Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Associations of subclinical cardiovascular disease with frailty.

BACKGROUND Frail health in old age has been conceptualized as a loss of physiologic reserve associated with loss of lean mass, neuroendocrine dysregulation, and immune dysfunction. Little work has been done to define frailty and describe the underlying pathophysiology. METHODS Frailty status was defined in participants of the Cardiovascular Health Study (CHS), a cohort of 5,201 community-dwelling older adults, based on the presence of three out of five clinical criteria. The five criteria included self-reported weight loss, low grip strength, low energy, slow gait speed, and low physical activity. We examined the spectrum of clinical and subclinical cardiovascular disease in those who were frail (3/5 criteria) or of intermediate frailty status (1 or 2/5 criteria), compared to those who were not frail (0/5). We hypothesized that the severity of frailty would be related to a higher prevalence of reported cardiovascular disease (CVD), as well as to a greater extent of CVD, measured by noninvasive testing. RESULTS Of 4,735 eligible participants, 2,289 (48%) were not frail, 299 (6%) were frail, and 2.147 (45%) were of intermediate frailty status. Those who were frail were older (77.2 yrs) compared to those who were not frail (71.5 yrs) or intermediate (73.4 yrs) (p < .001). Frailty status was associated with clinical CVD and most strongly with congestive heart failure (odds ratio [OR] = 7.51 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 4.66-12.12). In those without a history of a CVD event (n = 1.259), frailty was associated with many noninvasive measures of CVD. Those with carotid stenosis >75% (adjusted OR = 3.41), ankle-arm index <0.8 (adjusted OR = 3.17) or 0.8-0.9 (adjusted OR = 2.01), major electrocardiography (ECG) abnormalities (adjusted OR = 1.58), greater left ventricular (LV) mass by echocardiography (adjusted OR = 1.16), and higher degree of infarct-like lesions in the brain (adjusted OR = 1.71), were more likely to be frail compared to those who were not frail. The overall associations of each of these noninvasive measures of CVD with frailty level were significant (all p < .05). CONCLUSIONS Cardiovascular disease was associated with an increased likelihood of frail health. In those with no history of CVD, the extent of underlying cardiovascular disease measured by carotid ultrasound and ankle-arm index, LV hypertrophy by ECG and echocardiography, was related to frailty. Infarct-like lesions in the brain on magnet resonance imaging were related to frailty as well.
Reliability and Validity of the Generalized Attitude Measure and Generalized Belief Measure

The reliability and validity of two generalized measures are evaluated based on research reported over the past four decades. These measures have been used to record attitudes and beliefs in a wide variety of communication research studies. Both the generalized attitude measure (GAM) and the generalized belief measure (GBM) were designed to be used across contexts–attitudes or beliefs concerning a wide variety topics rather than a single topic. Results of the previous research indicate that the measures are highly reliable (alpha estimates above .90) and have strong face, concurrent, and predictive validity.
The Postsynaptic Adenomatous Polyposis Coli (APC) Multiprotein Complex Is Required for Localizing Neuroligin and Neurexin to Neuronal Nicotinic Synapses in Vivo

Synaptic efficacy requires that presynaptic and postsynaptic specializations align precisely and mature coordinately. The underlying mechanisms are poorly understood, however. We propose that adenomatous polyposis coli protein (APC) is a key coordinator of presynaptic and postsynaptic maturation. APC organizes a multiprotein complex that directs nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) localization at postsynaptic sites in avian ciliary ganglion neurons in vivo. We hypothesize that the APC complex also provides retrograde signals that direct presynaptic active zones to develop in register with postsynaptic nAChR clusters. In our model, the APC complex provides retrograde signals via postsynaptic neuroligin that interacts extracellularly with presynaptic neurexin. S-SCAM (synaptic cell adhesion molecule) and PSD-93 (postsynaptic density-93) are scaffold proteins that bind to neuroligin. We identify S-SCAM as a novel component of neuronal nicotinic synapses. We show that S-SCAM, PSD-93, neuroligin and neurexin are enriched at α3*-nAChR synapses. PSD-93 and S-SCAM bind to APC and its binding partner β-catenin, respectively. Blockade of selected APC and β-catenin interactions, in vivo, leads to decreased postsynaptic accumulation of S-SCAM, but not PSD-93. Importantly, neuroligin synaptic clusters are also decreased. On the presynaptic side, there are decreases in neurexin and active zone proteins. Further, presynaptic terminals are less mature structurally and functionally. We define a novel neural role for APC by showing that the postsynaptic APC multiprotein complex is required for anchoring neuroligin and neurexin at neuronal synapses in vivo. APC human gene mutations correlate with autism spectrum disorders, providing strong support for the importance of the association, demonstrated here, between APC, neuroligin and neurexin.
Augmenting the Web of Data using Referers

Linked Data relies on one central concept: Typed links connect entities stored within data sets published by dierent individuals. Manual input and mapping are common techniques to create these links. We propose a novel method, where HTTP Referer information is used to create new links between Linked Data entities stored in dierent data sets. We evaluate our method using 27.86 million real-world log entries from web servers hosting Linked Data.
Authentication using pulse-response biometrics

We propose a new biometric based on the human body's response to an electric square pulse signal, called pulse-response. We explore how this biometric can be used to enhance security in the context of two example applications: (1) an additional authentication mechanism in PIN entry systems, and (2) a means of continuous authentication on a secure terminal. The pulse-response biometric is effective because each human body exhibits a unique response to a signal pulse applied at the palm of one hand, and measured at the palm of the other. Using a prototype setup, we show that users can be correctly identified, with high probability, in a matter of seconds. This identification mechanism integrates well with other established methods and offers a reliable additional layer of security, either on a continuous basis or at login time. We build a proof-of-concept prototype and perform experiments to assess the feasibility of pulse-response as a practical biometric. The results are very encouraging, achieving accuracies of 100% over a static data set, and 88% over a data set with samples taken over several weeks.
How Cheap Is Soaring Flight in Raptors? A Preliminary Investigation in Freely-Flying Vultures

Measuring the costs of soaring, gliding and flapping flight in raptors is challenging, but essential for understanding their ecology. Among raptors, vultures are scavengers that have evolved highly efficient soaring-gliding flight techniques to minimize energy costs to find unpredictable food resources. Using electrocardiogram, GPS and accelerometer bio-loggers, we report the heart rate (HR) of captive griffon vultures (Gyps fulvus and G. himalayensis) trained for freely-flying. HR increased three-fold at take-off (characterized by prolonged flapping flight) and landing (>300 beats-per-minute, (bpm)) compared to baseline levels (80–100 bpm). However, within 10 minutes after the initial flapping phase, HR in soaring/gliding flight dropped to values similar to baseline levels, i.e. slightly lower than theoretically expected. However, the extremely rapid decrease in HR was unexpected, when compared with other marine gliders, such as albatrosses. Weather conditions influenced flight performance and HR was noticeably higher during cloudy compared to sunny conditions when prolonged soaring flight is made easier by thermal ascending air currents. Soaring as a cheap locomotory mode is a crucial adaptation for vultures who spend so long on the wing for wide-ranging movements to find food.
Burnout and life satisfaction: does gratitude intervention make a difference among Chinese school teachers in Hong Kong?

This study investigated the effectiveness of a gratitude intervention programme in promoting life satisfaction and reducing burnout symptoms. Sixty-three Hong Kong Chinese school teachers aged 22–54 participated in an eight-week count-your-blessings study that used a pre-test/post-test design. Increases in life satisfaction and the sense of personal accomplishment and decreases in emotional exhaustion and depersonalisation were observed in the post-intervention assessment. Significant changes were observed on life satisfaction and emotional exhaustion as a result of intervention interacting with the meaningful-life orientation to happiness. These changes favoured teachers who put higher value on the meaningful-life orientation, suggesting that the promotion of a meaningful-life orientation could be an important element in the repertoire of gratitude intervention efforts. Implications of the findings on developing gratitude intervention programmes that focus on human positives and the promotion of gratitude and the meaningful-life orientation in combating teacher burnout are discussed.
Outcome of Patients With ≥70% Symptomatic Intracranial Stenosis After Wingspan Stenting

Background and Purpose— There were limited data on the long-term outcome of patients with symptomatic intracranial atherosclerotic stenosis ≥70% after Wingspan stenting. Using our Wingspan cohort data and the data from the Warfarin and Aspirin for Symptomatic Intracranial Atherosclerotic Disease (WASID) as a historical control, we tested the hypothesis that stenting provided no benefit over antithrombotic therapy alone for these high-risk patients. Methods— Between January 2007 and February 2009, 100 consecutive patients with intracranial atherosclerotic stenosis ≥70% and symptoms within 90 days were enrolled into this prospective single-center Wingspan cohort study and followed up until the end of February 2010. Stenosis was measured per the WASID criteria. One-year risk of primary end point (any stroke or death within 30 days and ipsilateral ischemic stroke afterward) was compared with that of ipsilateral ischemic stroke in the WASID patients with ≥70% stenosis. Results— The stent placement success rate was 99%. All patients but 1 had clinical follow-up of ≥12 months. During a mean follow-up of 1.8 years, 9 patients developed primary end point events (5 within 30 days and 4 afterward). The 1-year risk of the outcome events was lower than that in similar WASID patients: 7.3% (95% CI, 2.0% to 12.5%) versus 18% (95% CI, 13% to 24%; P<0.05). Conclusions— The clinical outcome of Wingspan stenting for high-risk intracranial atherosclerotic stenosis patients in this high-volume center study compares favorably with that of antithrombotic therapy alone. A randomized trial comparing medical therapy alone with medical therapy plus Wingspan stenting, conducted at high-volume centers, is needed to confirm the stenting benefit.
Europeanisation as a Factor of National Interest Group Political-Cultural Change

Based on a social constructivist framing, this article seeks to address the gap in the literature on the impact of Europeanisation on the national interest group political culture in general and in the post-communist context in particular. The impacts of Europeanisation on interest group domestic policy behaviour, in terms of national interest groups networking with their European counterparts, their contacts with EU-level decision makers, and their access to EU funds, are tested based on the panel surveys that were conducted in 1996 and 2012 of the most influential interest groups in eleven policy fields in Slovenia. Our key findings are that Europeanisation does support changes in the national interest group political culture in the direction of a more pro-active approach in influencing national policy processes. However, Europeanisation explains only a small portion of the variability among the domestic policy behaviour of interest groups.
Relation between chemotaxis and consumption of amino acids in bacteria

Chemotaxis enables bacteria to navigate chemical gradients in their environment, accumulating toward high concentrations of attractants and avoiding high concentrations of repellents. Although finding nutrients is likely to be an important function of bacterial chemotaxis, not all characterized attractants are nutrients. Moreover, even for potential nutrients, the exact relation between the metabolic value of chemicals and their efficiency as chemoattractants has not been systematically explored. Here we compare the chemotactic response of amino acids with their use by bacteria for two well‐established models of chemotactic behavior, Escherichia coli and Bacillus subtilis. We demonstrate that in E. coli chemotaxis toward amino acids indeed strongly correlates with their utilization. However, no such correlation is observed for B. subtilis, suggesting that in this case, the amino acids are not followed because of their nutritional value but rather as environmental cues.
AN EXOSKELETAL ROBOT MANIPULATOR FOR LOWER LIMBS REHABILITATION

There is an increasing trend in using robots for medical purposes. One specific area is the rehabilitation. There are some commercial exercise machines used for rehabilitation purposes. However, these machines have limited use because of their insufficient motion freedom. In addition, these types of machines are not actively controlled and therefore can not accomodate complicated exercises required during rehabilitation. In this study, three degree of freedom exoskeletal robot manipulator is proposed for lower limbs rehabilitation. The control of this robot manipulator is achieved by an intelligent controller. The robot operates in two stages; learning and therapy. It can make abduction-adduction and flexion-extension movements for hip, in addition to flexionextension movement for knee.
HYPERSPECTRAL REMOTE SENSING OF NONFORESTED MONTANE VEGETATION COMMUNITIES

Nonforested herbaceous vegetation communities represent a key ecosystem in montane environments, providing habitat for a diverse range of animal species. The montane meadow cover types occur below timberline, but are ecologically and geographically distinct from lower-elevation nonforested intermontane parklands. The objective of this project was to evaluate close-range hyperspectral data and simulated SPOT data as a tool for predicting the plant species composition of the meadows. Thirty montane meadow plots, representing a gradient from hydric to xeric conditions, were sampled in the Gallatin National Forest for spectral, biophysical, and botanical characteristics during 1998. Estimates of plant cover at the species level and measurements of spectral reflectance using an ASD 512-band spectroradiometer were made for each quadrat. Using a species dominance index, cover estimates for ten plant species were selected for the analysis. Simulated SPOT bands were derived from the spectroradiometer data and the two spectral data sets were entered separately into principal components analysis (PCA). Using the spectral components, binary logistic regression models determined the probability of the dominant plant species occurring in the montane meadows. The results indicate that the presence of several plant species could be successfully predicted using either spectral data set. 1.0 INTRODUCTION This paper represents one component of a larger project examining ecological dynamics in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE), concentrating specifically upon the spatial and temporal dynamics of montane vegetation communities. The long-term goal of the project is to develop predictive species assemblage models based upon landscape level habitat analysis. This involves using intensive, local field sampling to test for relationships between species distribution patterns and remotely sensed data. If patterns of spectral response can be linked to distinct plant species assemblages, this may provide a means to predict potential plant and animal species diversity (Walker et al. Nonforested herbaceous vegetation communities represent a key ecosystem in high-altitude environments, providing forage for both native and domesticated grazers. These land cover types occur below timberline, but are ecologically and geographically distinct from lower-elevation nonforested intermontane parklands. The species composition and vegetation condition of montane meadow communities are closely linked to environmental conditions. Because vegetation composition and structure governs the spectral reflectance of meadows, spectral
A novel approach for clustering data streams using granularity technique

Data Stream mining has large scope due to their usage in vice variety of application and business purpose. It provides the meaning full usage information which use full to take decision and also for planning purpose. According to application needs on particular parameter consideration there will be change in clustering method use in a stream Data mining. The purpose behind survey paper is explore the widely use clustering method StreamKM++ beneficial over the different clustering method and resolve issues of traditional clustering. Also contain different clustering method like hierarchical, density base, Partitioning Method study, Parameter and their operational methodology. BIRCH is faster than StreamKM++ but output of it not efficient and same way compare it with StreamLS, which partitions input data stream into chunk and clustering each chunk base on local search. Outcome of that is quality comparable and StreamKM++ significant better scalable with number of cluster. Clustering method apply using 2-phase method. Setting the arrival rate of input stream Data using AIG, same way sets the memory for output using AOG, and setting processing to consume less resources using AIP. Using both method that's providing the better quality with respect to time clustering of stream data.
An evaluation of many-to-one voice conversion algorithms with pre-stored speaker data sets

This paper describes an evaluation of many-to-one voice conversion (VC) algorithmsconverting an arbitraryspeaker’s voice into a particular target speaker’s voice. These algorithmseffectively generatea conversionmodel for a new source speaker using multiple parallel data sets of many pre-storedsource speakers and the single target speaker. We conducted experimental evaluations for demonstrating the conversion performance of each of the many-to-oneVC algorithms, including not only the conventional algorithmsbased on a speaker independentGMM and on eigenvoice conversion (EVC), but also new algorithms based on speaker selection and on EVC with speaker adaptive training (SAT). As a result, it is shown that an adaptation process of the conversionmodel improves significantlyconversion performance,and the algorithmbased on speaker selection works well even when using a very limited amount of adaptation data.
Comparing three processes underlying judgments of procedural justice : a field study of mediation and arbitration

A natural setting in which 158 coal miners who had filed grievances were assigned to either mediation or arbitration was used to test a model of 3 mediating processes underlying judgments of procedural justice: instrumental, noninstrumental, and procedural enactment. The generality of these processes was tested across procedures varying objectively in the degree of disputants' outcome control, across contexts in which disputes rather than decisions were resolved, and across situations in which the grievance was won, lost, or compromised as a result of the dispute resolution procedure. All 3 processes consistently accounted for judgments of procedural justice in all but 1 of these circumstances (instrumental processes did not account for procedural justice when grievants won)
The Q-Sort Method in Personality Assessment and Psychiatric Research.

Just about a dozen years ago William Stephenson, then teaching in the University of Chicago, introduced American psychology to his Q-technique. As doctorate researches and publications appeared out of various teaching centers, and especially following publication of Stephenson's book, the turbulence of controversy filled the air. The high and low pressures of warm enthusiasms and cold, or acerb, criticisms were in collision. The atmosphere has now quieted, and the time is appropriate for a calm exposition and evaluation of the Q-technique. This is what the book under review is achieving. Within a fairly small volume, as such expositions go, Block provides a helpful orientation to this method. It undertakes, he states, to devise a language instrument for describing a personality in psychodynamic terms so that it can be subjected to quantitative comparisons and analysis. The major portion of the book describes the theoretical foundations for Q-technique, surveys the
Is information reduction an item‐specific or an item‐general process?

An important aspect of cognitive skill acquisition is the ability, developed through task practice, to ignore task‐irrelevant information (i.e., information reduction, Haider & Frensch, 1996). By this account, practice not only affects how information is processed, but also what information is processed. Performance increases because, with practice, cognitive resources are used more and more efficiently as irrelevant aspects of the task are discarded from processing. Human–machine interaction, educational and sports psychology are just some contexts where behaviour consistent with the notion of information reduction has been reported. Information reduction applies in situations in which tasks contain both relevant and irrelevant information, and denotes a change from a processing‐all‐elements‐of‐a‐task strategy to a processing‐relevant‐elements‐only strategy. In two experiments, we tested empirically if information reduction is an item‐specific or an item‐general process by manipulating the frequency with.