic model effectively helps to construct a navigation graph for each moving vehicle and computes collision free geometric path in a 2-D and 3-D work space. In this study (i) the problem of Network congestion is addressed by using the concept of Multi-Agents where, the transportation network is depicted as a non-deterministic, non-cooperative n - person game and (ii) the computation of collision free geometric path by using a 2 player non-deterministic game which detects the dynamic obstacles based on the observation made by the object sensor, computes all the possible geometric paths and selects the optimal path for the vehicle to travel in a 2-D and 3-D workspace (iii) Cooperative game theory model to resolve traffic congestion at a merge using the concepts of Time-Division Multiple Access(TDMA) data slot that propagates through the a transportation channel (iv) Construction of the multi-agent navigation graph online taking into consideration only the obstacles affecting the query.
The Assessment of Classroom Language: challenging the rhetoric of ‘objectivity’

ABSTRACT Assessment and reporting underpin and lend legitimacy to, the notion of parental choice in an educational market place. Consequently, one of the current rhetorics of education in the UK concerns the possibility of achieving ‘objective’ teacher assessments. In this paper I examine the objectivity of teacher assessment with particular reference to the National Curriculum Attainment Target of ‘Speaking and Listening’. I do so through an examination of the impact of two different teaching styles on the classroom language of a cohort of children. The research took place in an infant school in a small town in the south of England with a predominantly white working‐class intake.
Characteristics and Trends of Pediatric Traumatic Brain Injuries Treated at a Large Pediatric Medical Center in China, 2002–2011

Background Pediatric traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) have not been well studied in China. This study investigated characteristics and trends of hospitalized TBIs sustained by Chinese children. Methods and Findings We analyzed 2002–2011 hospitalized TBI patients (0–17 years of age) treated at a large pediatric medical center in China. TBIs were defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) codes. We examined age patterns across external causes of TBIs. We reported the trend of traffic-related TBIs for each year from 2002 to 2011. Of 4,230 TBI patients, 67.1% (95% CI: 65.4%–68.8%) were city residents and 28.8% (95% CI: 26.3%–31.3%) came from rural villages. Males had disproportionately more TBIs than females (65.2% vs. 34.8%). Falls, struck by/against objects, and traffic collisions were the top three external causes of TBIs for all age groups. Falls were the leading cause of TBI for all ages but peaked at 2 years of age. There were 125 TBIs in 0–2 year olds (5.9% of all TBIs in this age group) that were caused by suspected child abuse. Suspected child abuse was significantly more likely to occur in 0–1 year olds. The proportion of traffic -related TBIs increased significantly from 12.99% in 2002 to 19.68% in 2008 but dropped each subsequent year until it reached a level of 8.91% in 2011. Conclusions Our study confirms that falls, struck by/against objects and traffic collisions are the top external causes of TBIs in Chinese children. When compared with national data from the developed countries, gender patterns are similar, but the ranking of external causes is different. This is the first study to highlight the important role of suspected child abuse in causing TBIs in infants in China. TBIs caused by child abuse warrant further research and government attention as a social and medical problem in China.
A novel supervised locality sensitive Factor analysis to classify voluntary hand movement in multi direction using EEG source space

Recent advances in EEG-based brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) have shown that brain signals can be used to decode arm movement intention and execution in multiple directions. Conventional approaches use sensor space EEG for classifying movement related tasks. Sensor-space EEG can reveal only limited information about the trivial but complex tasks that involve higher degrees of freedom of the movement. On the contrary, source space analysis is expected to provide more information about the neurophysiological mechanism relevant to the task. To this end, we propose a novel source-space feature extraction technique based on supervised locality sensitive Factor analysis which approximates the neurophysiological functioning of our experimental data in a better way than that of a solely data-driven approach. EEG recordings in the sensor space are transformed into source space using the Weighted Minimum Norm Estimate (wMNE) method. We show that for a multi-class classification problem of classifying the EEG of voluntary arm movement in 4 orthogonal directions, the source space features offer a significant improvement in the classification accuracy compared to sensor space features. One-versus-rest (OVR) approach is used for multiclass classification with Fisher's Linear Discriminant (FLD) as the primary classifier.
Metabolic Engineering of the Phenylpropanoid Pathway in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

ABSTRACT Flavonoids are valuable natural products derived from the phenylpropanoid pathway. The objective of this study was to create a host for the biosynthesis of naringenin, the central precursor of many flavonoids. This was accomplished by introducing the phenylpropanoid pathway with the genes for phenylalanine ammonia lyase (PAL) from Rhodosporidium toruloides, 4-coumarate:coenzyme A (CoA) ligase (4CL) from Arabidopsis thaliana, and chalcone synthase (CHS) from Hypericum androsaemum into two Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains, namely, AH22 and a pad1 knockout mutant. Each gene was cloned and inserted into an expression vector under the control of a separate individual GAL10 promoter. Besides its PAL activity, the recombinant PAL enzyme showed tyrosine ammonia lyase activity, which enabled the biosynthesis of naringenin without introducing cinnamate 4-hydroxylase (C4H). 4CL catalyzed the conversion of both trans-cinnamic acid and p-coumaric acid to their corresponding CoA products, which were further converted to pinocembrin chalcone and naringenin chalcone by CHS. These chalcones were cyclized to pinocembrin and naringenin. The yeast AH22 strain coexpressing PAL, 4CL, and CHS produced approximately 7 mg liter−1 of naringenin and 0.8 mg liter−1 of pinocembrin. Several by-products, such as 2′,4′,6′-trihydroxydihydrochalcone and phloretin, were also identified. Precursor feeding studies indicated that metabolic flux to the engineered flavonoid pathway was limited by the flux to the precursor l-tyrosine.
Fe b 20 16 GENUS ONE ENUMERATIVE INVARIANTS IN DEL-PEZZO SURFACES WITH A FIXED COMPLEX STRUCTURE

We obtain a formula for the number of genus one curves with a fixed complex structure of a given degree on a del-Pezzo surface that pass through an appropriate number of generic points of the surface. This enumerative problem is expressed as the difference between the symplectic invariant and an intersection number on the moduli space of rational curves. Résumé. Invariants énumératifs de genre un avec une structure complexe fixée pour des surfaces de del Pezzo. Nous obtenons une formule pour le nombre de courbes de genre un avec une structure complexe fixée, de degré donné, et passant par un nombre approprié de points génériques de la surface. La solution est exprimée comme la différence entre l’invariant symplectique et un nombre d’intersection sur l’espace de modules de courbes rationnelles.
Analysis of a Compound Class with Triplet States Stabilized by Potentially Baird Aromatic [10]Annulenyl Dicationic Rings.

The low-lying triplet state of a recently published compound (TMTQ) was analyzed quantum chemically in light of suggestions that it is influenced by Baird aromaticity. Two mesomeric structures describe this state: 1) a zwitterionic Baird aromatic structure with a triplet diradical 8π-electron methano[10]annulene (M10A) dicationic ring and 2) a Hückel aromatic with a neutral closed-shell 10π-electron ring. According to charge and spin density distributions, the Hückel aromatic structure dominates the triplet state (the Baird aromatic contributes at most 12 %), and separation of the aromatic fluctuation index (FLU) into α and β electron contributions emphasizes this finding. The small singlet-triplet energy gap is due to Hückel aromaticity of the M10A ring, clarified by comparison to the smaller analogues of TMTQ. Yet, TMTQ and its analogues are Hückel-Baird hybrids allowing for tuning between closed-shell 4n+2 Hückel aromaticity and open-shell 4n Baird aromaticity.
Quantum Invariance of Simple Flops

This note is a supplementary reading for the joint paper [8] with Yuan-Pin Lee and Chin-Lung Wang, entitled ”Flops, motives and invariance of quantum rings”. In this note, I report our main result by a conceptual description instead of giving logically strict proofs. About the degeneration part which consists of complicated induction procedures, I provide some examples to illustrate it. I hope that readers can catch the key idea of our paper quickly through this note. 2000 Mathematics Subject Classification: 14N35, 14E30.
Trends for Web Information Processing over World Wide Web

Web information processing through modern search engines index zillions of web pages on distributed platforms of thousands of commodity web users. Much of the research has been done on the information processing aspects ranging from crawling, web graph topology, indexing, efficient query processing, caching and ranking. Despite all of the challenges, the expansion of the web has turned information processing over web into a key enabling technology. This paper summarises the major trends and evolution of information processing over World Wide Web. Also, it is emphasised that the object oriented design paradigm when applied to this field may greatly reduce the complexity of processing system while improving reusability and manageability.