Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Cardiovascular diseases in Chinese, Malays, and Indians in Singapore. II. Differences in risk factor levels.

STUDY OBJECTIVE--The aim of the study was to examine cardiovascular risk factors to see how these might explain differences in cardiovascular disease mortality among Chinese, Malays, and Indians in the Republic of Singapore. DESIGN--The study was a population based cross sectional survey. Stratified systematic sampling of census districts, reticulated units, and houses was used. The proportions of Malay and Indian households were increased to improve statistical efficiency, since about 75% of the population is Chinese. SETTING--Subjects were recruited from all parts of the Republic of Singapore. SUBJECTS--2143 subjects aged 18 to 69 years were recruited (representing 60.3% of persons approached). There were no differences in response rate between the sexes and ethnic groups. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS--Data on cardiovascular risk factors were collected by questionnaire. Measurements were made of blood pressure, serum cholesterol, low and high density lipoprotein cholesterol, fasting triglycerides and plasma glucose. In males the age adjusted cigarette smoking rate was higher in Malays (53.3%) than in Chinese (37.4%) or Indians (44.5%). In both sexes, Malays had higher age adjusted mean systolic blood pressure: males 124.6 mm Hg v 121.2 mm Hg (Chinese) and 121.2 mm Hg (Indians); females 122.8 mm Hg v 117.3 mm Hg (Chinese) and 118.4 mm Hg (Indians). Serum cholesterol, low density lipoprotein cholesterol and triglyceride showed no ethnic differences. Mean high density lipoprotein cholesterol in males (age adjusted) was lower in Indians (0.69 mmol/litre) than in Chinese (0.87 mmol/litre) and Malays (0.82 mmol/litre); in females the mean value of 0.95 mmol/litre in Indians was lower than in Chinese (1.05 mmol/litre) and Malays (1.03 mmol/litre). Rank prevalence of diabetes for males was Indians (highest), Malays and then Chinese; for females it was Malays, Indians, Chinese. CONCLUSIONS--The higher mortality from ischaemic heart disease found in Indians in Singapore cannot be explained by the major risk factors of cigarette smoking, blood pressure and serum cholesterol; lower high density lipoprotein cholesterol and higher rates of diabetes may be part of the explanation. The higher systolic blood pressures in Malays may explain their higher hypertensive disease mortality.
High dimensional search-based software engineering: finding tradeoffs among 15 objectives for automating software refactoring using NSGA-III

There is a growing need for scalable search-based software engineering approaches that address software engineering problems where a large number of objectives are to be optimized. Software refactoring is one of these problems where a refactoring sequence is sought that optimizes several software metrics. Most of the existing refactoring work uses a large set of quality metrics to evaluate the software design after applying refactoring operations, but current search-based software engineering approaches are limited to using a maximum of five metrics. We propose for the first time a scalable search-based software engineering approach based on a newly proposed evolutionary optimization method NSGA-III where there are 15 different objectives to be optimized. In our approach, automated refactoring solutions are evaluated using a set of 15 distinct quality metrics. We evaluated this approach on seven large open source systems and found that, on average, more than 92% of code smells were corrected. Statistical analysis of our experiments over 31 runs shows that NSGA-III performed significantly better than two other many-objective techniques (IBEA and MOEA/D), a multi-objective algorithm (NSGA-II) and two mono-objective approaches, hence demonstrating that our NSGA-III approach represents the new state of the art in fully-automated refactoring.
Introduction to the analysis of next generation sequencing data and its application to venous thromboembolism

Summary Despite knowledge of various inherited risk factors associated with venous thromboembolism (VTE), no definite cause can be found in about 50% of patients. The application of data-driven searches such as GWAS has not been able to identify genetic variants with implications for clinical care, and unexplained heritability remains. In the past years, the development of several so-called next generation sequencing (NGS) platforms is offering the possibility of generating fast, inexpensive and accurate genomic information. However, so far their application to VTE has been very limited. Here we review basic concepts of NGS data analysis and explore the application of NGS technology to VTE. We provide both computational and biological viewpoints to discuss potentials and challenges of NGS-based studies.
Association between Toenail Mercury and Metabolic Syndrome Is Modified by Selenium

Background: Although Asian populations consume relatively large amounts of fish and seafood and have a high prevalence of metabolic diseases, few studies have investigated the association between chronic mercury exposure and metabolic syndrome and its effect modification by selenium. Methods: We analyzed baseline data from the Trace Element Study of Korean Adults in the Yeungnam area. Participants included 232 men and 269 women, aged 35 years or older, who had complete data regarding demographic, lifestyle, diet, toenail mercury and selenium levels, and health. Toenail mercury and selenium concentrations were measured using instrumental neutron-activation analysis. The metabolic biomarker levels were obtained through biannual medical checkups. Results: Higher toenail mercury levels were associated with habitual consumption of whale and shark meats, older age, obesity, smoking, alcohol drinking, and higher household income. Multivariable analysis showed a positive association between toenail mercury exposure and metabolic syndrome. In addition, this association was significantly stronger at lower selenium levels and was weaker at higher selenium levels. Conclusion: The possible harmful effects of mercury on metabolic syndrome may be attenuated by high levels of selenium. Future studies are needed to suggest optimal dietary guidelines regarding fish and selenium intakes, particularly for Asians with high levels of fish intake.
Reading Small Scalar Data Fields: Color Scales vs. Detail on Demand vs. FatFonts

We empirically investigate the advantages and disadvantages of color and digit-based methods to represent small scalar fields. We compare two types of color scales (one brightness-based and one that varies in hue, saturation and brightness) with an interactive tooltip that shows the scalar value on demand, and with a symbolic glyph-based approach (FatFonts). Three experiments tested three tasks: reading values, comparing values, and finding extrema. The results provide the first empirical comparisons of color scales with symbol-based techniques. The interactive tooltip enabled higher accuracy and shorter times than the color scales for reading values but showed slow completion times and low accuracy for value comparison and extrema finding tasks. The FatFonts technique showed better speed and accuracy for reading and value comparison, and high accuracy for the extrema finding task at the cost of being the slowest for this task.
Mind Wandering, Memory and Mood

Unplanned off-task thinking (mind wandering) is a common ephemeral experience which has recently received increased scientific and clinical attention. This thesis investigated continuity between unplanned thought and memory processes and sought to show that mind wandering may disrupt pleasurable experience in dysphoria. The literature review aimed to determine whether the constructs of involuntary autobiographical memory and retrospective mind wandering describe the same phenomenon. The memory literature suggested four predictions about the correlates of retrospective mind wandering. A review of 11 mind wandering studies found some support for the prediction that unplanned thoughts are less subject to executive control when they are retrospective. Predictions about the cueing, recall probability and content biases of retrospective mind wandering require further research. Contextualisation in the memory literature offers promise for better understanding the causes and content of mind wandering. The empirical paper tested the hypothesis that mind wandering is a causal mechanism of disrupted pleasure (anhedonia). An unselected sample of 49 participants underwent positive mood inductions with and without distraction, followed by a task training inhibitory control of negative material and repeated mood inductions. Negative distraction successfully increased mind wandering and reduced sadness repair from positive material but these attenuations were not altered by inhibitory control training. Longer training and more precise manipulations of mind wandering were suggested for future studies. The critical appraisal noted some of the challenges encountered in pursing the aims of the thesis, proposed some improvements to mind wandering measurement in light of recent theoretical developments and outlined how errors in affective forecasting for memories, encountered anecdotally during testing, might be studied empirically.
A Layered Architecture for a Fuzzy Semantic Approach for Satellite Image Analysis

The extended use of high and very high spatial resolution imagery inherently demands the adoption of classification methods capable of capturing the underlying semantic. Object-oriented classification methods are currently considered as the most appropriate alternative, due to the incorporation of contextual information and domain knowledge into the analysis. Integrating knowledge initially requires a detailed process of acquisition and later the achievement of a formal representation. Ontologies constitute a very suitable approach to address both knowledge formalization and exploitation. A novel semi-automatic fuzzy semantic approach focused on the extraction and classification of urban objects is hereby introduced. The use of a four-layered architecture allows the separation of concerns among knowledge, rules, experience and meta-knowledge. Knowledge represents the fundamental layer with which the other layers interact. Rules are meant to derive conclusions and make assertions based on knowledge. The experience layer supports the classification process in case of failure when attempting to identify an object, by applying specific expert rules to infer unusual membership. Finally, the meta-knowledge layer contains knowledge about the use of the other layers.
Stock Return Predictability: Evaluation Based on Prediction Intervals

This paper evaluates the predictability of monthly stock return using out-of-sample (multi-step ahead and dynamic) prediction intervals. Past studies have exclusively used point forecasts, which are of limited value since they carry no information about the intrinsic predictive uncertainty associated. We compare empirical performances of alternative prediction intervals for stock return generated from a naive model, univariate autoregressive model, and multivariate model (predictive regression and VAR), using the U.S. data from 1926. For evaluation free from data snooping bias, we adopt moving sub-sample windows of different lengths. It is found that the naive model often provides the most informative prediction intervals, outperforming those generated from the univariate model and multivariate models incorporating a range of economic and financial predictors. This strongly suggests that the U.S. stock market has been informationally efficient in the weak-form as well as in the semi-strong form, subject to the information set considered in this study.
Bis(2,2′-bipyridyl-κ2 N,N′)(sulfato-κ2 O,O′)cobalt(II) ethane-1,2-diol monosolvate

The title compound, [Co(SO4)(C10H8N2)2]·C2H6O2, has the Co2+ ion in a distorted octahedral CoN4O2 coordination geometry. A twofold rotation axis passes through the Co and S atoms, and through the mid-point of the C—C bond of the ethanediol molecule. In the crystal, the [CoSO4(C10H8N2)2] and C2H6O2 units are held together by a pair of O—H⋯O hydrogen bonds.
On Countering Methods Erosion: Contributing towards Stronger and More Empirically Grounded Information Systems Theory

This paper offers practical advice to better leverage the potential of grounded theory for generating stronger and better empirically grounded information systems theory. Presenting and discussing five issues to keep in mind when doing grounded theory, the paper seeks to encourage more skilled, reflective, and appropriate use of grounded theory to meet this goal. The five issues are discussed in light of methods erosion, a lack of clarity about the distinct research strategies and goals of different research methods. The paper concludes with three practical suggestions for countering erosion of grounded theory in information systems research.
Combining ECA Rules with Process Algebras for the Semantic Web

We describe how event-condition-action (ECA) rules can be combined with process algebras like CCS as specification of the action part to obtain a powerful, declarative formalism that also covers intuitively procedural tasks in an appropriate way. Since both formalisms have a concise formal semantics, verification and other kinds of reasoning about such specifications are possible. Using a rule markup with cleanly distinguished rule components allows for such a compositional approach. The approach is currently under implementation in a general ECA Framework for the Web and the Semantic Web
Classification based on Associative Relational Networks for Multi-Domain Text-9 to-Speech Synthesis

This paper describes a comprehensive system for essential insight retrieval out of web texts, using style factors for profile and tone classification. Our goal in this paper, beyond demonstrating the actual system, is to bring up the notion that having the ability to determine a document's writing style and extract its stylistic factors is insufficient without considering the whole context of the texts. Our claim is that writing style factors are not the ultimate target to reach, but instead using the profile and tone information in context for intelligence or research purposes would be the most beneficial final goal. TrendMine is an application built to address these needs, and it will be further described and explained in this paper.
Boosted Random Ferns for Object Detection

In this paper we introduce the Boosted Random Ferns (BRFs) to rapidly build discriminative classifiers for learning and detecting object categories. At the core of our approach we use standard random ferns, but we introduce four main innovations that let us bring ferns from an instance to a category level, and still retain efficiency. First, we define binary features on the histogram of oriented gradients-domain (as opposed to intensity-), allowing for a better representation of intra-class variability. Second, both the positions where ferns are evaluated within the sliding window, and the location of the binary features for each fern are not chosen completely at random, but instead we use a boosting strategy to pick the most discriminative combination of them. This is further enhanced by our third contribution, that is to adapt the boosting strategy to enable sharing of binary features among different ferns, yielding high recognition rates at a low computational cost. And finally, we show that training can be performed online, for sequentially arriving images. Overall, the resulting classifier can be very efficiently trained, densely evaluated for all image locations in about 0.1 seconds, and provides detection rates similar to competing approaches that require expensive and significantly slower processing times. We demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach by thorough experimentation in publicly available datasets in which we compare against state-of-the-art, and for tasks of both 2D detection and 3D multi-view estimation.
Detecting scareware by mining variable length instruction sequences

Scareware is a recent type of malicious software that may pose financial and privacy-related threats to novice users. Traditional countermeasures, such as anti-virus software, require regular updates and often lack the capability of detecting novel (unseen) instances. This paper presents a scareware detection method that is based on the application of machine learning algorithms to learn patterns in extracted variable length opcode sequences derived from instruction sequences of binary files. The patterns are then used to classify software as legitimate or scareware but they may also reveal interpretable behavior that is unique to either type of software. We have obtained a large number of real world scareware applications and designed a data set with 550 scareware instances and 250 benign instances. The experimental results show that several common data mining algorithms are able to generate accurate models from the data set. The Random Forest algorithm is shown to outperform the other algorithms in the experiment. Essentially, our study shows that, even though the differences between scareware and legitimate software are subtler than between, say, viruses and legitimate software, the same type of machine learning approach can be used in both of these dissimilar cases.
Situational Awareness in Multi-Casualty Incidents: Theory Development from the Field

The purpose of this study was to understand the process of situational awareness (SA) in multi-casualty incidents (MCI). This study is significant because SA provides information on which critical decisions are made during emergency events. The literature concerning SA is mostly drawn from the domains of aviation, military operations and business and not nursing. Current conceptual and theoretical development is insufficient for application to the domain of MCI. MCI occur daily across the United States, yet a literature review revealed no studies involving SA in MCI. Limited issues that are possibly related to SA in MCI have been researched such as triage, scene safety and patient disposition, but none identify or integrate concepts important to SA. The lack of developed theory in this domain, let to a grounded theory approach to explore, identify and relate concepts that emerged from the data in order to uncover the process of SA. Interview transcripts from 15 emergency responders constituted the bulk of the data. Participants had various professional roles and diverse experiential levels. The data were managed using the software program NVivo 8. Findings suggested that ―establishing and maintaining control‖ of the scene was the core category, with other categories interacting with and being mediated by this core. Rescuers, given experiential and educational preparation responded to contextually-based situations. By appreciating the context and complexity of the event, rescuers handled information, managed resources, used roles and relationships and dealt with the emotional responses to the actions and interactions on the scene to establish and maintain control of the situation. By establishing and maintaining control, rescuers provided a vi relatively safe environment in which to provide emergency healthcare. The substantive theory, the ―Busby Theory of Situational Awareness in Multi-Casualty Incidents‖ resulted from this study. Future research should refine this model with eventual theory testing. This theory may prove beneficial in studying larger-scale events, such as mass-casualty situations and disasters and possibly different managerial hierarchies related to emergency response efforts. It should also serve as an educational tool for emergency responders and may prove helpful in the clinical practice of emergency responders from diverse disciplines.
Desorption of Hot Molecules from Photon Irradiated Interstellar Ices

We present experimental measurements of photodesorption from ices of astrophysical relevance. Layers of benzene and water ice were irradiated with a laser tuned to an electronic transition in the benzene molecule. The translational energy of desorbed molecules was measured by time-of-flight (ToF) mass spectrometry. Three distinct photodesorption processes were identified: a direct adsorbate-mediated desorption producing benzene molecules with a translational temperature of around 1200 K, an indirect adsorbate-mediated desorption resulting in water molecules with a translational temperature of around 450 K, and a substrate-mediated desorption of both benzene and water producing molecules with translational temperatures of around 530 and 450 K, respectively. The translational temperature of each population of desorbed molecules is well above the temperature of the ice matrix. The implications for gas-phase chemistry in the interstellar medium are discussed.
Smoking as a risk factor for STI diagnosis among African American females.

OBJECTIVES To examine the relationship of smoking to sexual risk outcomes among African American adolescent females. METHODS We analyzed baseline data from an HIV intervention trial, including sexual risk (older sex partners, number of vaginal sex partners, sex while high on drugs/alcohol, STI diagnosis) and smoking status among 715 participants. RESULTS Smoking prevalence was 23.1%. Controlling for covariates, smoking predicted having older partners (P=.001), having sex while high on alcohol or drugs (P<.001), and STI diagnosis (P=.046), after including other sexual risk outcomes in the model. CONCLUSIONS Smoking is an independent risk factor for sexual risk behaviors and STI diagnosis.
XMM-Newton Observations of Radio Pulsars B0834+06 and B0826–34 and Implications for the Pulsar Inner Accelerator

We report the X-ray observations of two radio pulsars with drifting subpulses, B0834+06 and B0826–34, using XMM-Newton. PSR B0834+06 was detected with a total of 70 counts from the three EPIC instruments over 50 ks exposure time. Its spectrum is best described as that of a blackbody (BB), with temperature Ts = (2.0+ 2.0−0.9) × 106 K and bolometric luminosity Lb = (8.6+ 14.2−4.4) × 1028 erg s−1. As is typical in pulsars with BB thermal components in their X-ray spectra, the hot-spot surface area is much smaller than that of the canonical polar cap, implying a non-dipolar surface magnetic field much stronger than the dipolar component derived from the pulsar spin-down (in this case about 50 times smaller and stronger, respectively). The second pulsar, PSR B0826–34, was not detected over the 50 ks exposure time, giving an upper limit for the bolometric luminosity Lb ⩽ 1.4 × 1029 erg s−1. We use these data, as well as the radio emission data concerned with drifting subpulses, to test the partially screened gap (PSG) model of the inner accelerator in pulsars. This model predicts a simple and very intuitive relationship between the polar cap thermal X-ray luminosity (Lb) and the “carousel” period (P4) for drifting subpulses detected in the radio band. The PSG model has been previously successfully tested with four radio pulsars whose Lb and P4 were both measured: PSR B0943+10, PSR B1133+16, PSR B0656+14, and PSR B0628–28. The XMM-Newton X-ray data of PSR B0834+16 reported here are also in agreement with the model prediction, and the upper limit derived from the PSR B0826–34 observation does not contradict it. We also include two other pulsars, PSR B1929+10 and B1055–52, whose Lb and/or P4 data became available just recently. These pulsars also follow the prediction of the PSG model. The clear prediction of the PSG model is now supported by all pulsars whose Lb and P4 are measured and/or estimated.