Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Excessive daytime sleepiness and sudden-onset sleep in Parkinson disease: a survey by the Canadian Movement Disorders Group.

CONTEXT Somnolence is a recognized adverse effect of dopamine agonists. Two new dopamine agonists, pramipexole and ropinirole, have been reported to cause sudden-onset sleep spells in patients with Parkinson disease (PD) while they were driving. The frequency of these spells and whether driving should be restricted has yet to be established. OBJECTIVE To determine the frequency of and predictors for sudden-onset sleep and, particularly, episodes of falling asleep while driving among patients with PD. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS Prospective survey conducted between January and April 2000 in 18 clinics directed by members of the Canadian Movement Disorders Group; 638 consecutive highly functional PD patients without dementia were enrolled, of whom 420 were currently drivers. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Excessive daytime sleepiness and sudden-onset sleep as assessed by the Epworth Sleepiness Scale and the Inappropriate Sleep Composite Score. The latter score, designed for this study, addressed falling asleep in unusual circumstances. The 2 scales were combined in 3 separate formats: dozing off, sudden unexpected sleep, and sudden blank spells. RESULTS Excessive daytime sleepiness was present overall in 327 (51%) of the 638 patients and in 213 (51%) of the 420 drivers. Patients taking a variety of different dopamine agonists had no differences in Epworth sleepiness scores, in the composite score, or in the risk of falling asleep while driving. Sixteen patients (3.8%) had experienced at least 1 episode of sudden onset of sleep while driving (after the diagnosis of PD); in 3 (0.7%), it occurred without warning. The 2 risk factors associated with falling asleep at the wheel were the Epworth Sleepiness Scale score (odds ratio [OR], 1.14; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.06-1.24) and the Inappropriate Sleep Composite Score (OR, 2.54; 95% CI, 1.76-3.66). A standard Epworth Sleepiness Scale score of 7 or higher predicted 75% of episodes of sleep behind the wheel at a specificity of 50% (exclusion of the question related to driving provided 70% sensitivity and 52% specificity), whereas a score of 1 on the Inappropriate Sleep Composite Score generated a sensitivity of 52% and specificity of 82%. CONCLUSIONS Excessive daytime sleepiness is common even in patients with PD who are independent and do not have dementia. Sudden-onset sleep without warning is infrequent. The Epworth score has adequate sensitivity for predicting prior episodes of falling asleep while driving and its specificity can be increased by use of the Inappropriate Sleep Composite Score. It is unknown if routinely performing these assessments could be more effective in predicting future risk for these rare sleep attacks. Patients should be warned not to drive if they doze in unusual circumstances.
Improving the Capacity of School System Leaders and Teachers to Design Productive Learning Environments

In this article we report on the results of an innovative research partnership with the largest school district in one Canadian province where we are exploring how educational leadership practices and the factors that influence these practices interact to impact student learning. This article makes a clear connection between leadership and student learning and makes a significant contribution to the knowledge base regarding what we know about leadership in educational contexts, how and how much leadership matters within that context, as well as how important those effects are in designing productive learning environments that facilitate the learning of all children. Using Arbuckle's Amos 17 and maximum likelihood estimation, we employed path analysis procedures to develop a best-fitting nested model to examine the interrelationships among three primary sources of formal leadership for education found in schools, school districts, and government, and how these leaders interact with one another and with professional teachers, parents, and other community stakeholders to directly and indirectly impact the existence of a clear focus on student learning. We conclude with a discussion of the pathways in our best-fitting model as we explore in detail the interrelationships among the primary sources of leadership and discuss the direct and indirect effects of each of these leadership sources on one another and on the extent to which the factors individually and collectively impact a school's focus on student learning.
Prototype design and realization of an innovative energy efficient transfemoral prosthesis

In this paper, we present the prototype realization of the conceptual design of a fully-passive transfemoral prosthesis. The working principle has been inspired by the power flow in human gait so to achieve an energy efficient device. The main goal of this paper is to validate the concept by implementing in a real prototype. The prototype, in scale 1 ∶ 2 with respect to the average dimensions of an adult human, is based on two storage elements, which are responsible for the energetic coupling between the knee and ankle joints during the swing phase and for the energy storage during the stance phase. The design parameters of the prototype are determined according to the human body and the energetic characteristics of the gait. The construction of the prototype is explained in details together with a test setup that has been built to evaluate the prototype.
Resistance of grammatical impairment to computerized comprehension training in children with specific and non-specific language impairments.

BACKGROUND Receptive language impairments in school-age children have a poor prognosis, yet there is a dearth of research on effective interventions. AIMS Children's responses to a computerized grammatical training program were evaluated to consider whether repeated responding to spoken sentences with variable semantic content and the same syntactic structure would lead to consistent and fluent comprehension. METHODS & PROCEDURES Children with receptive language impairments aged from 8 to 13 years were randomly assigned to three groups: Group S (n = 12) responded to reversible sentences in a computerized game, using speech stimuli with pauses before critical phrases. Group M (n = 12) had the same stimuli acoustically modified to lengthen and amplify dynamic portions of the signal. Group U (n = 9) was an untrained control group. On average, children in groups S and M completed over 1000 training trials, focusing on training comprehension of reversible sentences. OUTCOMES & RESULTS Although responses speeded up over the course of training, and most children performed well above chance, accuracy typically remained below 95% correct for constructions such as above/below and reversible active/passive. Trained groups did not differ from untrained children on language or auditory outcomes. There was no evidence that acoustically modified speech input enhanced comprehension. CONCLUSIONS Rote training of comprehension of reversible sentences does not seem to be an effective approach to remediating such problems. For most children, the pattern of performance suggested that the problem was not a lack of syntactic knowledge, bur rather limited processing capacity that led to failures of on-line computation of meaning.
A cross-cultural study on early vocal imitative phenomena in different relationships

The present study constitutes an effort to extend our understanding of the universality of vocal imitative exchanges. It aimed to investigate early vocal imitative phenomena in different countries and relationships. In particular, several basic aspects of vocal imitation, such as frequency across the age range of the study, structure, the linguistic nature, the direction and the temporal patterns of it, were micro-analysed, and compared in spontaneous dyadic interactions of fathers and mothers with their infant boys and girls in Scotland and Greece. Fifteen infants (eight boys and seven girls) born in Crete, Greece, and 15 infants (eight boys and seven girls) born in Edinburgh, Scotland, were observed in dyadic interactions with their mothers and fathers at home from the second to the sixth month of their life at 15-day intervals. It was found that: • most aspects of vocal imitation differ between Greece and Scotland; • the frequency of vocal imitation across the age range of the study, the structure (turn-takings, co-actions, multiple series), the linguistic nature (vowels, consonants, vowel-consonant combinations), and the durations of imitative interactions, but not the imitative direction (who imitates whom) were found to differ between girls and boys; • maternal and paternal vocal imitative exchanges were found to be different, rather than similar. It is suggested that vocal imitation constitutes a flexible mode of intersubjective communication that reflects differences in the styles and patterns of interaction of certain relationships and cultures.
Cardiometabolic diseases of civilization: history and maturation of an evolving global threat. An update and call to action

Abstract Despite striking extensions of lifespan, leading causes of death in most countries now constitute chronic, degenerative diseases which outpace the capacity of health systems. Cardiovascular disease is the most common cause of death in both developed and undeveloped countries. In America, nearly half of the adult population has at least one chronic disease, and polypharmacy is commonplace. Prevalence of ideal cardiovascular health has not meaningfully improved over the past two decades. The fall in cardiovascular deaths in Western countries, half due to a fall in risk factors and half due to improved treatments, have plateaued, and this reversal is due to the dual epidemics of obesity and diabetes type 2. High burdens of cardiovascular risk factors are also evident globally. Undeveloped nations bear the burdens of both infectious diseases and high childhood death rates. Unacceptable rates of morbidity and mortality arise from insufficient resources to improve sanitation, pure water, and hygiene, ultimately linked to poverty and disparities. Simultaneously, about 80% of cardiovascular deaths now occur in low- and middle-income nations. For these reasons, risk factors for noncommunicable diseases, including poverty, health illiteracy, and lack of adherence, must be targeted with unprecedented vigor worldwide. Key messages In developed and relatively wealthy countries, chronic “degenerative” diseases have attained crisis proportions that threaten to reverse health gains made within the past decades. Although poverty, disparities, and poor sanitation still cause unnecessary death and despair in developing nations, they are now also burdened with increasing cardiovascular mortality. Poor adherence and low levels of health literacy contribute to the high background levels of cardiovascular risk.
Approximate robust optimal control of nonlinear dynamic systems under process noise

Dynamic optimization techniques for nonlinear systems can provide the process industry with sustainable and efficient operating regimes. However, these regimes often lie close to the operating limits. It is therefore critical that these model based operating conditions are robust with respect to process noise, i.e, unmodeled time-varying random disturbances. Besides the effect of uncertainty in the satisfaction of constraints, also the effect of uncertainty on the objective function should be considered. Including uncertainty in an optimization problem typically leads to numerically challenging semi-infinite optimization problems. In this paper several computationally tractable methods are exploited to approximately solve robust optimal control problems. The presented approaches have the advantage that they allow the use of fast deterministic gradient based optimization techniques. The first method is based on a linearization approach while the second method exploits the unscented transformation to construct an estimate of the uncertainty propagation. Both methods yield an approximation of the variance-covariance matrix of the critical constraints and of the objective function. These variance-covariance matrices are employed in the optimization routine to obtain more robust control actions. The illustrative case study concerns a jacketed tubular reactor.
Time variations in the deep underground muon flux

More than 35 million high-energy muons collected with the MACRO detector at the underground Gran Sasso Laboratory have been used to search for flux variations of different nature. Two kinds of studies were carried out: a search for the occurrence of clusters of events and a search for periodic variations. Different analysis methods, including the Scan Statistics test and the Lomb-Scargle spectral analysis have been applied to the data.
A framework to refine particle clusters produced by EMAN

Motivation: EMAN is one of the most popular software packages for single particle reconstruction. But the particle clusters produced during its model refining stage are of low qualities. We attempt to refine the particle clusters by more accurately determining orientations of particles, and thereby achieving higher resolutions of consequent 3D structures. Results: A particle reclustering framework (PRF) is introduced, which consists of three components. Each of them is responsible for one of the basic tasks of PRF: normalization, threshold determination and reclustering. Our implementation is also described and proved to meet the constraints proposed by PRF. Experiments revealed that our implementation improved resolutions of consequent structures for most cases, but only a little extra execution time was incurred. Therefore, it is practical to incorporate PRF in EMAN to improve qualities of generated 3D structures. Availability and Implementation: Implementation of our algorithm is available upon request from the authors. Contact: fanliya@ict.ac. cn; zf@ncic.ac. cn
HYPOTHALAMIC DIGOXIN AND HEMISPHERIC CHEMICAL DOMINANCE: RELATION TO ALCOHOLIC ADDICTION, ALCOHOLIC CIRRHOSIS, AND ACQUIRED HEPATOCEREBRAL DEGENERATION

The isoprenoid pathway produces three key metabolites--endogenous digoxin (modulate tryptophan/tyrosine transport), dolichol (important in N-glycosylation of proteins), and ubiquinone (free radical scavenger). It was considered pertinent to assess the pathway in alcoholic addiction, alcoholic cirrhosis, and acquired hepatocerebral degeneration. Since endogenous digoxin can regulate neurotransmitter transport, the pathway was also assessed in individuals with differing hemispheric dominance to find out the role of hemispheric dominance in its pathogenesis. In the patient group there was elevated digoxin synthesis, increased dolichol and glycoconjugate levels, and low ubiquinone and elevated free radical levels. There was also an increase in tryptophan catabolites and a reduction in tyrosine catabolites as reduced endogenous morphine synthesis from tyrosine. There was an increase in cholesterol:phospholipid ratio and a reduction in glycoconjugate level of RBC membrane in these groups of patients. The same patterns were obtained in individuals with right hemispheric chemical dominance. Alcoholic cirrhosis, alcoholic addiction, and acquired hepatocerebral degeneration are associated with an upregulated isoprenoid pathway and elevated digoxin secretion from the hypothalamus. This can contribute to NMDA excitotoxicity and altered connective tissue/lipid metabolism important in its pathogenesis. Endogenous morphine deficiency plays a role in alcoholic addiction. Alcoholic cirrhosis, addiction, and acquired hepato-cerebral degeneration occur in right hemispheric chemically dominant individuals. Ninety percent of the patients with alcoholic addiction, alcoholic cirrhosis, and acquired hepatocerebral degeneration were right-handed and left hemispheric dominant by the dichotic listening test. However, their biochemical patterns were similar to those obtained in right hemispheric chemical dominance. Hemispheric chemical dominance is a different entity and has no correlation with handedness or the dichotic listening test.
In Defense of the Body: The Effect of Mortality Salience on Female Body Objectification

Previous research has illustrated the negative psychological consequences of female body objectification. The present study explores how female body objectification may serve as a defense against unconscious existential fears. Drawing from terror management theory, an experiment was designed to test the potential functionality of female body objectification. Men and women were primed to think about either their own mortality or an aversive control topic, and levels of body objectification were then assessed for both self- and other (women)-objectification. Findings supported the hypothesis that priming mortality would increase both self- and other-objectification among women, and self-objectification among those who derive self-esteem from their body. Implications for this research are discussed.
Mission, faith and management: Co-constructing leadership in a Beacon Lower School

The Beacon scheme was devised by the Department for Education and Employment as a project ‘specifically designed to help raise standards in schools through the sharing and spread of good practice’ (DfEE, 1999a). The article outlines the nature of the Beacon Schools Scheme and examines and delineates some of the management processes in one such school, a Church Aided Lower School, in one of the largest towns in the UK. As a central contention the article argues that the ubiquitous management paradigm of ‘collegiality’ is neither a sufficient nor an accurate representation of effective models of school leadership. An alternative conception of ‘co-constructed leadership’ is suggested which may provide equal benefits in legitimating leadership decisions, whilst at the same time enabling the exercise of appropriate ‘authority’ by school leaders.
A multinational study of self-compassion and human immunodeficiency virus-related anxiety.

AIM This study represents an initial effort at examining the association between the construct of self-compassion and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-related anxiety in a multinational population with HIV disease. BACKGROUND Previous studies have found that self-compassion is a powerful predictor of mental health, demonstrating positive and consistent linkages with various measures of affect, psychopathology and well-being, including anxiety. METHODS Cross-sectional data from a multinational study conducted by the members of the International Nursing Network for HIV Research (n = 1986) were used. The diverse sample included participants from Canada, China, Namibia, the United States of America and the territory of Puerto Rico. Study measures included the anxiety subscale of the Symptom Checklist-90 instrument, the Brief Version Self-Compassion Inventory and a single item on anxiety from the Revised Sign and Symptom Checklist. FINDINGS Study findings show that anxiety was significantly and inversely related to self-compassion across participants in all countries. We examined gender differences in self-compassion and anxiety, controlling for country. Levels of anxiety remained significantly and inversely related to self-compassion for both males (P = 0.000) and females (P = 0.000). Levels of self-compassion and anxiety varied across countries. CONCLUSIONS Self-compassion is a robust construct with cross-cultural relevance. A culturally based brief treatment approach aimed at increasing self-compassion may lend itself to the development of a cost effective adjunct treatment in HIV disease, including the management of anxiety symptoms.
All-Cause Mortality Trends in a Large Population-Based Cohort With Long-Standing Childhood-Onset Type 1 Diabetes

OBJECTIVE Although management of type 1 diabetes improved dramatically in the 1980s, the effect on mortality is not clear. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS We report trends in 30-year mortality using the Allegheny County (Pennsylvania) childhood-onset (age <18 years) type 1 diabetes registry (n = 1,075) with diagnosis from 1965–1979, by dividing the cohort into three diagnosis year cohorts (1965–1969, 1970–1974, and 1975–1979). Local (Allegheny County) mortality data were used to calculate standardized mortality ratios (SMRs). RESULTS As of 1 January 2008, vital status was ascertained for 97.0% of participants (n = 1,043) when mean age ± SD and duration of diabetes were 42.8 ± 8.0 and 32.0 ± 7.6 years, respectively. The 279 deaths (26.0%) observed were 7 times higher than expected (SMR 6.9 [95% CI 6.1–7.7]). An improving trend in SMR was seen by diagnosis cohort at 30 years of diabetes duration (9.3 [7.2–11.3], 7.5 [5.8–9.2], and 5.6 [4.0–7.2] for 1965–1969, 1970–1974, and 1975–1979, respectively). Although no sex difference in survival was observed (P = 0.27), female diabetic patients were 13 times more likely to die than age-matched women in the general population (SMR 13.2 [10.7–15.7]), much higher than the SMR for men (5.0 [4.0–6.0]). Conversely, whereas 30-year survival was significantly lower in African Americans than in Caucasians (57.2 vs. 82.7%, respectively; P < 0.001), no differences in SMR were seen by race. CONCLUSIONS Although survival has clearly improved, those with diabetes diagnosed most recently (1975–1979) still had a mortality rate 5.6 times higher than that seen in the general population, revealing a continuing need for improvements in treatment and care, particularly for women and African Americans with type 1 diabetes.
Managing evolving requirements in an outsourcing context: an industrial experience report

We discuss several difficulties managing evolving requirements by means of an industrial case study conducted at LogicaCMG. We report on setting up a requirements management system in an outsourcing context and its application in real-life. The experience results in several lessons learned, questions to be answered in the future on how to manage evolving requirements, and solution directions. We propose a conceptual framework of requirements engineering system tailored for outsourcing environments, which captures the experience results.
Effects of “On‐Line” Test Feedback on the Seriousness of Subsequent Errors

The present study examined the effect of three modes of feedback on the seriousness of error types committed on a post-test. The measure of seriousness of error types, or wrong rules, indicates to what extent the wrong rules deviate from the right rule. An on-line, free-response, six-item pre-test covering addition of signed numbers was administered to 263 eighth graders. Upon completion of the pre-test, the students were randomly assigned to receive one of the following kinds of feedback to responses to a second six-item test: (a) information about whether or not the response was correct, (b) the correct answer, or (c) the correct rule for solving the problem. The effect of the feedback mode on the seriousness of errors committed on a third six-item test, the post-test, was found to be differential and dependent upon the seriousness of errors committed on the pre-test.