Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Shared decision-making in dementia care planning: barriers and facilitators in two European countries

ABSTRACT Background: Shared decision-making (SDM) is a means of allowing people with dementia to take part in making choices, be autonomous and participate in social activities. Involving them in SDM is an important way of promoting social health. However, including families and dementia residents in decision-making can be challenging for care staff working in nursing homes. The objective of this study was to identify barriers and facilitators regarding the implementation of an SDM framework for care planning in two nursing homes, one in Italy and one in the Netherlands. Methods: Focus group interviews were conducted with healthcare professionals who, after being trained, applied the SDM framework. Content analysis was used to analyze the data. Results: Six months after the feasibility trial, focus group interviews with healthcare professionals (n = 10 in Italy; n = 9 in the Netherlands) were held. We found 6 themes and 15 categories. Within these themes, facilitators and barriers were identified. The categories of team collaboration, communication skills and nursing home policy were found to be facilitators to the implementation process, whereas regulations, lack of funding and of involvement of family caregivers were the main barriers. Family attitudes towards SDM could be both. The main difference between countries concerned the residents’ cognitive status that influenced their degree of involvement. Conclusion: Communication skills training for professionals, training of family caregivers, and involvement of the management in the implementation process seem to be crucial factors in successfully implementing SDM in nursing homes, and increasing the involvement of families and dementia residents in decision-making.
Robust Principal Component Analysis with Complex Noise

The research on robust principal component analysis (RPCA) has been attracting much attention recently. The original RPCA model assumes sparse noise, and use the L1-norm to characterize the error term. In practice, however, the noise is much more complex and it is not appropriate to simply use a certain Lp-norm for noise modeling. We propose a generative RPCA model under the Bayesian framework by modeling data noise as a mixture of Gaussians (MoG). The MoG is a universal approximator to continuous distributions and thus our model is able to fit a wide range of noises such as Laplacian, Gaussian, sparse noises and any combinations of them. A variational Bayes algorithm is presented to infer the posterior of the proposed model. All involved parameters can be recursively updated in closed form. The advantage of our method is demonstrated by extensive experiments on synthetic data, face modeling and background subtraction.
An international study of the propensity of students to limit their use of private transport in light of their understanding of the causes of global warming

Previous studies have shown that there is what has been called a ‘gap’ between environmental knowledge and a willingness to act in a pro-environmental manner. For the individual, this gap is probably the result of the huge complexity of factors that affect behaviour. The way in which this ‘gap’ is sometimes identified in the literature, however, is also partly a function of the fact that much of the research in this area has compared environmental attitudes in general with a willingness to take actions that are specific. In the present study, we have circumvented this latter issue by exploring links between a declared willingness to undertake specific actions and the level of belief in the efficacy of those particular actions in reducing global warming. Here we report findings on actions concerning personal transport. Because the questionnaire was designed to provide quantitative measures, novel indices could be constructed that indicate, for example, the extent to which persuading people that an action is effective might increase their willingness to undertake it. Responses were obtained from students in 11 countries with different cultural mores. This enabled us to explore possible associations between a readiness to undertake specific actions and previously published socio-cultural indices. The implications for education about these issues are explored.
Wireless mesh networks: Energy - capacity tradeoff and physical layer parameters

This paper is focused on broadband wireless mesh networks based on OFDMA resource management, considering a realistic SINR model of the physical layer with a fine tuned power control at each node. A linear programing model using column generation leads to compute power efficient schedules with high network capacity. Correlation between capacity and energy consumption is analyzed as well as the impact of physical layer parameters - SINR threshold and path-loss exponent. We highlight that there is no significant tradeoff between capacity and energy when the power consumption of idle nodes is important. We also show that both energy consumption and network capacity are very sensitive to the SINR threshold variation.
Data-Driven HRI: Learning Social Behaviors by Example From Human–Human Interaction

Recent studies in human-robot interaction (HRI) have investigated ways to harness the power of the crowd for the purpose of creating robot interaction logic through games and teleoperation interfaces. Sensor networks capable of observing human-human interactions in the real world provide a potentially valuable and scalable source of interaction data that can be used for designing robot behavior. To that end, we present here a fully automated method for reproducing observed real-world social interactions with a robot. The proposed method includes techniques for characterizing the speech and locomotion observed in training interactions, using clustering to identify typical behavior elements and identifying spatial formations using established HRI proxemics models. Behavior logic is learned based on discretized actions captured from the sensor data stream, using a naïve Bayesian classifier. Finally, we propose techniques for reproducing robot speech and locomotion behaviors in a robust way, despite the natural variation of human behaviors and the large amount of sensor noise present in speech recognition. We show our technique in use, training a robot to play the role of a shop clerk in a simple camera shop scenario, and we demonstrate through a comparison experiment that our techniques successfully enabled the generation of socially appropriate speech and locomotion behavior. Notably, the performance of our technique in terms of correct behavior selection was found to be higher than the success rate of speech recognition, indicating its robustness to sensor noise.
Visual search of emotional faces: The role of affective content and featural distinctiveness

We investigated the source of the visual search advantage of some emotional facial expressions. An emotional face target (happy, surprised, disgusted, fearful, angry, or sad) was presented in an array of neutral faces. A faster detection was found for happy targets, with angry and, especially, sad targets being detected more poorly. Physical image properties (e.g., luminance) were ruled out as a potential source of these differences in visual search. In contrast, the search advantage is partly due to the facilitated processing of affective content, as shown by an emotion identification task. Happy expressions were identified faster than the other expressions and were less likely to be confounded with neutral faces, whereas misjudgements occurred more often for angry and sad expressions. Nevertheless, the distinctiveness of some local features (e.g., teeth) that are consistently associated with emotional expressions plays the strongest role in the search advantage pattern. When the contribution of these features to visual search was factored out statistically, the advantage disappeared.
Perspectives on access to in vitro fertilization in Portugal.

OBJECTIVE To analyze users' reasons for choosing in vitro fertilization treatment in public or private services and to identify their suggestions for improving fertility treatment. METHODS A qualitative study using an interpretative approach was conducted. Fifteen semi-structured interviews were conducted with patients undergoing in vitro fertilization treatment (nine women, one man and five couples) at home or at their workplace in the districts of Viana do Castelo, Braga, Porto and Lisbon, Portugal, between July 2005 and February 2006. RESULTS Users evaluated access to in vitro fertilization treatment in public and private services based mainly on their individual experiences and called for more access to less costly, faster and friendlier care with suitable facilities, appropriate time management and caring medical providers. These perceptions were also associated with views on the need for fighting stigmatization of infertility, protecting children's rights and guaranteeing sustainability of health care system. Interviewees sought to balance reduced waiting time and more attentive care with costs involved. The choice of services depended on the users' purchase power and place of residence and availability of attentive care. CONCLUSIONS Current national policies on in vitro fertilization treatment meet user's demands of promoting access to, and quality, availability and affordability of in vitro fertilization treatment. However, their focus on legal regulation and technical-scientific aspects contrasts with the users' emphasis on reimbursement, insurance coverage and focus on emotional aspects of the treatment. The study showed these policies should ensure insurance coverage, participation of user representatives in the National Council for Assisted Reproductive Technology, promotion of infertility research and certification of fertility laboratories.
Homeless Students and Academic Achievement

Child homelessness has recently reached levels unprecedented in the United States since the Great Depression. Contemporary research has attempted to isolate the effects of homelessness on education, with mixed results. This study reports results from a study in one large urban area and finds that there is no meaningful difference in achievement between homeless and housed low–socioeconomic status (SES) elementary school students. Furthermore, we find that attendance is a mediator of lowered achievement and that commonly suspected school-level characteristics do not predict homeless student success. Implications for policy, practice, and research are discussed.
Dextran conjugates in drug delivery

Introduction: Dextran is a family of natural polysaccharides that is widely under investigation for use as polymeric carriers in novel drug delivery systems. The optimal drug delivery (and consequently maximum therapeutic effect) will be accomplished when carrier systems are used mainly for drugs with antitumoral activity, as they increase their blood permanence time, taking advantage of the increased mass that reduces kidney ultrafiltration. Areas covered: This review summarizes the attempts that have been made in the development of dextran conjugates and their application. The manuscript describes dextran hydrogels, the use of conjugates of dextran in bioadhesive oral delivery systems, colon drug delivery, reduction of ulcerogenicity of drugs, production of micelles, solubilization, long-circulating pharmaceutical carriers as anticancer drug carriers, non-viral vectors, stabilization of enzymes, functionalization of nanomaterials, diagnosis of solid tumors and hyperthermic treatment and liver targeting. Expert opinion: Dextran conjugation has aided the design of new tailor-made polymers with different molecular weights, shapes, structures and with the functional groups needed for coupling at the desired positions in the chain. Dextran prodrugs are very useful systems for achieving controlled drug release and drug targeting. In particular, various dextran-antitumor drug conjugates enhance the effectiveness and improve the cytotoxic effects of chemotherapeutic agents. Future studies should concentrate on barriers for their clinical use and safety as a drug carrier.
Dendritic Cell Modulation by Mast Cells Controls the Th1/Th2 Balance in Responding T Cells1

The cytokines secreted by pathogen-activated human dendritic cells (DC) are strongly regulated in vitro by histamine, a major component of mast cell granules, ultimately modulating the capacity of the DC to polarize naive T cells. Because DC and mast cells are located in close proximity in peripheral compartments, we hypothesized that mast cell products would influence the maturation of DC and hence the Th balance of an immune response in vivo. In this study, we show that specific mast cell degranulation stimuli, given s.c. in mice with Ag and adjuvant, produce effector T cells that proliferate to Ag but secrete dramatically reduced levels of IFN-γ and increased amounts of IL-4 compared with control T cells primed in the absence of a mast cell stimulus. Immunization with Ag and adjuvant in the presence of a degranulation stimulus also resulted in the accumulation of DC in the draining lymph nodes that had reduced capacity to induce Ag-specific Th1 cells, in comparison with DC from mice lacking a degranulation stimulus. Therefore, by acting upon DC at sites of inflammation, mast cells play a critical role in determining the polarity of Ag-specific T cell responses in vivo.
OECD, ‘Key competencies’ and the new challenges of educational inequality

In this paper, I develop a critique of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)-based lifelong learning policy discourse with a particular focus on ‘key competencies’ (KCs) and its equity implications for school curricular policies. First, I review the discussion of KCs in the writings by the OECD-affiliated researchers and other OECD documents. In so doing, I identify a marked decoupling of KCs from the initial lifelong learning policy framework. Then, I situate the discussion of KCs within the sociological critique of the new mode of learning deemed essential for a ‘knowledge society’. I identify KCs’ potential to naturalize the (re)production of inequalities through schooling and argue that this can be further compounded by the extraction of KCs from the lifelong learning policy discourse. Finally, I ground these expositions in the specific policy context of Japanese education, highlighting how KCs and its decoupled articulation pose a difficult policy dilemma for Japan’s Ministry of Education attempting to address the widening class-based inequalities through schooling. Hence, this study critiques the contemporary school curriculum reform driven by KCs by tracing the flow of this concept from the international policy discourse down to the level of a national policy development. In conclusion, I call for curriculum studies to recognize the increasingly globalized curricular policy context and develop strategies for the new challenges of educational inequalities that confront us today.
Determining mutation rates in bacterial populations.

When properly determined, spontaneous mutation rates are a more accurate and biologically meaningful reflection of underlying mutagenic mechanisms than are mutant frequencies. Because bacteria grow exponentially and mutations arise stochastically, methods to estimate mutation rates depend on theoretical models that describe the distribution of mutant numbers among parallel cultures, as in the original Luria-Delbr]uck fluctuation analysis. An accurate determination of mutation rate depends on understanding the strengths and limitations of these methods, and how to design fluctuation assays to optimize a given method. In this paper we describe a number of methods to estimate mutation rates, give brief accounts of their derivations, and discuss how they behave under various experimental conditions.
Understanding Symptoms in Patients with Advanced Chronic Kidney Disease Managed without Dialysis: Use of a Short Patient-Completed Assessment Tool

Background: It is often believed that patients with advanced chronic kidney disease (CKD) stage 4–5 have few symptoms, and that dying with renal disease is relatively symptom-free. But the symptom burden of patients managed conservatively (without dialysis), with potentially high levels of comorbidity and poor functional status, is unknown. This clinical audit evaluated the prevalence and severity of symptoms in conservatively managed CKD stage 4–5 patients. Methods: Symptom data was collected from all conservatively managed patients from 2 renal units referred to a new renal palliative care service over a 10-month period between April 2005 and January 2006. Data on symptom prevalence and severity was collected as part of their routine clinical care, using a modified version of the Patient Outcome Scale – symptom module (POSs). This patient-completed instrument identifies the presence and severity of 17 symptoms. Demographic data was also collected, including estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) using the MDRD formula, primary renal diagnosis and comorbidity. Results: Symptoms were evaluated in 55 patients, with a mean age of 82 years (SD 5.5, range 66–96). eGFR ranged from 3 to 30 ml/min (median 11, mean 12.75). In patients with CKD stage 4–5, managed without dialysis, the symptom burden is high. The most prevalent symptoms reported were weakness (75%), poor mobility (75%), poor appetite (58%), pain (56%), pruritus (56%) and dyspnoea (49%). The total number of symptoms each individual patient experienced ranged from 1 to 14 (median 7, mean 6.8). Symptoms were frequently reported as moderate, severe, or overwhelming; in 54% of patients with poor mobility, 48% with weakness, 30% with itching, 31% with anorexia and 27% with pain. No significant association was demonstrated between the number of symptoms experienced and either severity of renal disease or comorbidity score. Conclusions: This structured clinical evaluation demonstrates the extent and severity of symptom burden in conservatively managed patients with CKD stage 4–5, and demonstrates the use of an appropriate clinical tool that can be used to assess the efficacy of treatment.
245 GHz transmitter and receiver in SiGe for gas spectroscopy

A 245 GHz sensor system for gas spectroscopy is presented, which includes a SiGe transmitter (TX) and a receiver (RX). The integrated local oscillators of TX- and RX-chips are controlled by two external phase-locked loops (PLL), whose reference frequencies are swept with constant frequency offset. The reference frequency of the TX-PLL is modulated for frequency-modulation spectroscopy. The performance of the sensor system is demonstrated by the 2f absorption spectrum (second harmonic detection) of methanol.
On the Impact of the Medium in the Effectiveness of 3D Software Visualizations

Many visualizations have proven to be effective in supporting various software related tasks. Although multiple media can be used to display a visualization, the standard computer screen is used the most. We hypothesize that the medium has a role in their effectiveness. We investigate our hypotheses by conducting a controlled user experiment. In the experiment we focus on the 3D city visualization technique used for software comprehension tasks. We deploy 3D city visualizations across a standard computer screen (SCS), an immersive 3D environment (I3D), and a physical 3D printed model (P3D). We asked twenty-seven participants (whom we divided in three groups for each medium) to visualize software systems of various sizes, solve a set of uniform comprehension tasks, and complete a questionnaire. We measured the effectiveness of visualizations in terms of performance, recollection, and user experience. We found that even though developers using P3D required the least time to identify outliers, they perceived the least difficulty when visualizing systems based on SCS. Moreover, developers using I3D obtained the highest recollection.
Source Stirring Technology for Automotive Antenna Measurement

A statistically uniform E-fleld is created in a service environment by using the source stirring technology and the uniformity of the E-fleld is theoretically evaluated. With simulation of a service environment is shown, that the adoption of the source stirring technology can avoid the influence of the objects that distract the measurement results.
Accounting for the Explanations of CEO Compensation: Substance and Symbolism

Both authors contributed equally to the paper. The helpful comments of Jerry Davis, Paul Hirsch, Matt Kraatz, Marshall Meyer, Brian Uzzi, three anonymous ASQ reviewers, and seminar participants at MIT and Stanford University are appreciated. We also thank Rodger Voorhies and Ann Yoo for assistance in data collection, and Linda Pike for her valuable editorial advice. While current debates about CEO compensation have generally been dominated by economic and political perspectives on CEO/board relations, we argue in this paper that CEO compensation may be driven by symbolic as well as substantive considerations. We develop an interdisciplinary theoretical framework to (1) explain why alternative explanations rooted in agency and human resource logics may be used to reduce ambiguity surrounding the adoption of new incentive plans for CEOs and (2) identify the possible structural (e.g., institutional, demographic, and economic), and interest-based (e.g., political) factors influencing the use of such explanations. We generate and test hypotheses predicting the alternative explanations for new long-term incentive plans using data taken from proxy statements over a 15-year period. The findings support the notion that explanations for CEO compensation reflect both substance and symbolism. "
WattDB-A Journey towards Energy E ciency

Due to their narrow power spectrum between idle and full utilization [2], satisfactory energy e ciency of servers can only be reached in the peak-performance range, whereas energy e ciency obtained for lower activity levels is far from being optimal. Hence, this hardware property obviates a desired energy proportionality or minimal energy use for the entire range of system utilization. To approximate energy proportionality for all activity levels, we developed various versions of WattDB, a distributed DBMS, which runs on a dynamic cluster of wimpy computing nodes. In this survey, we sketch important design decisions and implementation steps towards the nal state of WattDB. For these reasons, we discuss our ndings on a cluster with dedicated storage nodes and static data allocation, on dynamic data repartitioning and allocation, and on a dynamic cluster where each node can serve as storage and processing node in a symmetric way. Our experiments show that WattDB dynamically adjusts to the workload present and recon gures itself to satisfy performance demands while keeping its energy consumption at a minimum. Finally, we compare the performance and energy results of the WattDB software running on the cluster of wimpy nodes with that of a brawny server.
Perspectival Understanding of Conceptions and Conceptual Growth in Interaction

Abstract We propose a bridge between cognitive and sociocultural approaches that is anchored on the sociocultural side by distributed cognition and participation, and on the cognitive side by information structures. We interpret information structures as the contents of distributed knowing and interaction in activity systems. Conceptual understanding is considered as achievement of discourse in activity systems, and conceptual growth is change in discourse practice that supports more effective conceptual understanding. We also introduce a concept of perspectival understanding, in which accounts of cognition, including conceptual understanding, include points of view. This concept generalizes the concept of schema by hypothesizing that a perspectival understanding can be constructed by constraint satisfaction when a sufficient schema is not known or recognized. We provide an example in which perspectival understanding was jointly constructed, illustrating an interactional process we call “constructive listening. ”