Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Risk Prediction Models for Patients With Chronic Kidney Disease

BACKGROUND Patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) are at increased risk for kidney failure, cardiovascular events, and all-cause mortality. Accurate models are needed to predict the individual risk for these outcomes. PURPOSE To systematically review risk prediction models for kidney failure, cardiovascular events, and death in patients with CKD. DATA SOURCES MEDLINE search of English-language articles published from 1966 to November 2012. STUDY SELECTION Cohort studies that examined adults with any stage of CKD who were not receiving dialysis and had not had a transplant; had at least 1 year of follow-up; and reported on a model that predicted the risk for kidney failure, cardiovascular events, or all-cause mortality. DATA EXTRACTION Reviewers extracted data on study design, population characteristics, modeling methods, metrics of model performance, risk of bias, and clinical usefulness. DATA SYNTHESIS Thirteen studies describing 23 models were found. Eight studies (11 models) involved kidney failure, 5 studies (6 models) involved all-cause mortality, and 3 studies (6 models) involved cardiovascular events. Measures of estimated glomerular filtration rate or serum creatinine level were included in 10 studies (17 models), and measures of proteinuria were included in 9 studies (15 models). Only 2 studies (4 models) met the criteria for clinical usefulness, of which 1 study (3 models) presented reclassification indices with clinically useful risk categories. LIMITATION A validated risk-of-bias tool and comparisons of the performance of different models in the same validation population were lacking. CONCLUSION Accurate, externally validated models for predicting risk for kidney failure in patients with CKD are available and ready for clinical testing. Further development of models for cardiovascular events and all-cause mortality is needed. PRIMARY FUNDING SOURCE None.
Two Constraints on Speech Act Ambiguity

Existing plan-based theories of speech act interpretation do not account for the conventional aspect of speech acts. We use patterns of linguistic features (e.g. mood, verb form, sentence adverbials, thematic roles) to suggest a range of speech act interpretations for the utterance. These are filtered using plan-based conversational implicatures to eliminate inappropriate ones. Extended plan reasoning is available but not necessary for familiar forms. Taking speech act ambiguity seriously, with these two constraints, explains how "Can you pass the salt? " is a typical indirect request while "Are you able to pass the salt? " is not.
Intact brain processing of musical emotions in autism spectrum disorder, but more cognitive load and arousal in happy vs. sad music

Music is a potent source for eliciting emotions, but not everybody experience emotions in the same way. Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) show difficulties with social and emotional cognition. Impairments in emotion recognition are widely studied in ASD, and have been associated with atypical brain activation in response to emotional expressions in faces and speech. Whether these impairments and atypical brain responses generalize to other domains, such as emotional processing of music, is less clear. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging, we investigated neural correlates of emotion recognition in music in high-functioning adults with ASD and neurotypical adults. Both groups engaged similar neural networks during processing of emotional music, and individuals with ASD rated emotional music comparable to the group of neurotypical individuals. However, in the ASD group, increased activity in response to happy compared to sad music was observed in dorsolateral prefrontal regions and in the rolandic operculum/insula, and we propose that this reflects increased cognitive processing and physiological arousal in response to emotional musical stimuli in this group.
Factors influencing Singapore managers’ career aspiration in international assignments

Study used 357 Singaporean managers to document their availability for international assignments and their international aspiration. To understand factors that affect their international aspiration, we investigated the impact of family, career, culture and host country factors and personal entrepreneurial characteristics on mangers’ international aspiration and willingness to accept international assignment. Overall, results show that family, spouse and children and personal characteristics influence both the degree of willingness travel and determinants of managers’ attitude toward international assignments. Career and attitudes of spouses will likely have a significant impact on managers’ willingness to accept international assignments. Prior cross‐cultural international experience and personal entrepreneurial characteristics are also important factors that influence managers’ willingness to accept international assignments. Implications for research and practice are also discussed.
Refining Therapeutic Mandates in Couple Therapy Outcome Research: A Feasibility Study

Using a series of 59 cases of couple therapy, we studied the nature, frequency, and pre-treatment correlates of therapeutic mandates. Following intake, therapists coded mandate and couples completed the Dyadic Adjustment Scale and the Relationship Attribution Measure. The distribution of therapeutic mandates showed that 45.8% wished to improve an overtly conflictual relationship, 28.8% consulted to remedy a lack of love and/or desire, and 25.4% aimed to change a specific aspect of an otherwise well-functioning relationship. Over the course of treatment, in 20% of cases, the therapeutic mandate was revised and adjusted. The results of a logistic regression analysis showed that mandate subgroups, men's marital satisfaction, women's responsibility attributions, and women's income are significantly associated with termination status.
Ultra-broadband optical wireless communication system with single channel imaging receiver and multi-mode fiber for personal area networks

Optical wireless technology has been considered as a promising candidate to provide high-speed wireless connectivity in personal work/living spaces. Previously we proposed and demonstrated a high-speed indoor communication system by incorporating limited mobility with localization function. Furthermore, we showed that by using a novel single channel imaging receiver, better system performance can be achieved and the demonstration was based on single-mode fiber due to its low transmission loss feature. However, in most already installed inbuilding optical fiber distribution networks, multi-mode fiber was deployed since it is low-cost and easy to handle. In this paper, we experimentally demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed optical wireless personal area communication system with single channel imaging receiver based on multi-mode fiber. In addition, the wavelength-division-multiplexing (WDM) technology is also incorporated to realize an ultra-broadband connectivity in wireless personal area networks. The results show that a simultaneous operation of a 4 × 10 Gbps down-link and a 400 Mbps up-link can be realized simultaneously and the beam footprint is larger than 1 m even when a channel selecting optical bandpass filter with ~77% transmission efficiency was used.
Biomimetic calcium phosphate composite coating of dental implants.

PURPOSE The aim of the present study was to test the hypothesis that calcium phosphate coating of titanium screw-type implants enhances peri-implant bone formation in the jaw. MATERIALS AND METHODS Ten adult female foxhounds received experimental titanium screw-type implants in the mandible 3 months after removal of all premolar teeth. Four types of implants were evaluated in each animal: implants with machined titanium surface (the control group), implants coated with collagen I (the collagen-only group), implants with a composite coating of calcium phosphate and mineralized collagen I (the composite group), and implants with calcium phosphate (hydroxyapatite [HA]) coating (the HA-only group). Peri-implant bone regeneration was assessed histomorphometrically after 1 and 3 months in 5 dogs each by measuring bone-implant contact (BIC) and the volume density of the newly formed peri-implant bone (BVD). RESULTS After 1 month, BIC was significantly enhanced only in the group of implants with composite coating of calcium phosphate and mineralized collagen (P = .038). Volume density of the newly formed peri-implant bone was significantly higher in all coated implants after 1 month. No significant difference from baseline was found in BIC for the collagen-only and HA-only groups, but BVD was significantly higher in implants with composite coating (P = .041). After 3 months, BIC and BVD were significantly higher in all coated implants than in the controls with machined surfaces. CONCLUSION It was concluded that composite coating of dental screw-type implant surfaces using calcium phosphate and collagen can enhance BIC and peri-implant bone formation.
Identification of symbionts in Spiroplasma insolitum Anopheles gambiae

Insect symbionts have the potential to block the transmission of Background vector-borne diseases by their hosts. The advancement of a symbiont-based transmission blocking strategy for malaria requires the identification and study of symbionts. Anopheles : High throughput 16S amplicon sequencing was used to profile the Methods bacteria associated with and identify potential Anopheles gambiae sensu lato symbionts. The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) with specific primers were subsequently used to monitor symbiont prevalence in field populations, as well as symbiont transmission patterns. : We report the discovery of the bacterial symbiont, , in Results Spiroplasma in Kenya. We determine that geographically dispersed Anopheles gambiae populations in Kenya are infected with at low Anopheles gambiae Spiroplasma prevalence levels. Molecular phylogenetics indicates that this Anopheles associated is a member of the clade. We gambiae Spiroplasma insolitum demonstrate that this symbiont is stably maternally transmitted across at least two generations and does not significantly affect the fecundity or egg to adult survival of its host. : In diverse insect species, has been found to render Conclusions Spiroplasma their host resistant to infection by pathogens. The identification of a maternally transmitted strain of in may therefore open Spiroplasma Anopheles gambiae new lines of investigation for the development of symbiont-based strategies for blocking malaria transmission. 1,2 2 2 2
Peer Conflicts of Preschool Children: Issues, Resolution, Incidence, and Age-Related Patterns

This study examined 2-, 3-, and 4-year-olds' peer conflicts in the naturalistic classroom setting during free-play time. 400 preschoolers from 25 classrooms were videotaped. Only the first conflict event generated by each target-child observation was included in the analysis. Of the 400 target-child observations, 322 generated a conflict event. In general, there was a shift in the issues of conflict from tangible material concerns to those that were more mental and social. 2-year-olds had a higher proportion of distribution of resources conflicts than did 3- and 4-year-olds. Conflicts about play and ideas significantly increased with age while those stemming from physical harm were low overall. Further, child-generated resolutions increased while insistence decreased significantly with age. What changes with development appears to be the issues of conflict and the way they are handled; not the incidence of conflict per se. These findings support the proposal that conflicts are natural contexts in which children develop socially, morally and cognitively. Implications for teaching are discussed.
Globalization and lifelong education: reflection on some challenges for Africa

The global phenomenon called globalization frequently offers justifications for socio-economic and political actions aimed at bringing rapidly into fruition the ‘Global Village’ which Marshall McLuhan had anticipated decades ago. Both the 1972 UNESCO sponsored Commission Report chaired by Edgar Faure and that of 1996 chaired by Jacques Delors produced important documents which, as at other times, reviewed issues and priorities in education worldwide, in spite of the obvious extreme diversity in socio-economic, political and educational situations, conceptions and structures. As always, UNESCO had been concerned about the numerous and vibrant challenges the future holds in store for everyone. In doing so, lifelong education has been identified as one of the indispensable assets available to us in the pursuits which regularly bring into the fore the concern for equality, equity and, indeed, human reasonableness. As the world pursues the ideals and objectives of globalization, the need arises for a timely reassessment of positions especially in the context of consequences and challenges that are inherent. This paper seeks to examine globalization in the context of some of the major challenges it poses for Africa. In particular, it proposes how lifelong education might be structured to assist Africans in comprehending, evaluating and possibly, participating comparatively effectively in the relations implied in globalization rather than standing aloof and becoming hapless objects.
Vignettes of interviews to enhance an ethnographic account

This article explores challenges of applying an ethnographic approach, combining participant observation and interviews, to a study of organizational change. The exploration is connected to reform changes, as they are constructed in the interaction between managers and teachers, in a Danish Upper Secondary High School. The data material is presented in four vignettes from the organizational field. The vignettes present insights from the study and emphasize the value of interviews. In this way, the article makes a case that interviews add analytical depth and complexity to the study to counter the view that they are context stripping and are the minor partner in the ethnographic relationship between observational fieldwork and interviews.
A Double Disadvantage? Minority Group, Immigrant Status, and Underemployment in the United States

Objective. This study documents the magnitude of four types of underemployment experienced by both native‐born minority and ethnic immigrant male and female workers in the United States and tests a “double disadvantage” economic outcome hypothesis that minority workers tend to be channeled into secondary‐sector jobs and that immigrant workers face initial disadvantages in labor force assimilation. Method. Data for men and women aged 25‐64 who are in the labor force and not attending school were derived from the 1990 Census Bureau Public Use Microdata Sample. Multinomial logistic regression procedures were used to estimate the effect of minority group membership and immigrant status on the odds of unemployment, part‐time employment, working poverty, and job mismatch, relative to adequate employment. Results. Descriptive results showed greater overall underemployment among females than males. Blacks and Hispanics had higher unemployment and working‐poverty rates compared to non‐Hispanic whites and Asians, with job mismatch highest among Asians. Immigrant underemployment was greater than that of the native‐born. Asians posted the largest disparity in immigrant versus native‐born underemployment, and blacks had the smallest. Multivariate models showed that minority group effects were stronger than immigrant status effects in predicting underemployment. Increased likelihood of underemployment across the different minority groups versus non‐Hispanic white workers was not fully accounted for by the expected influences of human‐capital, demographic, industry, and occupational variables. Conclusion. The double disadvantage hypothesis of minority group and immigrant status is accepted only for Asian men and women with jobs mismatched to their skills and for Asian women, who are most likely to be unemployed or be among the working poor.
Rapid, Activation-Induced Redistribution of Ionotropic Glutamate Receptors in Cultured Hippocampal Neurons

We have examined the membrane localization of an AMPA receptor subunit (GluR1) and an NMDA receptor subunit (NR1) endogenously expressed in primary cultures of rat hippocampal neurons. In unstimulated cultures, both GluR1 and NR1 subunits were concentrated in SV2-positive synaptic clusters associated with dendritic shafts and spines. Within 5 min after the addition of 100 μm glutamate to the culture medium, a rapid and selective redistribution of GluR1 subunits away from a subset of synaptic sites was observed. This redistribution of GluR1 subunits was also induced by AMPA, did not require NMDA receptor activation, did not result from ligand-induced neurotoxicity, and was reversible after the removal of agonist. The activation-induced redistribution of GluR1 subunits was associated with a pronounced (∼50%) decrease in the frequency of miniature EPSCs, consistent with a role of GluR1 subunit redistribution in mediating rapid regulation of synaptic efficacy. We conclude that ionotropic glutamate receptors are regulated in native neurons by rapid, subtype-specific membrane trafficking, which may modulate synaptic transmission in response to physiological or pathophysiological activation.
Development of remote video monitoring system based on TCP/IP

This paper introduces a design of remote video monitoring system based on S3C6410 processor. The system adopts the V4L2 programming interface collect external camera video data, using the CPU internal hardware encoder for H.264 to code compression, by means of the Live555 third party open source library for video stream transmission through the RTSP protocol, using RTSP protocol player supported by VLC. The system has low bandwidth consumption, fast compression speed, low CPU occupancy rate, less heat, stable operation etc. Because this system adopts the standard RTSP protocol, it can use a variety of general player to broadcast live, has the advantages of convenient installation, simple using method and other characteristics. This system is suitable for indoor household use of real-time monitoring.
The United States Contested: American Unilateralism and European Discontent

The United States Contested: American Unilateralism and European Discontent. Edited by Sergio Fabbrini. New York: Routledge, 2006. 224p. $120.00 cloth, $35.95 paper. Why has anti-Americanism become a fact of life in Europe? How is this phenomenon related to the rise of neoconservatism in the United States? These are important questions, and this new volume, based on seminars held at the University of Trento in 2003 and 2004, provides—if not the definitive answer—certainly a richer understanding of transatlantic relations.
Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) Bonding Strength Characterization by a Line Force Model in Blister Tests

A methodology characterizing the strength of PDMS bonding has been proposed. This method employs a blister test to measure and a line force model to describe the bonding strength. The blister test provides us a close approximation to the bonding failure modes under field-used situations. The line force model is a general means to study the bonding strength. A series of the blister tests on PDMS samples have been conducted. The effects of sample size and structured surface on the bonding strength have been examined.
Für und Wider eines eigenen Kindes: Der Leipziger Fragebogen zu Kinderwunschmotiven (LKM)

Zusammenfassung. Die in Deutschland zu verzeichnenden niedrigen Geburtenraten sowie die Zunahme kinderloser Ehen und Partnerschaften waren Ausgangspunkt fur die Neuentwicklung eines Fragebogens zur Erfassung von Kinderwunschmotiven. Der Leipziger Fragebogen zu Kinderwunschmotiven (LKM) umfasst 20 Items, wobei jeweils funf Items einer der vier faktorenanalytisch konstruierten Skalen “Emotionale Stabilisierung und Sinnfindung“, “Personliche Einschrankungen und Probleme“, “Soziale Anerkennung und Identitatsbildung“ sowie “Unzureichende materielle und soziale Unterstutzung“ zugeordnet werden. Die auf den Daten einer bevolkerungsreprasentativen Befragung von 1129 Personen (466 Manner und 663 Frauen) im Alter von 16-45 Jahren basierende teststatistische Uberprufung zeigte, dass der LKM ein reliables, valides und okonomisch einsetzbares Erhebungsinstrument darstellt. Die mit dem LKM erfassten Kinderwunschmotive erwiesen sich daruber hinaus partiell als abhangig von soziodemographischen und soziookonomischen Vari.
Review: Effects of wood quality and refining process on TMP pulp and paper quality

For the thermomechanical pulping (TMP) process both wood chip quality and the refining process have important effects on the resulting pulp and paper quality. Properties of wood raw material give a framework for final pulp properties. During TMP refining the specific energy consumption and refining intensity strongly impact fibre and pulp qualities. Increasing specific energy consumption benefits the development of fibres and improves their properties. However, high intensity refining tends to shorten the fibres and produces more fines content when compared with low intensity refining. This review focuses on the influence of key variables of chip qualities and the refining process on TMP pulp and paper qualities.
Phronesis and moral education: Treading beyond the truisms

Whereas most latter-day Aristotelian approaches to moral education highlight the early habituation phase of moral development, they rarely have much to say, beyond truisms from the Nicomachean ethics, about the ultimate Aristotelian goal of cultivating fully fledged phronesis. The aim of this article is to repair the dearth of attention given to phronesis in moral education circles and to bring considerations from other, but related, discourses (such as general Aristotelian scholarship and wisdom studies in psychology) to bear on it. I pay special attention to the so-called skill analogy, which considers virtue acquisition on par with the acquisition of ordinary practical skills, but argue that current articulations of it fail to account fully for the integrative, as distinct from the constitutive, function of phronesis. I argue that the skill analogy needs to be extended to account for the fact that in order to develop fully, phronesis requires direct teaching about the nature of the well-rounded life, providing the learner with an indirect blueprint for eudaimonia. Such a blueprint cannot eschew consequentialist considerations, and to be taught well within current school systems, it needs a discrete place in the school timetable.
In vivo three-dimensional spectroscopic photoacoustic imaging for monitoring nanoparticle delivery

Abstract In vivo monitoring of nanoparticle delivery is essential to better understand cellular and molecular interactions of nanoparticles with tissue and to better plan nanoparticle-mediated therapies. We developed a three-dimensional ultrasound and photoacoustic (PA) imaging system and a spectroscopic PA imaging algorithm to identify and quantify the presence of nanoparticles and other tissue constituents. Using the developed system and approach, three-dimensional in vivo imaging of a mouse with tumor was performed before and after intravenous injection of gold nanorods. The developed spectroscopic PA imaging algorithm estimated distribution of nanoparticle as well as oxygen saturation of blood. Moreover, silver staining of excised tumor tissue confirmed nanoparticle deposition, and showed good correlation with spectroscopic PA images. The results of our study suggest that three-dimensional ultrasound-guided spectroscopic PA imaging can monitor nanoparticle delivery in vivo.