Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effect of myeloablative bone marrow transplantation on growth in children with sickle cell anaemia: results of the multicenter study of haematopoietic cell transplantation for sickle cell anaemia

Although haematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) is curative for sickle cell anaemia (SCA), concerns about its short‐ and long‐term toxicities limit its application. A potential toxicity is an adverse effect on growth. To identify an HCT growth effect, serial height and weight measurements from 53 children and adolescents with SCA after receiving a transplant were compared to historical controls. Hierarchical Linear Models for longitudinal data were used for analysis. In general growth was not impaired by HCT for SCA in young children; however, diminished growth may occur if HCT is carried out near or during the adolescent growth spurt.
Experiences of Veterans' Widows Following Conjugal Bereavement: A Qualitative Analysis

This qualitative study analyzed the conjugal grief experience of veterans' widows. The narratives yielded several themes, including the decreased self-reported symptoms of distress when widows reported having positive social support without negative social support, the development of an ongoing relationship with their deceased spouses with a mechanism for creating meaning from their loss, and the assumption of a new identity and new roles and responsibilities. Widows who ascribed a belief that external forces control their life events and those who have children with psychosocial issues reported increased symptoms of distress related to their spouses' death.
Systems Theory and Knowledge Management Systems: The Case of  Pratt-Whitney Rocketdyne

Despite a growing body of research on knowledge management (KM) systems, many managers are still unsure how they can implement a KM system that will effectively contribute to the firm's competitive advantage. A common framework is one that breaks down KM into four main activities: knowledge creation, storage, transfer, and application. This paper describes one company's use of an alternative perspective-a systems thinking approach-to define and improve KM within the firm. Pratt-Whitney Rocketdyne moved away from viewing KM as separate processes, to view the organization holistically as a system of people, processes, and technology. Based on this perspective, the company identified and changed key behaviors within the KM environment that led to undesirable states, effectively establishing a generative learning environment. Based on this case study we derive a set of concepts and propositions that can be used by both academic and practitioners to improve KM practices.
Structure and Perceived Performance in Public Organizations

Abstract The purpose of this study is to examine relationships and better-fits between organizational structure and performance in public organizations. This study takes into account multiple dimensions of organizational structure: span of control, organizational personnel size, global organizational red tape and personnel red tape. The relationships between the first two physical dimensions and perceived organizational performance are examined by taking different combinations of measures, such as raw measures, log-transformation measures and squared measures. The results of ordinal logistic regression models find that, except for span of control, the other structural dimensions have a negative influence on perceived organizational performance. While span of control shows a better-fit with perceived performance in a linear and positive direction, personnel size fits better in a log-linear relationship. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed in the conclusion.
Learning to Enhance Dependability of Information Systems

Automatic configuration of large and heterogeneous ICT systems and their dependability mechanisms is both desirable and daunting for the inherent complexity of these systems.Configurations are commonly designed based on personal expertise, best practice, empirical evidence, without any automatic process and formal validation mechanism. This approach leads to frequent and reiterate errors with severe impacts on system reliability and security.In this article we present a general methodology and a set of tools to generate and validate the configuration of complex ICT systems, with little human intervention. These abstract configurations are to be used to drive the work of semi-automatic system management frameworks and tools that directly interact with the live system.We start from a formal description of the system including its service and infrastructure parts, software and hardware components, and associated dependability features. Through automatic tools we generate a set of possible system configurations that satisfy a set of security and reliability constraints. These tools exploit automated learning techniques to self tuning and customize their behavior based on feedbacks coming from the live system via its management and monitoring infrastructure.
From invisibility to visibility? The appropriation of public space through a religious ritual: the Filipino procession of Santacruzan in Padua, Italy

Mainly employed as domestic workers and care providers since the 1980s, Filipino migrants have been, and still are, largely invisible in Italian public space. Since 1991, once a year, on the last Sunday of May, they transform the streets of Padua, city of Saint Anthony, into their own temporary ‘sacred space’ celebrating the finding of the Holy Cross (Santa Cruz). Based on ethnographic research and in-depth interviews, the paper analyses the preparation of the ritual and the embodied performance as a means to interpret the Filipino local and transnational territorialisation in the Italian context. The discussion underlines how the Italian setting affects the relationship between the sacred and the secular and between majority and minority religions in the urban texture. Urban space being the symbolic arena where identity and the process of boundary making are inscribed, we consider public space as a social process constituted by three levels: accessibility, temporary appropriation and visibility. Drawing on this immigrant religious ritual, we apply this perspective to look at the interactions between local society and newcomers and the blurring boundaries between religious and non-religious in the ambiguous Italian public space.
Dependencies between E-Learning Usage Patterns and Learning Results

Recent studies come to the conclusion that Learning Management System (LMS) usage variables explain a higher variation in students' final grades than traditional student characteristics. Referring to such findings from literature our research aims at exploring dependencies between e-learning usage patterns and achieved learning results on the basis of LMS log-files from courses in different knowledge domains, and by analyzing courses not in isolation but by taking potential dependencies with students' activities in other courses into account. We examine correlations between usage variables and the students' performance in three blended learning courses with different topics based on large cohorts of students (n=883, n=389, n=578). In this context, an extended set of variables, including LMS usage beyond the three courses and usage patterns of students, are examined for interdependencies. Our results indicate that specific indicators, such as the number of active learning days and topic views, have a positive influence on learning results. In general, they show that at-risk students can be differentiated from well-performing students by their usage behavior. Moreover, we try to identify some significant patterns of LMS usage amongst the students. The paper shows how these patterns differ in our observations depending on the course domains.
Modular Modeling of an Artificial Organ System

Current synthetic biology research is focused on the molecular level, but viable artificial organs require a systematic framework for integration, sustenance, and coordination [1] [2]. While synthetic microbiology and tissue engineering are fundamental components, a higher level view of integration is often non-existent in the literature [2] [3]. A relevant research field is the development of closed-loop combinations of neural tissue and robotics, such as animats and hybrots [4]. As such, a proposed framework for a simple, modular synthetic organism will be evaluated. A closed-loop circulatory system would be used to sustain a " brain " via homeostatic maintenance of a balance of essential nutrients and waste removal. The modular " brains " used would include a cultured neural network [5], a simulated neural network [6], and a hybrid system using a sealed neuronal culture [4]. Research would be initially conducted by simulation and then experimentally. The implications of the system may be applicable to a number of fields, including hybrots [4], artificial organ design [2], synthetic biology [7], artificial life [8], and automated control systems [9]. While similar simulations have been previously performed [10] [4], none have examined an entire synthetic organ system in the context of modular nodes. Goals The initial goals of this research would be to design a mathematical model, a simulation based upon the model, and then a physical system based upon the simulation. The end product should be a model and system with ease of assembly and use, as well as the potential to regulate the desired characteristics of an artificial organ attached to it. The development of an API for such a system and supporting documentation would be a longer term goal. Methods The proposed model would be based upon a simple isolated brain scenario, with a set of artificial organs in series along a closed-loop artificial circulatory system [11] [12]. Different parameters for the number of modules may be included, but minimally a " brain, " a source of nutrition, and a filtration system for removing metabolic waste products in series around a closed loop should be included [13]. The theoretical model would be based upon metabolically-inspired control systems [5][14] [15] [16] [17] [18]. In addition, although other software can be used for the initial implementation of the system, the development of an Arduino-based implementation and supporting documentation would be a longer term goal. Intellectual Merit An important gap within the literature …
Emission of Negative Ions From Surfaces With High Emissivity

Spectra of the negative ion fraction in the low field emission from MPG-8 graphite with rough surface and tungsten surface with nano fuzz as a function of the residual gas composition and pressure are measured and analyzed. The intensity of the emitted negative ions increases linearly with the pressure of the working gas in the range of <formula formulatype="inline"> <tex Notation="TeX">$10^{-5}$</tex></formula> to <formula formulatype="inline"><tex Notation="TeX">$10^{-7}~{\rm Torr}$</tex></formula> and depends on the atomic mass of the residual gas. A simple model based on the secondary negative ion emission of adsorbed particles under positive ion bombardment of the cathode is proposed.
Interactive multi-objective vehicle routing via GA-based dynamic programming

This research is focused on dealing with multiple conflicting objectives in vehicle scheduling problem in an urban delivery context. The distinctive feature of this research is that an interactive reference point approach is applied to support the trade-off analysis of multiple conflicting objectives, including the minimization of total time, distance and CO2 emissions in the context of time-varying congestion data, derived as time-dependent historical average travel speed data from the UK road network. Due to congestion, average travel speeds on different roads change throughout the day and optimal routes may differ across time slots. Because of the conflict among the objectives, a solution that is optimal for one objective may or may not be optimal for other objectives. A hybrid algorithm mixing dynamic programming with an evolutionary algorithm is first developed to generate sets of efficient solutions. The proposed interactive approach is then described, which alternates between solution generation and preference elicitation from a decision maker. The effectiveness of the approach is illustrated using a case study that combines synthetic demand data for a company with the actual road and congestion information in the UK. The results obtained using the proposed interactive approach are compared to those obtained when a single objective is optimised.
Energy-Free Adjustment of Gravity Equilibrators Using the Virtual Spring Concept

People with neuromuscular diseases often have limited muscle force, and many rely on mobile arm supports to move their arms. Most of these make use of static balancing, a useful concept to reduce the operating effort of mechanisms, where spring mechanisms are used to achieve a constant total potential energy, thus eliminating any preferred position. Once statically balanced, the mechanism can be moved virtually without operating energy. This allows the patients using an arm support to move their arms freely. In some cases it is desirable to adjust the balancer characteristic, for instance due to a change of payload when picking up an object. In all available arm support mechanisms this adjustment is associated with considerable mechanical effort, while clearly this application would benefit greatly from an energy-free adjustment. Recently several methods have been invented to adjust spring and linkage-based static balancers with no need for external energy, by conserving the total energy in the system. The technique discussed in this paper is based on substituting an initial spring by two substitute springs. The two substitute springs generate a virtual spring with the same spring properties as the initial spring, with one unique difference: the virtual spring can be elongated or shortened while no work is done. Consequently, no external energy is needed for the adjustment. A table-top demonstrator has been developed, showing the feasibility of the concept.
Association of intracellular and synaptic organization in cochlear inner hair cells revealed by 3D electron microscopy

ABSTRACT The ways in which cell architecture is modelled to meet cell function is a poorly understood facet of cell biology. To address this question, we have studied the cytoarchitecture of a cell with highly specialised organisation, the cochlear inner hair cell (IHC), using multiple hierarchies of three-dimensional (3D) electron microscopy analyses. We show that synaptic terminal distribution on the IHC surface correlates with cell shape, and the distribution of a highly organised network of membranes and mitochondria encompassing the infranuclear region of the cell. This network is juxtaposed to a population of small vesicles, which represents a potential new source of neurotransmitter vesicles for replenishment of the synapses. Structural linkages between organelles that underlie this organisation were identified by high-resolution imaging. Taken together, these results describe a cell-encompassing network of membranes and mitochondria present in IHCs that support efficient coding and transmission of auditory signals. Such techniques also have the potential for clarifying functionally specialised cytoarchitecture of other cell types. Summary: 3D electron microscopy reconstructs the highly organised structure of the infranuclear region of the cochlear inner hair cell, which supports synaptic functions.
RAGE Mediates Accelerated Diabetic Vein Graft Atherosclerosis Induced by Combined Mechanical Stress and AGEs via Synergistic ERK Activation

Aims/Hypothesis Diabetes with hypertension rapidly accelerates vascular disease, but the underlying mechanism remains unclear. We evaluated the hypothesis that the receptor of advanced glycation end products (RAGE) might mediate combined signals initiated by diabetes-related AGEs and hypertension-induced mechanical stress as a common molecular sensor. Methods In vivo surgical vein grafts created by grafting vena cava segments from C57BL/6J mice into the common carotid arteries of streptozotocin (STZ)-treated and untreated isogenic mice for 4 and 8 weeks were analyzed using morphometric and immunohistochemical techniques. In vitro quiescent mouse vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) with either knockdown or overexpression of RAGE were subjected to cyclic stretching with or without AGEs. Extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) phosphorylation and Ki-67 expression were investigated. Results Significant increases in neointimal formation, AGE deposition, Ki-67 expression, and RAGE were observed in the vein grafts of STZ-induced diabetic mice. The highest levels of ERK phosphorylation and Ki-67 expression in VSMCs were induced by simultaneous stretch stress and AGE exposure. The synergistic activation of ERKs and Ki-67 in VSMCs was significantly inhibited by siRNA-RAGE treatment and enhanced by over-expression of RAGE. Conclusion RAGE may mediate synergistically increased ERK activation and VSMC proliferation induced by mechanical stretching with and without AGEs. It may serve as a common molecular bridge between the two, accelerating vascular remodeling. This study provides potential drug targets and novel therapeutic strategies for the treatment of vascular diseases resulting from diabetes with hypertension.
The Possible Antecedents and Consequences of Matching of Food Intake: Examining the Role of Trait Self-Esteem and Interpersonal Closeness

Although there is evidence that people tend to match their intake to that of others, less is known about the motives underlying this effect. The current study, therefore, examined the relationship between self-esteem, a specific factor that has been related to the likelihood of social matching. Further, we examined the effects of food matching on interpersonal closeness among eating companions. The sample included 89 female dyads. All dyads had free access to palatable snack food during a 15 min interaction. For each dyad the matching score was calculated, as well as both individual's trait self-esteem scores and interpersonal closeness with their eating partner. The overall degree of matching within dyads was high, replicating the findings of previous research. No relationship, however, was found between trait self-esteem and the degree of matching. Furthermore, there was no effect of matching on perceived interpersonal closeness with or liking of the other person. These results suggest that self-esteem might not be a robust predictor of matching and that matching of food intake may not result in increased perceived interpersonal closeness or liking among eating partners.
Pre-existing immunity against Ad vectors

Pre-existing immunity against human adenovirus (HAd) serotype 5 derived vector in the human population is widespread, thus hampering its clinical use. Various components of the immune system, including neutralizing antibodies (nAbs), Ad specific T cells and type I IFN activated NK cells, contribute to dampening the efficacy of Ad vectors in individuals with pre-existing Ad immunity. In order to circumvent pre-existing immunity to adenovirus, numerous strategies, such as developing alternative Ad serotypes, varying immunization routes and utilizing prime-boost regimens, are under pre-clinical or clinical phases of development. However, these strategies mainly focus on one arm of pre-existing immunity. Selection of alternative serotypes has been largely driven by the absence in the human population of nAbs against them with little attention paid to cross-reactive Ad specific T cells. Conversely, varying the route of immunization appears to mainly rely on avoiding Ad specific tissue-resident T cells. Finally, prime-boost regimens do not actually circumvent pre-existing immunity but instead generate immune responses of sufficient magnitude to confer protection despite pre-existing immunity. Combining the above strategies and thus taking into account all components regulating pre-existing Ad immunity will help further improve the development of Ad vectors for animal and human use.
Telling Policy Stories: An Ethnographic Study of the Use of Evidence in Policy-making in the UK

Abstract Based on participant observation in a team of British policy-making civil servants carried out in 2009, this article examines the use that is made of evidence in making policy. It shows that these civil servants displayed a high level of commitment to the use of evidence. However, their use of evidence was hampered by the huge volume of various kinds of evidence and by the unsuitability of much academic research in answering policy questions. Faced with this deluge of inconclusive information, they used evidence to create persuasive policy stories. These stories were useful both in making acceptable policies and in advancing careers. They often involved the excision of methodological uncertainty and the use of ‘killer charts’ to boost the persuasiveness of the narrative. In telling these stories, social inequality was ‘silently silenced’ in favour of promoting policies which were ‘totemically’ tough. The article concludes that this selective, narrative use of evidence is ideological in that it supports systematically asymmetrical relations of power.
Efficient, Realistic NPC Control Systems using Behavior-Based Techniques

Computer games are an application in which the perception of intentionality is often more important than intentionality itself. Players often attribute more intelligence to non-player characters than is actually warranted. Therefore, rather than investing more AI complexity in the system, we propose an approach which refines and extends the finite-state machine techniques already prevalent in commercially available games. Taking advantage of the similarities between robots and NPCs in dynamic environments, we describe two NPC control systems that uses behavior-based techniques.
The role of robotic gait training coupled with virtual reality in boosting the rehabilitative outcomes in patients with multiple sclerosis

Motor impairment is the most common symptom in multiple sclerosis (MS). Thus, a variety of new rehabilitative strategies, including robotic gait training, have been implemented, showing their effectiveness. The aim of our study was to investigate whether an intensive robotic gait training, preceding a traditional rehabilitative treatment, could be useful in improving and potentiating motor performance in MS patients. Forty-five patients, who fulfilled the inclusion criteria, were enrolled in this study and randomized into either the control group (CG) or the experimental group (EG). A complete clinical evaluation, including the Expanded Disability Severity Scale, the Functional Independence Measure, the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression, the time up and go test (TUG), and the Tinetti balance scale, was performed at baseline (T0), after 6 week (T1), at the end of rehabilitative training (T2), and 1 month later (T3). A significant improvement was observed in the EG for all the outcome measures, whereas the CG showed an improvement only in TUG. In contrast, from T1 to T2, only CG significantly improved in all outcomes, whereas the EG had an improvement only regarding TUG. From T2 to T3, no significant differences in Functional Independence Measure scores emerged for both the groups, but a significant worsening in Tinetti balance scale and TUG was observed for the CG and in TUG for the EG. Our study provides evidence that robotic rehabilitationn coupled with two-dimensional virtual reality may be a valuable tool in promoting functional recovery in patients with MS.