Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The essential elements of health impact assessment and healthy public policy: a qualitative study of practitioner perspectives

Objectives This study uses critical realist methodology to identify the essential and contingent elements of Health Impact Assessment (HIA) and Healthy Public Policy (HPP) as operationalised by practitioners. Design Data collection—qualitative interviews and a workshop were conducted with HIA and HPP practitioners working in differing contexts. Data analysis Critical realist analytical questions identified the essential elements of HIA and HPP, the relationship between them, and the influences of public policy and other contingencies on the practice of both. Participants Nine interviews were conducted with purposively sampled participants working in Europe, USA and Australasia. 17 self-selected participants who worked in Europe, South East Asia and Australasia attended the workshop. Results The results clarify that HIA and HPP are different but mutually supporting. HIA has four characteristics: assessing a policy proposal to predict population health and equity impacts, a structured process for stakeholder dialogue, making recommendations and flexibly adapting to the policy process. HPP has four characteristics: concern with a broad definition of health, designing policy to improve people's health and reduce health inequities, intersectoral collaboration and influencing the policy cycle from inception to completion. HIA brings to HPP prediction about a policy's broad health impacts, and a structured space for intersectoral engagement, but is one approach within a broader suite of HPP activities. Five features of public policy and seven contingent influences on HIA and HPP practice are identified. Conclusions This study clarifies the core attributes of HIA and HPP as separate yet overlapping while subject to wider influences. This provides the necessary common language to describe the application of both and avoid conflated expectations of either. The findings present the conceptual importance of public policy and the institutional role of public health as distinct and important influences on the practice of HIA and HPP.
Entropy based feature selection for text categorization

In text categorization, feature selection can be essential not only for reducing the index size but also for improving the performance of the classifier. In this article, we propose a feature selection criterion, called Entropy based Category Coverage Difference (ECCD). On the one hand, this criterion is based on the distribution of the documents containing the term in the categories, but on the other hand, it takes into account its entropy. ECCD compares favorably with usual feature selection methods based on document frequency (DF), information gain (IG), mutual information (IM), χ2, odd ratio and GSS on a large collection of XML documents from Wikipedia encyclopedia. Moreover, this comparative study confirms the effectiveness of selection feature techniques derived from the χ2 statistics.
Combining Classifiers in the ROC-space for Off-line Signature Verification

In this work we present a strategy for off-line signature verification. It takes into account a writer-independent model which reduces the pattern recognition problem to a 2-class problem, hence, makes it possible to build robust signature verification systems even when few signatures per writer are available. Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curves are used to improve the performance of the proposed system. The contribution of this paper is two-fold. First of all, we analyze the impacts of choosing differ- ent fusion strategies to combine the partial decisions yielded by the SVM classifiers. Then ROC produced by different classifiers are combined using maximum likelihood analysis, producing an ROC combined classifier. Through comprehensive experiments on a database composed of 100 writers, we demonstrate that the ROC combined classifier based on the writer-independent approach can reduce considerably false rejection rate while keeping false acceptance rates at acceptable levels.
Modeling mountain building, numerical trade off between erosion law and crustal rheology

Coupling between erosion and tectonics is thought to play a determinant role in orogenic evolution. Here, we investigate the interplay in this coupling between the assumed erosion law and the crustal rheology at the margin of a collisional plateau, like the Himalaya of Central Nepal. Lithospheric deformation is calculated over a time scale of 100 kyr by a 2D finite element model that incorporates the rheological layering of the crust and the main features of the convergence across the range. For the upper boundary condition, two surface processes were tested: a linear diffusion model and a 1D1/2 integrative model including fluvial incision along the fluvial network and hillslope erosion by landsliding. Model results and their sensitivity to the chosen combinations of erosion law and crustal properties are discussed in light of the constraining geologic and geomorphologic observations. In contrast with the conclusions of Cattin and Avouac [2000] , where a compliant quartz-rich crustal rheology and diffusion law were required, we combine a composite quartz-diabase rheology for the crust with fluvial incision erosion law to account for erosion and elevation profiles across the Himalaya of Central Nepal. More generally, it is proposed that, because of the interplay between the dominant denudation conditions and the rheology of the crust, both well documented erosion rates and processes can provide significant constraints on crustal properties within an active orogen.
Focus on TGF- b Signalling Pituitary actions of ligands of the TGF- b family: activins and inhibins

Activins, as members of the transforming growth factor- b superfamily, control and orchestrate many physiological processes and are vital for the development, growth and functional integrity of most tissues, including the pituitary. Activins produced by pituitary cells work in conjunction with central, peripheral, and other local factors to inﬂuence the function of gonadotropes and maintain a normal reproductive axis. Follistatin, also produced by the pituitary, acts as a local buffer to bind activin and modulate its bioactivity. On the other hand, inhibins of gonadal origin provide an endocrine feedback signal to antagonize activin signaling in cells that express the inhibin co-receptor, betaglycan, such as gonadotropes. This review highlights the pituitary roles of activin and the mechanisms through which these actions are modulated by inhibin and follistatin.
The Case for Personal Data-Driven Decision Making

Data-driven decision making (D3M) has shown great promise in professional pursuits such as business and government. Here, policymakers collect and analyze data to make their operations more efficient and equitable. Progress in bringing the benefits of D3M to everyday life has been slow. For example, a student asks, "If I pursue an undergraduate degree at this university, what are my expected lifetime earnings? ". Presently there is no principled way to search for this, because an accurate answer depends on the student and school. Such queries are personalized, winnowing down large datasets for specific circumstances, rather than applying well-defined predicates. They predict decision outcomes by extrapolating from relevant examples. This vision paper introduces a new approach to D3M that is designed to empower the individual to make informed choices. Here, we highlight research opportunities for the data management community arising from this proposal.
Prosodic Boundaries in Singing: An exploration of the temporal effects of linguisti c structure in western music

The practice of singing dates back to the beginning s of human history and represents the convergence of two similar systems: language and music. Within these two systems, the fields of linguistic prosody and musical meter each use the temporal domain to express their underlying structu re. At times, these expressional requirements differ, necessitating eit her compromise or dominance of one system over the other. For instance, in the cas of misalignments between the metrical stress of music and of language, music al tress was found to be dominant (Palmer & Kelly, 1992). Through an experiment carried out with participant s singing a prepared text, this study examined the effect that prosodic boundaries have when misaligned with musical meter to examine whether pr osodic boundaries will cause pre-boundary lengthening despite the temporal requirements of expressing musical meter. Results suggest that the necessity for final lengthening at a prosodic boundary is great enough to displace the s ubsequent beats temporally from their normal alignment due to musical meter.
Design and analysis of miniature and three tiered B-format microphones manufactured using 3D printing

This paper describes miniature and three-tiered B-format microphone array designs for accurate sound source localisation that are manufactured using 3D printing and MEMs devices. The implications of pressure gradient resolution reduction in spatial-temporal sampling on the accuracy of Direction of Arrival (DOA) estimation is analysed through simulated room impulse response measurements and characterized by the directional signal to noise ratio. It is shown how the capsule spacing can be optimally chosen based on microphone capsule sensitivity and the required DOA accuracy. Through this method a new three tiered B-format microphone array is proposed, where each tier optimally records 3D sound for a given frequency sub-band to achieve highly accurate DOA estimation for the full audible frequency range of 50 Hz to 20 kHz.
On the efficiency of local information-based sink deployment in heterogeneous environments

Deploying multiples sink nodes reduces communication distance, and thus energy consumption in wireless sensor networks. Determining exactly where to deploy those sinks so as to minimize the communication paths isn't however a trivial question. Solutions that use integer linear programming or iterative clustering techniques are usually not scalable, choose the sink positions only from a limited set of possibilities, and are based on global topology information. In this paper we present and analyze the 1_hop algorithm, an approach that uses only local, last-hop routing information to iteratively find an efficient solution to the deployment problem. We show that the algorithm performs well in any kind of heterogeneous environment (heterogeneous sensor density, areas of irregular shape, or with obstacles), cases in which solutions that build on global topology information are often not appropriate.
Clinical Predictors of Drug Response in Patients with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

Objective The aim of this study was to evaluate which clinical variables might influence the antiobsessional responses to proserotonergic drugs in a sample of patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Methods Two hundred forty-nine patients with DSM-IV OCD under-gone mean 13-month treatments with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. According to the treatment response, defined as a reductions of the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS) total score ≥35%, patients were divided into two groups. Results One hundred fourteen patients responded to the treatment and the other one hundred thirty five patients did not. Responders had a significant long duration of medication in YUMC OCD clinic, short total duration of past treatment in other institutes, and higher frequency of drug naïve cases and lower baseline Y-BOCS scores. Conclusion The pre-treatment factors including total duration of past treatment, drug naïve or not, baseline OCD symptoms and the factor of duration of the treatment may influence drug treatment response in OCD patients.
Changes in Brain Tissue and Behavior Patterns Induced by Single Short-Term Fasting in Mice

In humans, emaciation from long-term dietary deficiencies, such as anorexia, reportedly increases physical activity and brain atrophy. However, the effects of single short-term fasting on brain tissue or behavioral activity patterns remain unclear. To clarify the impact of malnutrition on brain function, we conducted a single short-term fasting study as an anorexia model using male adult mice and determined if changes occurred in migratory behavior as an expression of brain function and in brain tissue structure. Sixteen-week-old C57BL/6J male mice were divided into either the fasted group or the control group. Experiments were conducted in a fixed indoor environment. We examined the effects of fasting on the number of nerve cells, structural changes in the myelin and axon density, and brain atrophy. For behavior observation, the amount of food and water consumed, ingestion time, and the pattern of movement were measured using a time-recording system. The fasted mice showed a significant increase in physical activity and their rhythm of movement was disturbed. Since the brain was in an abnormal state after fasting, mice that were normally active during the night became active regardless of day or night and performed strenuous exercise at a high frequency. The brain weight did not change by a fast, and brain atrophy was not observed. Although no textural change was apparent by fasting, the neuronal neogenesis in the subventricular zone and hippocampus was inhibited, causing disorder of the brain function. A clear association between the suppression of encephalic neuropoiesis and overactivity was not established. However, it is interesting that the results of this study suggest that single short-term fasting has an effect on encephalic neuropoiesis.
THEORETICAL MODELING OF STAR-FORMING GALAXIES. I. EMISSION-LINE DIAGNOSTIC GRIDS FOR LOCAL AND LOW-METALLICITY GALAXIES

We use the newest generation of the Starburst99/Mappings code to generate an extensive suite of models to facilitate detailed studies of star-forming galaxies and their interstellar medium properties, particularly at low metallicities. The new models used include a rigorous treatment of metal opacities in the population synthesis modeling and more detailed dust physics in the photoionization code. These models span a wide range of physical parameters including metallicity, ionization parameter, and the adoption of both an instantaneous burst and continuous star formation history (SFH). We examine the agreement between our models and local (z < 0.1) star-forming galaxy populations from several large data sets, including the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, the Nearby Field Galaxy Survey, and samples of blue compact galaxies and metal-poor galaxies. We find that models adopting a continuous SFH reproduce the metallicity-sensitive line ratios observed in the local population of star-forming galaxies, including the low-metallicity sample. However, we find that the current codes generate an insufficiently hard ionizing radiation field, leading to deficiencies in the [S ii] fluxes produced by the models. We consider the advantages and shortcomings of this suite of models, and discuss future work and improvements that can be applied to the modeling of star-forming galaxies.
Memory-aware cooperative CPU-GPU DVFS governor for mobile games

Modern mobile heterogeneous platforms have GPUs integrated with multicore processors to enable execution of highend graphics-intensive games. However, these gaming applications consume significant power due to heavy utilization of CPU-GPU resources, which drains battery resources that are critical for mobile devices. While Dynamic Voltage and Frequency Scaling (DVFS) techniques have been exploited previously for dynamic power management, contemporary techniques do not fully exploit the memory access footprint for graphics-intensive gaming applications, missing opportunities for energy efficiency. In this paper, we for the first time propose a memory-aware cooperative CPU-GPU DVFS governor that considers both the memory access footprint as well as the CPU/GPU frequency to improve energy efficiency of high-end mobile game workloads. Our experimental results show that our proposed game governor achieves on average 13% and 5% improvement of energy efficiency with minor degradation of performance compared to default governors and state-of-the-art game governors.
SEU Mitigation Techniques for Microprocessor Control Logic

The importance of fault tolerance at the processor architecture level has been made increasingly important due to rapid advancements in the design and usage of high performance devices and embedded processors. System level solutions to the challenge of fault tolerance flag errors and utilize penalty cycles to recover through the re-execution of instructions. This motivates the need for a hybrid technique providing fault detection as well as fault masking, with minimal penalty cycles for recovery from detected errors. We propose three architectural schemes to protect the control logic of microprocessors against single event upsets (SEUs). High fault coverage with relatively low hardware overhead is obtained by using both fault detection with recovery and fault masking. Control signals are classified as either static or dynamic, and static signals are further classified as opcode dependent and instruction dependent. The strategy for protecting static instruction dependent control signals utilizes a distributed cache of the history of the control bits along with the triple modular redundancy (TMR) concept, while the opcode dependent control signals are protected by a distributed cache which is used to flag errors. Dynamic signals are protected by selective duplication of datapath components. The techniques are implemented on the OpenRISC 1200 processor. Our simulation results show that fault detection with single cycle recovery is provided for 92% of all instruction executions. FPGA synthesis is performed to analyze the associated cycle time and area overheads
Recasting the problem of self-concept change : a self-categorization perspective

This thesis redefines the nature of the self and the problem of self -concept change from the perspective of self -categorization theory. The emphasis is on examining the conditions that cause transitory shifts in selfperception. The relevant literature is reviewed to establish the dominant model of the self -concept, and the most important extant approach to self -concept change in experimental social psychology. It was established firstly, that the self -concept is often conceptualised as a schema an enduring cognitive structure that comprises personally relevant trait terms; and secondly, that change is often attributed to the internalisation of new (or previously non diagnostic) behaviour. These ideas are contrasted with an analysis of the self and self concept fluidity derived from self -categorization theory. Self -categorization theory conceptualises the self as a flexible process of social judgement. The self -concept and self -esteem are assumed to be contextdependent properties of the perceiver, always defined in relation to others. In addition, the theory predicts that self -category content will change when the context shifts from a focus on the personal self to a focus on the collective self or group identity. What are the implications of this view for current approaches to self -concept change? Studies 1, 2 and 3 progressively test the first primary hypothesis of the thesis, within the dominant self -concept change paradigm. The hypothesis is that the impact of overt behaviour on self -perception is mediated by self -categorization and social comparison processes. Each study provides some support for the general hypothesis. Indeed, the same behaviour was found to sometimes cause no change, a shift in the direction of the behaviour, or a shift in the opposite direction, depending on the social context of one's actions. In Study 4, a different paradigm is adopted (one which does not focus on behaviour) to continue our examination of how social context causes change in self category content. Study 4 reevaluates the basic idea that the self can be treated like a personal schema. Importantly, the results indicate that the impact of a personal schema on self -perception is attenuated under conditions that make a diametrically opposed social identity salient. Furthermore, the results confirm that overt behaviour is not essential to self -concept change. Taken together, Studies 1 to 4 support the general conclusion that the self is variable, relational and context -dependent. The implications of the results for contemporary approaches to self -concept change, and for the self schema model, are discussed and future directions for research are outlined.
The Authoring of Observational Cinema: Conversations with Colin Young

Based on a series of conversations with Colin Young that have taken place over more than thirty years, this article explores how a certain set of practical and institutional circumstances, in combination with a series of philosophical and aesthetic ideas about the nature of cinema, first led to the emergence over the late 1960s and early 1970s of the approach to ethnographic filmmaking that would become known as “Observational Cinema. ” Although it was those whom Colin Young trained, inspired or simply influenced who worked out the practical filmmaking applications of his ideas, it was he who initially formulated the foundational concepts underpinning this approach to ethnographic filmmaking. As such, although he has been a “filmmaker-maker” rather than a filmmaker himself, Colin Young has a rightful claim to be considered, in the sense defined by Roland Barthes, as the original “author” of Observational Cinema.
Rectal pH in Well and Unwell Infants

Prompt antibiotic treatment for infants with sepsis has the potential to save lives. A rectal formulation of an antibiotic could be used at a village level before referral to hospital. The development of such a preparation needs to take into account the rectal pH of infants that will affect drug partitioning and absorption. Rectal pH measurements were taken in 100 well and 45 unwell infants. We also measured rectal pH in 14 infants sequentially over the course of their illness. The mean rectal pH was 6.75 with no significant difference in well or unwell infants. The mean (95% CI) rectal pH of well neonates was significantly lower than that of older infants (>28 days): 6.47 (6.29–6.65) vs. 6.90 (6.68 to 7.12) p = 0.003.
The Procedure of Lexico-Semantic Annotation of Składnica Treebank

In this paper, the procedure of lexico-semantic annotation of Składnica Treebank using Polish WordNet is presented. Other semantically annotated corpora, in particular treebanks, are outlined first. Resources involved in annotation as well as a tool called Semantikon used for it are described. The main part of the paper is the analysis of the applied procedure. It consists of the basic and correction phases. During basic phase all nouns, verbs and adjectives are annotated with wordnet senses. The annotation is performed independently by two linguists. During the correction phase, conflicts are resolved by the linguist supervising the process. Multi-word units obtain special tags, synonyms and hypernyms are used for senses absent in Polish WordNet. Additionally, each sentence receives its general assessment. Finally, some statistics of the results of annotation are given, including inter-annotator agreement. The final resource is represented in XML files preserving the structure of Składnica.
Comparison Between Predicted and Actual Readabilities of EFL Texts

The present study attempted to compare the predicted readability computed using formulas and the actual readability expressed by the readers. Forty six students of English Department Unesa ranked five English texts from the hardest to the easiest, then Spearman r was employed to correlate the ranks from the students’ perspective with the ranks obtained from the formulas. The results indicated that these two were moderately correlated, suggesting that some texts which were predicted to be hard indeed tend to be considered challenging by the EFL readers. Keywords—readability; ELF; texts