Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Modeling of socio-demographic predictors of sexual function in women of reproductive age

Background and purpose: Sexual health is a state of physical, mental and social well-being in relation to sexuality. This study aimed to determine the status of sexual function, its dimensions, and its socio-demographic predictors in women of reproductive age in Tabriz, Iran, in 2013. Materials and methods: Data were collected by Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI) scale and socio- demographic questionnaire. General liner model analysis was used for modeling of socio-demographic predictors of sexual function. Results: The mean score of sexual function was 65.9 ± 15.8 of the possible range of 0-100. Prevalence of sexual dysfunction was 66%. Sufficiency of household income for expenses and the level of satisfaction of spouse were predictors of sexual function in women. Conclusion: With attention to significant impact of the sexual function on health of women and their families, determining the effective factors on sexual satisfaction can assist strengthening of families.
Analysis and Design of Signal Stage AC/DC Converter with Resonant Model PFC

A single stage AC/DC converter with resonant model PFC has been deeply studied in this paper by mathematic analysis. The following results have been revealed: (1). The working conditions for the circuit have been derived and can be expressed by the formulas, which can be used to select the parameters of the circuit; (2). It has been proved that the bus voltage decreases if output power increases and the turn-on time is kept constant; (3). The optimal controlling strategy for regulating the output voltage has been put forward. In order to verify the theoretic analysis conclusions, the simulation results and experimental results have been given out. The theoretic analysis conclusions and math formulas have provide a new tool for designing the circuit
Determining the Factors Affecting the Memorable Nature of Travel Experiences

ABSTRACT This study investigates the effects of travel experiences on the autobiographical memory. A structural equation modeling analysis reveals that the experiential factors of involvement, hedonic activity, and local culture positively affected the autobiographical memory of recollection and vividness of past experiences. Specifically, the experiential factors of involvement and refreshing experiences are found to increase an individual's ability to recollect past travel experiences and retrieve the experiences vividly. Alternatively, the experience of local culture enhances the recollection of past travel experiences, albeit not as vividly. The findings of the present study suggest that marketing efforts used at the anticipation stage of travel experiences are necessary to provide memorable travel experiences. The theoretical and managerial implications of the results obtained are discussed in detail.
Regretted Online Self-Presentations: U.S. College Students' Recollections and Reflections

This article presents an exploratory analysis of the content, context and consequences of young people's regretted online self-presentations. A convenience sample of college students was asked to describe an online self-presentation they regretted. Among the 40% of participants who shared a specific self-presentation, the most commonly regretted content included comments or images about partying, personal feelings/beliefs, or negative comments about others. The most frequently cited motivations for producing self-presentations later regretted was the desire to be like others and to see what would happen. Most respondents ultimately regretted their self-presentation because they did not feel it represented who they really were, did not appreciate the impact it would have, or realize who would encounter it. Nevertheless, the majority reported that the regret experience had been valuable, and that they changed in some meaningful way as a result.
The association of arterial shear and flow-mediated dilation in diabetes

While adjusting flow-mediated dilation (FMD), a measure of vascular function, for shear rate may be important when evaluating endothelial-dependent vasodilation, the relationship of FMD with shear rate in study populations with cardiovascular risk factors is unclear. We aimed to investigate the association of four measures of shear rate (peak shear rate (SRpeak) and shear rate area under the curve through 30 seconds (SRAUC 0–30), 60 seconds (SRAUC 0–60), and time to peak dilation (SRAUC 0–ttp)) with FMD in 50 study subjects with type 2 diabetes and mild hypertension undergoing baseline FMD testing for an exercise intervention trial. Associations among measures of shear rate and FMD were evaluated using Pearson’s correlations and R2. The four measures of shear rate were highly correlated within subjects, with Pearson’s correlations ranging from 0.783 (p < 0.001) to 0.972 (p < 0.001). FMD was associated with each measure of shear rate, having a correlation of 0.576 (p < 0.001) with SRAUC 0–30, 0.529 (p < 0.001) with SRAUC 0–60, and 0.512 (p < 0.001) with SRpeak. Nine of 50 subjects (18%) did not dilate following the shear stimulus. Among the 41 responders, FMD had a correlation of 0.517 (p < 0.001) with SRAUC 0–ttp and similar correlations to those found in the full sample for SRAUC 0–30, SRAUC 0–60, and SRpeak. In conclusion, shear rate appears to explain up to a third of between-person variability in FMD response and our results support the reporting of shear rate and FMD with and without adjustment for shear rate in similar clinical populations with CVD risk factors.
Identifying determinants of medication adherence following myocardial infarction using the Theoretical Domains Framework and the Health Action Process Approach

Background: Despite evidence-based recommendations, adherence with secondary prevention medications post-myocardial infarction (MI) remains low. Taking medication requires behaviour change, and using behavioural theories to identify what factors determine adherence could help to develop novel adherence interventions. Objective: Compare the utility of different behaviour theory-based approaches for identifying modifiable determinants of medication adherence post-MI that could be targeted by interventions. Methods: Two studies were conducted with patients 0–2, 3–12, 13–24 or 25–36 weeks post-MI. Study 1: 24 patients were interviewed about barriers and facilitators to medication adherence. Interviews were conducted and coded using the Theoretical Domains Framework. Study 2: 201 patients answered a telephone questionnaire assessing Health Action Process Approach constructs to predict intention and medication adherence (MMAS-8). Results: Study 1: domains identified: Beliefs about Consequences, Memory/Attention/Decision Processes, Behavioural Regulation, Social Influences and Social Identity. Study 2: 64, 59, 42 and 58% reported high adherence at 0–2, 3–12, 13–24 and 25–36 weeks. Social Support and Action Planning predicted adherence at all time points, though the relationship between Action Planning and adherence decreased over time. Conclusions: Using two behaviour theory-based approaches provided complimentary findings and identified modifiable factors that could be targeted to help translate Intention into action to improve medication adherence post-MI.
A verbal rating scale to measure Japanese consumers' perceptions of product quality

Purpose – This paper aims to investigate whether verbal rating scales are viable formats for attitude measurement through an application to Japanese consumers' product quality perceptions.Design/methodology/approach – The article notes theoretical differences between Likert‐based and Thurstone approaches to attitude measurement. The paper illustrates a Thurstone scale development process.Findings – The new scale possesses nomological validity; it correctly predicts how consumer ethnocentrism relates to product quality evaluations for brands in different competitive situations.Practical implications – The convenient, ready‐to‐apply verbal rating scale can measure Japanese consumers' perceptions of product quality. The article also offers survey researchers some practical guidance for developing their own verbal rating scales.Originality/value – Verbal rating scales are rarely found in existing literature. This study sheds light on a frequently overlooked measurement scale format for measuring attitudes.
Quality of life, cognitive level and school performance in children with functional lower urinary tract dysfunction.

INTRODUCTION Lower urinary tract dysfunction (LUTD) are voiding dysfunctions without anatomical or neurological defects. The diagnosis is primarily clinical, with symptoms standardized by the International Children's Continence Society. Few studies relate quality of life of patients with cognitive and school performance. OBJECTIVE To evaluate milestones of bladder control, daily problems, quality of life (QoL), cognitive function and school performance of children with LUTD. METHODS Case series of patients followed in the Pediatric Nephrology tertiary hospital with assessment of QoL (Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory - PedsQoL version 4), School Performance Test (TDE) and Raven Progressive Matrices test. RESULTS Girls of lower social class were (90.9%) of eligible children. The mean age was 9.1 ± 4.8 years old. The most common symptoms were urge incontinence (81%), holding maneuvers (77.3%) and enuresis (59.1%) associated with the elimination disorder syndrome (63.6%). Caregivers considered volunteers urinary losses and/ or symptoms, and fought and/or beat the child. Children had been subjected to embarrassing situations such as warnings of teachers, they hid symptoms and/or the dirty clothes. Mean score of QoL was 71.0 ± 12.6 with the lowest mean score on the school dimension. In TDE 55% had lower performance and in Raven Matrices 60% were intellectually in the medium level. It was observed lower QoL scores in the medium and lower level of TDE and average intellectual capacity/below average in Raven matrices. CONCLUSION LUTD may negatively affect family and social relationships, school performance and QoL of children with the dysfunction.
Pay-as-Bid: Selling Divisible Goods to Uninformed Bidders

Pay-as-bid is the most popular auction format for selling treasury securities. We prove the uniqueness of pure strategy Bayesian Nash equilibria in pay-as-bid auctions in which symmetrically-informed bidders face uncertainty over supply, and we establish a sufficient condition for the existence of this equilibrium. We show that equilibrium bids have an unexpected and convenient separable representation: the bid on any unit is a weighted average of marginal values on this and subsequent units, and the weights are independent of the bidder's values. We leverage our representation of bids to show that for maximizing the seller's revenue in a pay-as-bid auction, selecting supply is more useful than selecting a reserve price. With optimal supply and reserve price, the unique equilibrium in the pay-as-bid auction is revenue-equivalent to the unique equilibrium in the uniform-price auction.
SENIN: An energy-efficient sparse neuromorphic system with on-chip learning

Applying highly accurate neural networks to mobile devices encounters energy problems in battery-limited mobile environments. To resolve these problems, neuromorphic hardware solutions that enable event-driven operation have been proposed. In this work, we present a novel sparse neuromorphic system that implements an E-I Net algorithm to further improve energy efficiency. We introduce a neuron clock-gating technique that significantly reduces energy consumption by predicting future neuron spike activity without any loss of accuracy. We also propose synaptic pruning to save additional energy with minimal impact on classification accuracy. For fast adaptation to a changing environment, a learning algorithm is implemented in the proposed system. Compared to prior studies, our experimental results illustrate that the proposed system achieves 5.3×–11.4× energy efficiency improvement with comparable accuracy.
Handwriting Rehabilitation in Parkinson Disease: A Pilot Study

Objective To assess the utility of handwriting rehabilitation (HR) in Parkinson disease (PD) patients who experienced difficulties with handwriting and signing. Methods Sixty PD patients were prospectively studied with graphological evaluations. Thirty PD patients were assigned to HR for 9 weeks. At the end of this training, all patients were evaluated again and results of basal vs. final evaluations were compared. Results At final evaluation, the group assigned to HR showed significantly larger amplitude of the first 'e' in the phrase, larger signature surface area, and superior margin. A trend of increase in letter size was also observed. Handwriting with progressively decreasing size of letters and ascending direction with respect to the horizontal were prominent findings in both groups of patients and they did not change after HR. Conclusion Rehabilitation programs for handwriting problems in PD patients are likely to be helpful. Larger randomized studies are needed to confirm these results.
An optimization algorithm for the operation planning of the University of Genoa smart polygeneration microgrid

The aim of this paper is to describe the Smart Polygeneration Microgrid (SPM), which is being constructed at the Savona Campus of the Genoa University, also thanks to funding from the Italian Ministry of Education, University and Research (amount 2.4 Million Euros). Specifically, a detailed model of the grid is presented and an optimization problem is defined, in order to achieve suitable goals, like the minimization of the production costs or the maximization of power quality or environmental indices.
The Two Faces of Voluntary Disclosure: Quality Improvement and Organizational Learning from Self‐Reported Problems

Research suggests the promise of voluntary self‐reporting, given that organizational quality can be difficult to monitor. However, I explore opposing theoretical arguments regarding its impact. On one hand, self‐reported problems may motivate intensive investigation, resulting in subsequent improvement. However, self‐reports may instead represent relatively superficial impression management efforts, and their value to organizational performance may be more dubious. Associated hypotheses are tested on a longitudinal panel of nursing homes. Findings suggest that self‐reports generally detract from performance except when they are reinforced by other, complementary forms of experience. Contributions to organizational learning theory, institutional theory and regulatory policy are discussed.
Arterial Fibrous Proteins in Cynomolgus Monkeys after Atherogenic and Regression Diets

Fibrous proteins were measured in five arterial beds in adult cynomolgus monkeys after administration of atherogenic and regression regimens. Atherosclerosis was induced by feeding the monkeys a hypercholesterolemic diet containing 1.2% cholesterol for 17 months. A low-fat, cholesterol-free regression diet was then given for 60 days, 200 days, and 20 months. In atherosclerosis, collagen concentration (mg/g dry weight) and collagen content (mg/cm length of artery) both increased. At 200 days of regression the collagen concentration, but not the collagen content, was higher than it was in atherosclerosis. In late regression (20 months), the collagen content was lower than it was in atherosclerosis, although in the five arterial beds considered together the collagen concentration was not significantly lower. Both the elastin concentration and the elastin content rose in atherosclerosis and decreased in regression. These mass data suggest that fibrous proteins are lost from the arterial wall during a regression regimen. Correlative evidence suggests that younger intimal fibers may be chiefly susceptible to fibrolytic activity, leaving dense intimal scars characteristic of regressed arteries.
Beyond contiguity : the role of temporal distributions and predictability in human causal learning

Most contemporary theories of causal learning identify three primary cues to causality; temporal order, contingency and contiguity. It is well-established in the literature that a lack of temporal contiguity – a delay between cause and effect – can have an adverse effect on causal induction. However research has tended to focus almost exclusively on the extent of delay while ignoring the potential influence of delay variability. This thesis aimed to address this oversight. Since humans tend to experience causal relations repeatedly over time, we accordingly experience multiple cause-effect intervals. If intervals are constant, it becomes possible to predict when the effect will occur following the cause. Fixed delays thus confer temporal predictability, which may contribute to successful causal inference by creating an impression of a stable underlying mechanism. Five experiments confirmed the facilitatory effect of predictability in instrumental causal learning. Two experiments involving a different aspect of causal judgment found no effects of interval variability, but two further experiments demonstrated that predictability facilitates elemental causal induction from observation. These results directly conflict with findings from studies of animal conditioning, where preference for variable- interval reinforcement is routinely exhibited, and a simple associative account struggles to explain this disparity. However both a temporal coding associative account, and higher-level cognitive perspectives such as Bayesian structural inference, are compatible with these findings. Overall, this thesis indicates that causal learning involves processes above and beyond simple associations.
Enabling Spacecraft Formation Flying through Spaceborne GPS and Enhanced Automation Technologies

Formation Flying is quickly revolutionizing the way the space community conducts autonomous science missions around the Earth and in space. This technological revolution will provide new, innovative ways for this community to gather scientific information, share this information between space vehicles and the ground, and expedite the Human exploration of space. Once fully matured, this technology will result in swarms of space vehicles flying as a virtual platform and gathering significantly more and better science data than is possible today. Formation flying will be enabled through the development and deployment of spaceborne differential Global Positioning System (GPS) technology and through innovative spacecraft autonomy techniques. This paper provides an overview of the current status of NASA/DoD/Industry/University partnership to bring Formation Flying technology to the forefront as quickly as possible, the hurdles that need to be overcome to achieve the formation flying vision, and the team's approach to transfer this technology to space. It will also describe some of the formation flying testbeds, such as Orion, that are being developed to demonstrate and validate these innovative GPS sensing and formation control technologies.
NCBI at the 2014 BioASQ Challenge Task: Large-scale Biomedical Semantic Indexing and Question Answering

In this paper we report our participation in the 2014 BioASQ chal- lenge tasks on biomedical semantic indexing and question answering. For the biomedical semantic indexing task (Task 2a) where participating teams are pro- vided with PubMed articles and asked to return relevant MeSH terms, we built on our previous learning-to-rank framework with a special focus on systemati- cally incorporating results of complementary methods for improved perfor- mance. For the question answering task (Task 2b) where teams are provided with natural language questions and asked to return responses in the format of documents, snippets, concepts and RDF triplets (Phase A) and direct answers (Phase B), we relied on PubMed search engines and our state-of-the-art named entity recognition tools such as DNorm and tmVar in Phases A and B, respec- tively. The official challenge results demonstrate that we consistently per- formed better than the baseline approaches for Task 2a and Task 2b (Phase B), and ranked among the top tier systems in the 2014 challenge.
Diagnosability of discrete event systems subject to permanent sensor failures

This paper considers a failure diagnosis problem for discrete event systems subject to permanent sensor failures. A notion of diagnosability subject to permanent sensor failures is introduced with respect to a certain nondeterministic observation mask. For its verification, an aggregated Mealy automaton with a deterministic and state-dependent observation mask is defined. It is shown that the diagnosability of the aggregated Mealy automaton is equivalent to the diagnosability of the original system subject to permanent sensor failures. Then, a method for verifying the diagnosability of the aggregated Mealy automaton is presented. Moreover, the delay bound within which the occurrence of any failure string can be detected subject to permanent sensor failures is computed.
Atracurium Besylate and other neuromuscular blocking agents promote astroglial differentiation and deplete glioblastoma stem cells

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) are the most common primary malignant brain tumor in adults, with a median survival of about one year. This poor prognosis is attributed primarily to therapeutic resistance and tumor recurrence after surgical removal, with the root cause suggested to be found in glioblastoma stem cells (GSCs). Using glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) as a reporter of astrocytic differentiation, we isolated multiple clones from three independent GSC lines which express GFAP in a remarkably stable fashion. We next show that elevated expression of GFAP is associated with reduced clonogenicity in vitro and tumorigenicity in vivo. Utilizing this in vitro cell-based differentiation reporter system we screened chemical libraries and identified the non-depolarizing neuromuscular blocker (NNMB), Atracurium Besylate, as a small molecule which effectively induces astroglial but not neuronal differentiation of GSCs. Functionally, Atracurium Besylate treatment significantly inhibited the clonogenic capacity of several independent patient-derived GSC neurosphere lines, a phenomenon which was largely irreversible. A second NNMB, Vecuronium, also induced GSC astrocytic differentiation while Dimethylphenylpiperazinium (DMPP), a nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) agonist, significantly blocked Atracurium Besylate pro-differentiation activity. To investigate the clinical importance of nAChRs in gliomas, we examined clinical outcomes and found that glioma patients with tumors overexpressing CHRNA1 or CHRNA9 (encoding for the AChR-α1 or AChR-α9) exhibit significant shorter overall survival. Finally, we found that ex-vivo pre-treatment of GSCs, expressing CHRNA1 and CHRNA9, with Atracurium Besylate significantly increased the survival of mice xenotransplanted with these cells, therefore suggesting that tumor initiating subpopulations have been reduced.
Heuristics to determine ventilation times of ICU patients from the MIMIC-II database

Mechanical ventilation is an important life support tool for patients in intensive care units (ICU). For various research purposes related to patient hemodynamic and cardiopulmonary monitoring, it is important to know when a patient is on a ventilator. Unfortunately, the widely used MIMIC-II database contains results from user charted data, where the user did not always store ventilation on and off times explicitly and accurately. The resulting ventilation-related data are subject to error. Therefore, there are no simple rules to define ventilation times retrospectively for this dataset. Hence, we designed a simple set of rules to determine the ventilation times using multiple sources of mechanical ventilator-related settings and physiological measurements by expert heuristics. The rules worked well in comparison with nursing notes regarding ventilation events. We conclude that our rule sets for determining ventilation times may be useful in assisting with MIMIC-II database analysis.