Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Recovery of function in cytoprotected cerebral cortex in rat stroke model assessed by functional MRI

Functional recovery in cytoprotected somatosensory cortex in a rat stroke model was studied using functional MRI (fMRI). Calcium antagonist treatment (isradipine) following permanent middle cerebral artery occlusion (pMCAO) reduced the infarct volume by 33 ± 9%. The somatosensory cortex representing the forepaws was spared from infarction; however, cerebral blood flow (CBF) was significantly reduced in this area 24 hr following pMCAO. Neural function was assessed at days 1, 2, 5, and 12 following pMCAO by fMRI using electrical stimulation of both forepaws. Vehicle‐treated rats did not show fMRI responses in the infarcted somatosensory cortex throughout the study. Several of the isradipine‐treated animals displayed functional recovery in the cytoprotected cortex at days 5 (3/5 rats) and 12 (5/10). Correlations with fMRI signals showed that normal T2 and ADC values in the respective brain areas are necessary, but not sufficient prerequisites for functionality. Recovery of neural function is associated with normalization of CBF in the cytoprotected brain area. Magn Reson Med 47:759–765, 2002. © 2002 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Using competition and market information to optimize a tour operator’s pricing decisions

Due to the rising use of internet, the business of e-commerce has grown rapidly in the last years. The easy access to information leads to transparent markets with high competition due to high price sensitive customers. Not only the customers benefit from easy access to information, companies can also benefit from the available market information which is available in many sectors. In this report we propose the Dependent Region Dynamic Pricing (DRDP) model for tour operators. The DRDP model can be used for the dynamic pricing decision of products which make use of both flight and hotel capacities. The DRDP model is an extension of the dynamic pricing model proposed in [50]. The DRDP model incorporates both competition between regional clusters and market information whereas the model from [50] assumes independent regions. The DRDP model makes use of a two-step structure. Therefore, the model is still workable in terms of computation times.
Omega‐3 fatty acids improve liver and pancreas function in postoperative cancer patients

Epidemiologic studies have indicated that high intake of saturated fat and/or animal fat increases the risk of colon and breast cancer. Omega‐3 PUFAs in fish oil (FO) can inhibit the growth of human cancer cells in vitro and in vivo. These effects are related to the uptake of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) into the cellular substrate pool and their competitive metabolism with arachidonic acid (AA) at the cyclooxygenase and 5‐lipoxygenase levels. The metabolites of EPA and DHA have less inflammatory and immunosuppressant potency than the substances derived from AA. Based on previous experimental data, we hypothesized that FO supplementation after major abdominal cancer surgery would improve hepatic and pancreatic function. Ours was a prospective, randomized, double‐blinded clinical trial on 44 patients undergoing elective major abdominal surgery, randomly assigned to receive total parenteral nutrition (TPN) supplemented with either soybean oil (SO 1.0 g/kg body weight daily, n = 20) for 5 days or a combination of FO and SO (FO 0.2 + SO 0.8 g/kg body weight daily, n = 24). Compared to pure SO supplementation in the postoperative period, FO significantly reduced ASAT [0.8 ± 0.1 vs. 0.5 ± 0.1 mmol/(l · sec)], ALAT [0.9 ± 0.1 vs. 0.6 ± 0.1 mmol/(l · sec)], bilirubin (16.1 ± 5.3 vs. 6.9 ± 0.6 mmol/l), LDH (7.7 ± 0.4 vs. 6.7 ± 0.4 mmol/(l · sec) and lipase (0.6 ± 0.1 vs. 0.4 ± 0.1 μmol/(l · sec) in the postoperative course. Moreover, patients with increased risk of sepsis (IL‐6/IL‐10 ratio >8) showed a tendency to shorter ICU stay (18 hr) under omega‐3 PUFA treatment. Weight loss as encountered after the SO emulsion of 1.1 ± 2.2 kg was absent in the FO group. After major abdominal tumor surgery, FO supplementation improved liver and pancreas function, which might have contributed to the faster recovery of patients. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Testing the gravitational redshift with atomic gravimeters?

Atom interferometers allow the measurement of the acceleration of freely falling atoms with respect to an experimental platform at rest on Earth's surface. Such experiments have been used to test the universality of free fall by comparing the acceleration of the atoms to that of a classical freely falling object. In a recent paper, Müller, Peters and Chu [Nature 463, 926–929 (2010)] argued that atom interferometers also provide a very accurate test of the gravitational redshift (or universality of clock rates). Considering the atom as a clock operating at the Compton frequency associated with the rest mass, they claimed that the interferometer measures the gravitational redshift between the atom-clocks in the two paths of the interferometer at different values of gravitational potentials. In the present paper we analyze this claim in the frame of general relativity and of different alternative theories, and conclude that the interpretation of atom interferometers as testing the gravitational redshift at the Compton frequency is unsound. The present work is a summary of our extensive paper [Wolf et al., arXiv:1012.1194, Class. Quant. Grav. in press], to which the reader is referred for more details.
6-Mercaptopurine and Daunorubicin Double Drug Liposomes—Preparation, Drug-Drug Interaction and Characterization

This article addresses and investigates the dual incorporation of daunorubicin (DR) and 6-mercaptopurine (6-MP) in liposomes for better chemotherapy. These drugs are potential candidates for interaction due to the quinone (H acceptor) and hydroxyl (H donor) groups on DR and 6-MP, respectively. Interactions between the two drugs in solution were monitored by UV/Vis and fluorescence spectroscopy. Interaction between the two drugs inside the liposomes was evaluated by HPLC (for 6-MP) and by fluorescence spectroscopy (for daunorubicin) after phospholipase-mediated liposome lysis. Our results provide evidence for the lack of interaction between the two drugs in solution and in liposomes. The entrapment efficiencies of 6-MP in the neutral Phosphatidyl choline (PC):Cholesterol (Chol):: 2:1 and anionic PC:Chol:Cardiolipin (CL) :: 4:5:1 single and double drug liposomes were found to be 0.4% and 1.5% (on average), respectively. The entrapment efficiencies of DR in the neutral and anionic double drug liposomes were found to be 55% and 31%, respectively. The corresponding entrapment of daunorubicin in the single drug liposomes was found to be 62% on average. Our thin layer chromatography (TLC) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) results suggest stability of lipid and liposomes, thus pointing plausible existence of double drug liposomes. Cytotoxicity experiments were performed by using both single drug and double drug liposomes. By comparing the results of phase contrast and fluorescence microscopy, it was observed that the double drug liposomes were internalized in the jurkat and Hut78 (highly resistant cell line) leukemia cells as viewed by the fluorescence of daunorubicin. The cytotoxicity was dose dependent and had shown a synergistic effect when double drug liposome was used.
The Human Resources Scorecard: Measuring the Return on Investment

The need for ROI in human resources - The business case for ROI Initial analysis and planning The ROI process, step-by-step - Collecting data during HR program implementation Collecting data after HR program implementation Isolating the effects of an HR program Converting data to monetary value Monitoring the cost of human resource programs Calculating the actual return on investment Identifying intangible measures Communicating results Important issues with ROI implementation - Forecasting the ROI Implementation issues Case applications - Sexual harrassment prevention (Healthcare Inc.) Competency-based pay system (National Crushed Stone Company) Absenteeism reduction program (Metro Transit Authority) Stress management (Midwest Electric Inc.) Safety incentive program (National Steel) Executive leadership development (Imperial National Bank) Technology-based learning (United Petroleum International).
Developing Exon‐Primed Intron‐Crossing (EPIC) markers for population genetic studies in three Aedes disease vectors

Aedes aegypti, Aedes notoscriptus, and Aedes albopictus are important vectors of many arboviruses implicated in human disease such as dengue fever. Genetic markers applied across vector species can provide important information on population structure, gene flow, insecticide resistance, and taxonomy, however, robust microsatellite markers have proven difficult to develop in these species and mosquitoes generally. Here we consider the utility and transferability of 15 Ribosome protein (Rp) Exon‐Primed Intron‐Crossing (EPIC) markers for population genetic studies in these 3 Aedes species. Rp EPIC markers designed for Ae. aegypti also successfully amplified populations of the sister species, Ae. albopictus, as well as the distantly related species, Ae. notoscriptus. High SNP and good indel diversity in sequenced alleles plus support for amplification of the same regions across populations and species were additional benefits of these markers. These findings point to the general value of EPIC markers in mosquito population studies.
Area-efficient and high-throughput hardware implementations of TAV-128 hash function for resource-constrained IoT devices

As the Internet of Things (IoT) continues to grow, the need for lightweight cryptography intensifies. Research in this direction has presented us with novel encryption and hash algorithms that continue to decrease in circuit size at the cost of increase in execution time and relaxation in required security level. Perhaps the most resource constrained devices present in the IoT domain are RFID tags, which provide a maximum area of around 4000 GE (Gate Equivalent) for security purposes. We propose a hardware implementation of TAV-128, a hash algorithm, that can be used in these resource constrained devices. We show that it is comparable with current lightweight cryptography proposals. In addition, we perform the comparison of software implementation of TAV-128 with existing popular soft cryptographic algorithms and demonstrate that it is efficient in terms of execution time and code size as well.
Cognitive behavior modification: a step in the wrong direction?

A recent cognitive trend in behavior therapy is documented, and the highlights of the behavioristic-cognitive debates that have appeared in the journals over the years are reviewed. Three types of data bearing on the relative effectiveness of cognitive and behavior therapy are presented: (a) controlled studies comparing the effectiveness of the new cognitive behavior modification techniques with traditional behavior therapy procedures, (b) studies comparing the effectiveness of two traditional behavior therapy techniques in which one of the procedures relies less on cognitive operations than does the other, and (c) data from other areas of psychology (attitude change, perception) that bear on the relationship between cognition and behavior change. Although the latter two data sources favor traditional behavior therapy, the controlled comparisons show the two types of techniques to be equally effective. Since the controlled cognitive behavior modification - behavior therapy comparisons have so far, however, not involved clinical populations, the question remains unresolved pending comparisons involving clinically relevant targets.
The Search of Complementarity in Explorative Strategies: The Relationship between Corporate Venture Capital Investments and Corporate Diversification

This paper uses data on 221 Corporate Venture Capital (CVC) funds created by 186 U.S. public firms during the period 1996–2006 to examine the presence of complementarity/substitution between corporate diversification and CVC fund diversification as different forms of exploration. Our results suggest that corporations undertake CVC investments to substitute corporate diversification if the focus is to explore new markets, and complement corporate diversification in the search of new technological domains. We also find that these relationships are sensitive to industry-specific factors: in high-tech sectors the substitution effect for the market side vanishes and the technological complementary effect is amplified.
Phenotypic variation of Staphylococcus epidermidis isolated from a patient with native valve endocarditis

Two colonial variants of Staphylococcus epidermidis were isolated from the valvular tissue of a patient with native valve endocarditis. In addition to differing in colonial morphology, the two variants differed in hemolysis on blood-containing media, in adherence capacity, and in the expression of certain enzymes. Under suitable conditions, both variants were themselves capable of phenotypic variation, although they differed in the rate at which variants were generated. The variants yielded identical profiles on restriction endonuclease analysis of plasmid DNA and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis of whole-cell DNA. This report suggests a possible role for phenotypic variation in coagulase-negative staphylococcal virulence. Congo red agar would be an excellent medium for studying the contribution of variation to the virulence of these organisms.
13.6 mW 79 GHz CMOS Up-Conversion Mixer With 2.1 dB Gain and 35.9 dB LO-RF Isolation

We report a 79 GHz mixer for direct up-conversion using 90 nm CMOS technology. In the mixer, an enhanced double-balanced Gilbert cell with current injection is used to reduce power consumption, and dual negative resistance compensation (NRC) is used to improve conversion gain (CG). In addition, it also includes two Marchand baluns: the single LO input signal to differential signal is converted by one of the baluns, and the differential RF output signal to single signal is converted by the other. The mixer consumes 13.6 mW, achieving IF-port input reflection coefficient (S11) of - 11.4 dB at 0.1 GHz, LO-port input reflection coefficient (S22) of - 12.2 ~ - 28.7 dB for frequencies 75-90 GHz. At IF of 0.1 GHz and RF of 78.1 GHz, the mixer achieves CG of 2.1 dB and LO-RF isolation of 35.9 dB, the best CG and isolation results ever reported for a W-band silicon-based mixer with power consumption lower than 15 mW.
Role of ADAMTS13 in the management of thrombotic microangiopathies including thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP)

The clinical presentation of thrombotic thrombocytopenia purpura (TTP) and other thrombotic microangiopathies (TMAs) can often be similar. The role of a disintegrin and metalloproteinase with a thrombospondin type 1 motif, member 13 (ADAMTS13) in diagnosing TTP is accepted by most researchers but continues to be debated in a few studies. We report the experience of our single‐centre academic institution, where ADAMTS13 is used to diagnose TTP and guide plasma exchange (PLEX). Patients presenting to our institution with thrombotic microangiopathy (60 patients) between January 2006 and December 2012 were divided into two groups based on ADAMTS13 activity and clinical history. Patients with ADAMTS13 activity <10% were included in the TTP (n = 30) cohort while patients with activity >11% were classified as ‘other microangiopathies’ (TMA, n = 30). PLEX was only initiated in patients with a high likelihood of TTP and discontinued when the baseline ADAMTS13 activity was >11%. Patients with severe ADAMTS13 deficiency (TTP group) showed significant presenting differences: lower platelet counts, less renal dysfunction, higher presence of neurological abnormalities, and greater haemolysis markers as compared to non‐deficient patients (TMA group). Most importantly, patients without severe ADAMTS13 deficiency were safely managed without increased mortality despite receiving no PLEX or discontinuing PLEX after a short course (upon availability of ADAMTS13 results). In conclusion, ADAMTS13 can be used to diagnose TTP and guide appropriate PLEX therapy.
The general public's use of (and attitudes towards) interactive, personal digital health information and advisory services

Examines statistically the public's use and attitudes towards interactive and personal health services via an online questionnaire survey and enhances these data with an expert assessment of a number of consumer health sites and their services. Over a period of three weeks more than 1,300 people responded to an online questionnaire produced by The British Life and Internet Project. Of the respondents, 81 per cent were British. The likely potential uptake figure for support group participation among Internet health users is about 20 per cent while around 11 to 13 per cent will go online to describe a medical condition. Those in poor heath were approximately ten to 13 times more likely to have participated in an online support group. Those aged over 65 were four times as likely to e‐mail their doctor. More positive health outcomes were associated with those respondents that participated in online support groups and the least number of health outcomes were associated with those people that maintained e‐mail contact with a doctor or surgery.
Prediction of Adverse Events in Patients Undergoing Major Cardiovascular Procedures

Electronic health records (EHR) provide opportunities to leverage vast arrays of data to help prevent adverse events, improve patient outcomes, and reduce hospital costs. This paper develops a postoperative complications prediction system by extracting data from the EHR and creating features. The analytic engine then provides model accuracy, calibration, feature ranking, and personalized feature responses. This allows clinicians to interpret the likelihood of an adverse event occurring, general causes for these events, and the contributing factors for each specific patient. The patient cohort considered was 5214 patients in Yale-New Haven Hospital undergoing major cardiovascular procedures. Cohort-specific models predicted the likelihood of postoperative respiratory failure and infection, and achieved an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.81 for respiratory failure and 0.83 for infection.
Brain Activations during Visual Search: Contributions of Search Efficiency versus Feature Binding

We investigated the involvement of the parietal cortex in binding features during visual search using functional magnetic resonance imaging. We tested 10 subjects in four visual search tasks across which we independently manipulated (1) the requirement to integrate different types of features in a stimulus (feature or conjunction search) and (2) the degree of search efficiency (efficient or inefficient). We identified brain areas that were common to all conditions of visual search and areas that were sensitive to the factors of efficiency and feature binding. Visual search engaged an extensive network of parietal, frontal, and occipital areas. The factor of efficiency exerted a strong influence on parietal activations along the intraparietal sulcus and in the superior parietal lobule. These regions showed a main effect of efficiency and showed a simple effect when inefficient conditions were compared directly with efficient pop-out conditions in the absence of feature binding. Furthermore, a correlation analysis supported a tight correspondence between posterior parietal activation and the slope of reaction-time search functions. Conversely, feature binding during efficient pop-out search was not sufficient to modulate the parietal cortex. The results confirm the important role of the parietal cortex in visual search, but suggest that feature binding is not a requirement to engage its contribution.
The profit impact of IT investment

Two models were used to study the relationships between profitability and the level of information technology (IT) among long-term life insurance companies. The first compared the computerization index (CI) with profitability ratios. The second used the operating expense ratio (profitability measure) and the IT expense ratio to measure the level of IT capital intensity. The results of the present study showed a positive correlation between the CI and the financial ratios and the most profitable firms are more likely to spend a higher proportion of their non-interest operating expenses on IT.
Self-Discrepancy Conditional Independence Test

Tests of conditional independence (CI) of random variables play an important role in machine learning and causal inference. Of particular interest are kernel-based CI tests which allow us to test for independence among random variables with complex distribution functions. The efﬁcacy of a CI test is measured in terms of its power and its calibratedness. We show that the Kernel CI Permutation Test (KCIPT) suffers from a loss of calibratedness as its power is increased by increasing the number of bootstraps. To address this limitation, we propose a novel CI test, called Self-Discrepancy Conditional Independence Test (SDCIT). SDCIT uses a test statistic that is a modiﬁed unbiased estimate of maximum mean discrepancy (MMD), the largest difference in the means of features of the given sample and its permuted counterpart in the kernel-induced Hilbert space. We present results of experiments that demonstrate SDCIT is, relative to the other methods: (i) competitive in terms of its power and calibratedness, outperforming other methods when the number of conditioning variables is large; (ii) more robust with respect to the choice of the kernel function; and (iii) competitive in run time.
A comparison of cochlear implant processing strategies in children using Speech Pattern Audiometry

Abstract The aim of this study was to use Speech Pattern Audiometry (SPA) to compare phoneme perception performance between SPEAK and ACE processing strategies with children using the Nucleus 24 cochlear implant. Listeners were evaluated in terms of ability to identify two synthetic word pairs, one signalling a voicing contrast and the other signalling a place of articulation contrast. For both word pairs, ACE was associated with more ‘normal’ phoneme boundaries than SPEAK. There was also a nonsignificant trend for better identification ability with ACE compared to SPEAK. The study suggests that there may be a place for SPA as part of the clinical battery of tests used for evaluation of cochlear implant speech processing strategies in children. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Parallel Distributed Face Search System for National and Border Security

The CCTV surveillance industry is undergoing a sea change due to the adoption of IP technologies. This is allowing the integration of a plethora of new cameras and other sensors into huge integrated networks. Adoption of IP technologies is presenting opportunities for scalable visual analytics that has the potential to add enormous value to entire camera networks. One such technology is scalable robust face search to identify persons of interest in large crowds. Not only are such systems required to work robustly in a wide variety of conditions, they must also be extremely fast and scalable to hundreds, if not thousands, of high definition camera nodes. Developing and testing such technology is challenging and requires a combination of fast algorithms, distributed databases, mobile platform integration, parallel processing using distributed middleware such as ROS, and GPU acceleration using tools such as CUDA and OpenCL. In this paper we cover emerging system trends such as supermegapixel cameras, post incident digital PTZ, integration and fusion of video and non-video sensors, multimodal remote biometrics including face and iris on the move. Finally, recognition results will be presented from a formal face recognition trial in early 2011 in one of Asia’s largest International airports.