Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Fall history is an independent predictor of adverse health outcomes and utilization in the elderly.

OBJECTIVE To determine whether a history of falls predicts functional decline, adverse health events, and hospitalization. STUDY DESIGN Twelve-month prospective cohort study. PATIENTS AND METHODS Participants were members of a Medicare managed care program. Outcomes were assessed each quarter and included functional status, healthcare utilization (hospitalization), and adverse events (hospitalizations, nursing home placement, or death). Subject healthcare utilization diaries were corroborated with health system data files. RESULTS At baseline, 70% reported no falls (NF), 18% had 1 fall (F), and 12% reported 2 or more falls (RF). Fall status predicted functional decline; new ADL deficits were seen in 18% of NF, 28% of F, and 55% of RF (P < or = .0001). Following adjustment for baseline function, this association remained predictive (adjusted odds ratio [OR] for new ADL deficits: 3.5, P = .007; and for new ADL and IADL deficits: 12.0, P= .0001). Fall frequency was a univariate predictor of adverse events (hospitalizations, nursing home placement, or death) and of hospital utilization alone. One or more adverse event(s) occurred in 18% of NF, 22% of F, and 38% of RF (P = .049). Hospitalization occurred in 16% of NF, 22% in F, and 35% of RF (P = .03). Following adjustment for likelihood of future hospitalization (P(ra)), these associations remained predictive for RF (adjusted OR for one or more adverse event[s]: 2.4, P = .05; OR for hospitalization 2.4, P = .06). CONCLUSIONS Fall history predicts decline in function, hospitalization, and adverse events among a Medicare managed care population and remains independently predictive of poor outcomes after controlling for baseline function and likelihood of future hospitalization.
The Perceptual Presence of the Life Course

Despite the recent popularity of the term, the degree to which the “life course” as such is experienced in everyday life is not clear. Explorations of this question have not been very satisfying because they tend to either eliminate biographical time (as in survey research) or assume its presence (as with clinical, biographical, and life historical research) through the methods used. Our exploratory research used the meanings of personal possessions as an indirect measure of the temporal framing of experiences among forty women who had moved into facilities for elderly persons. We found considerable variation in the relative frequency and importance of biographical references in descriptions of those possessions, which challenges the concepts that have been used to relate experiences of temporality to the self and the methods that have been used to explore these experiences.
Optimizing multiple conjugate gradient solvers for large‐scale systems

Conjugate gradient (CG) solvers are the most time consuming part of many scientific applications. These solvers exhibit communication operations that can prevent high performance from being achieved on large‐scale systems. In this paper we present a novel technique to boost the performance of these solvers. In this, multiple independent solvers, which occur in some applications, are combined allowing for the overlapping of communication with other communication and computation, resulting with increased performance. This is the first work where a combination of CG solvers has been exploited and offers performance improvements, which may be particularly important in very large‐scale systems. Results are presented for the MIMD lattice computation (MILC) application that show the cost of collective communications can be reduced by a factor of up to 2.5×. Moreover the performance of MILC is significantly improved, by over 10% for typical lattice sizes on a 1024‐processor system, and by 15% on a 4096‐processor system. Larger improvements are expected on larger systems. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Effect of Miconazole and Terbinafine on Artemisinin Content of Shooty Teratoma of Artemisia annua

The effects produced by the addition of sterol synthesis inhibitors on the artemisinin content of the transgenic organ culture (A. tumefaciens ATCC 33970 or 15955) of Artemisia annua are presented. The transgenic tissue produced 3-4 fold higher levels of artemisinin 0.84% (56.3 mg/L) within a short culture period compared with field grown plants (0.23%). The addition of the sterol synthesis inhibitors, miconazole and terbinafine, to these transgenic cultures resulted in enhanced artemisinin content up to 1.15% and 1.44%, respectively. Further enhancement of artemisinin content was achieved by varying the addition time of the sterol synthesis inhibitor to the cultures. The best artemisinin content (2.62%) was observed after terbinafine (10 mg/L) addition on the sixteenth day of the culture period.
Application of Markov chains to identification of gas turbine engine dynamic models

The paper addresses the practical problems of dynamic modelling of aero gas turbine engines for condition-monitoring purposes. The Markov chain technique is implemented to perform identification of the engine dynamic models using the engine normal flight data. This includes identifiability analysis and model estimation. When identifying the model, experimental data should be sufficiently informative for identification. A possible technique for identifiability analysis is proposed on the basis of non-parametric models in the form of controllable Markov chains. At the stage of the model estimation, Markov chains are introduced to provide more functionality and versatility for dynamic modelling of gas turbines.
Analytic Modeling of Clustered RAID with Mapping Based on Nearly Random Permutation

A Redundant Array of Independent Disks (RAID) of G disks provides protection against single disk failures by adding one parity block for each G-1 data blocks. In a clustered RAID, the G data/parity blocks are distributed over a cluster of C disks (C>G), thus reducing the additional load on each disk due to a single disk failure. However, most methods proposed for implementing such a mapping do not work for general C and G values. In this paper, we describe a fast mapping algorithm based on almost-random permutations. An analytical model is constructed, based on the queue with a permanent customer, to predict recovery time and read/write performance. The accuracy of the results derived from this model is validated by comparing with simulations. Our analysis shows that clustered RAID is significantly more tolerant of disk failure than the basic RAID scheme. Both recovery time and performance degradation during recovery are substantially reduced in clustered RAID; moreover, these gains can be achieved using fairly small C/G ratios.
Kant's Theory of Freedom . By Henry E. Allison. Cambridge University Press, 1990. Pp. xii + 304. £10.95.

Kant's Theory of Freedom. By HENRY E. ALLISON. Cambridge University Press, 1990. Pp. xii + 304. £10.95. THIS is a major work on Kant's ethics, conceived as a theory of rational agency but connecting the specific topics such as duty and respect, radical evil, virtue and holiness. The 'freedom' of the title is not 'freedom of action' (or 'outer freedom') but Kant's problematic conception of transcendental freedom. The book has three Parts: I Freedom and rational agency in the Critique of Pure Reason; II Moral agency and moral psychology; HI The justification of morality and freedom. The complex argument reinforces the view that a proper understanding of Kant's ethics requires a proper understanding of his other writings, especially the Critique of Pure Reason, in which the issue of freedom arises. (Allison presupposes his own account of Kant's transcendental idealism, which however is usefully outlined in the Introduction.) How can it be intelligible that persons inhabit the phenomenal world yet are not merely physical objects which are wholly determined causally in their actions? The conception of transcendental freedom, as an explicitly indeterminist or incompatibilist conception, must be a stumbling block for all empiricists. Allison develops a two-aspect theory, developing a notion of intelligible character which he takes to be the practical analogue of the spontaneity of the understanding. This can be thought, but not experienced: it is empirically vacuous and therefore does not compete with the empirical character model of agency. Although it is not empirical, and has no empirical explanatory function, it is not idle: 'it is an essential ingredient in the conception of ourselves and others as rational agents' (p. 6). In any case, 'the causality of nature is ultimately as inexplicable as the causality of freedom' (p. 26). Even if Kant's conception of freedom can be rendered coherent, it then faces objections 'from Hegel to Bernard Williams' on moral grounds. For if we accept a doctrine of the Groundwork, it seems that 'only genuinely autonomous actions are free, so we are not responsible for our immoral acts' (p. 2). Perhaps worse, if freedom consists in acting for the sake of the moral law (i.e. on Kant's view the Categorical Imperative), then difficulties about the conception of the moral law may infect the conception of freedom. Professor Allison's work is largely devoted to solving these problems, but also others not mentioned here. Of special interest to students of Kant's ethics are the discussions of Wi/feand Willkur, and the discussion of Chapter III of the Groundwork.
LMKS: An efficient scheme over POF switch to improve latency and throughput

A Named Data Networking (NDN) router can maintain a record in its PIT for every Interest packet and leverage PIT table to achieve the goal of stateful forwarding. In this paper, a more general application scene that presents new challenges for stateful forwarding is considered. The network element needs to keep states of previously forwarded packets to determine the forwarding behavior of subsequent packets. We are devoted to keeping states efficiently based on Protocol Oblivious Forwarding (POF), which is an enhancement to current OpenFlow-based SDN forwarding architecture. Specifically, we propose using Linear-Match table to keep states (LMKS) considering the performance and potential scalability. Experimental results on Linux-based POF soft switch show that LMKS can improve forwarding latency and throughput significantly with manageable processing overhead for network applications that require keeping states.
On transmitter gain/phase imbalance compensation at receiver

This letter explores the benefits of compensating for transmitter gain and phase imbalances in a receiver for quadrature communication systems. It is assumed that the gain and phase imbalances are introduced at the transmitter only. The Gram-Schmidt orthogonalization procedure is used at the receiver to compensate for the imbalances. Computer simulation has been performed to study a coherent differential QPSK communication system. It has been found that the bit error rate performance is improved significantly if the transmitter phase imbalance is compensated for. However, no improvement can be obtained if the transmitter gain imbalance is compensated for.
Obtaining State Estimations in Low Speed Induction Motor using Sensorless Constant Switching Frequency Controller

This paper presents to obtain the state estimations in low speed induction motor using Sensorless Constant Switching Frequency Controller (CSFC) technique. The state estimations referred to flux and torque. Therefore the CSFC enabling Induction motor with Direct Torque Control is built using the MATLAB/SIMULINK. The switching frequency is maintained constant in order to improve its state estimation with smaller sampling period. Keywords— Induction motor (IM), Direct Torque Control (DTC), Constant Switching Frequency Controller (CSFC), Flux estimation, Torque estimation.
The Problem with Function Points

he concept of function points goes a long way toward addressing the genuine need for frontend measures of product size. My concern is that specific types of function points—such as Albrecht’s version,1 which is popular in the US, and Symons Mark II version,2 which is popular in the UK—are not the straightforward, simple measures some people imagine. Function points have fundamental flaws in their construction that prevent them from being valid measures.3 This means there is a danger they will behave in unexpected ways, for example asserting that one program is larger than another when it is not. In most cases, if function points are used with caution within a specific organization, you will probably have few problems. But if you want to use them for cross-company benchmarking, as the basis for development or support contracts between different companies, or to develop generic estimation models, there is a non-negligible risk that you will encounter problems.
Relationship Trajectories, Parenting Stress, and Unwed Mothers' Transition to a New Baby

SYNOPSIS Objective . The present study examined associations between unwed mothers' residency and romantic relationships with the biological father during the transition to a new baby and mothers' later parenting stress. It also examined whether fathers' financial and caregiving support accounted for variation in parenting stress across relationship trajectories. Design . Data were drawn from first two waves of the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study (FFCWS) (N = 2,736 in 18 cities), with relationship status measured at the focal child's birth and one year later, and parenting stress measured one year after birth. Results . Parenting stress was highest among mothers who broke up with the father during the first year and lowest among those in consistent romantic relationships regardless of parents' coresidence status. Both fathers' financial and caregiving support mediated the association between relationship dissolution and higher maternal parenting stress, although caregiving support accounted for a larger proportion of the variation. Conclusions. Programs to support low-income, unwed mothers should understand the hardships of a breakup may spill over into other socioemotional domains, such as parenting, when experienced during the transition to a new baby and that mothers who have experienced a breakup may require additional caregiving support services during this vulnerable time.
EARLY OBSERVATIONS AND ANALYSIS OF THE TYPE Ia SN 2014J IN M82

We present optical and near infrared (NIR) observations of the nearby Type Ia SN 2014J. Seventeen optical and 23 NIR spectra were obtained from 10 days before (−10d) to 10 days after (+10d) the time of maximum B-band brightness. The relative strengths of absorption features and their patterns of development can be compared at one day intervals throughout most of this period. Carbon is not detected in the optical spectra, but we identify C i λ1. 0693 in the NIR spectra. Mg ii lines with high oscillator strengths have higher initial velocities than other Mg ii lines. We show that the velocity differences can be explained by differences in optical depths due to oscillator strengths. The spectra of SN 2014J show that it is a normal SN Ia, but many parameters are near the boundaries between normal and high-velocity subclasses. The velocities for O i, Mg ii, Si ii, S ii, Ca ii, and Fe ii suggest that SN 2014J has a layered structure with little or no mixing. That result is consistent with the delayed detonation explosion models. We also report photometric observations, obtained from −10d to +29d, in the UBVRIJH and Ks bands. The template fitting package SNooPy is used to interpret the light curves and to derive photometric parameters. Using RV = 1.46, which is consistent with previous studies, SNooPy finds that AV = 1.80 for E(B − V)host = 1.23 ± 0.06 mag. The maximum B-band brightness of −19.19 ± 0.10 mag was reached on February 1.74 UT ± 0.13 days and the supernova has a decline parameter, Δm15, of 1.12 ± 0.02 mag.
Selective Decoding Scheme-MAC Protocol in Ad Hoc Networks with MIMO Links

A problem encountered in the IEEE 802.11 MAC is the collision of simultaneous transmissions from either neighboring nodes or hidden nodes within the same contention floor. This paper presents the selective decoding schemes in MAC (SDS-MAC) protocol for MIMO ad hoc networks. It is able to mitigate interferences by means of a minimum mean-squared error (MMSE) technique. As a result, it allows a pair of simultaneous transmissions to the same or different nodes to yield the network utilization increase. The decoding schemes and time line operations are properly selected corresponding to the transmission demand of neighboring nodes to avoid collision. Transmission demand can be determined by the number of RTS packets and type of CTS packets. Simulation results are given to illustrate the SDS-MAC performance.
SOX2, a Persistent Marker for Multipotential Neural Stem Cells Derived from Embryonic Stem Cells, the Embryo or the Adult

Multipotent neural stem cells are present throughout the development of the central nervous system (CNS), persist into adulthood in defined locations and can be derived from more primitive embryonic stem cells. We show that SOX2, an HMG box transcription factor, is expressed in multipotent neural stem cells at all stages of mouse ontogeny. We have generated transgenic mice expressing enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) under the control of the endogenous locus-regulatory regions of the Sox2 gene to prospectively identify neural stem/progenitor cells in vivo and in vitro. Fluorescent cells coexpress SOX2 protein, and EGFP fluorescence is detected in proliferating neural progenitor cells of the entire anterior-posterior axis of the CNS from neural plate stages to adulthood. SOX2-EGFP cells can form neurospheres that can be passaged repeatedly and can differentiate into neurons, astrocytes and oligodendrocytes. Moreover, prospective clonal analysis of SOX2- EGFP-positive cells shows that all neurospheres, whether isolated from the embryonic CNS or the adult CNS, express SOX2-EGFP. In contrast, the pattern of SOX2-EGFP expression using randomly integrated Sox2 promoter/reporter construct differs, and neurospheres are heterogeneous for EGFP expression. These studies demonstrate that SOX2 may meet the requirements of a universal neural stem cell marker and provides a means to identify cells which fulfill the basic criteria of a stem cell: self-renewal and multipotent differentiation.
MzrA-EnvZ Interactions in the Periplasm Influence the EnvZ/OmpR Two-Component Regulon

ABSTRACT MzrA was identified as a modulator of the EnvZ/OmpR two-component signal transduction system. Previous evidence indicated that MzrA interacts with EnvZ and modulates its enzymatic activities to influence OmpR phosphate (OmpR∼P) levels. Moreover, MzrA was shown to connect the bacterial envelope stress response systems CpxA/CpxR and σE to EnvZ/OmpR to widen the defensive response regulatory network. In this study, experiments were carried out to establish whether the membrane or periplasmic domain of MzrA is critical for MzrA-EnvZ interactions and to reveal MzrA residues that play an important role in these interactions. Data obtained from chimeric constructs, in which the transmembrane domain of MzrA was replaced with the unrelated transmembrane domain of NarX or signal sequence of PhoA, showed that the transmembrane domain residues of MzrA do not play a critical role in MzrA-EnvZ interactions. The importance of the periplasmic domain of MzrA in MzrA-EnvZ interactions was revealed by characterizing bifunctional, fully soluble, and periplasmically localized MalE::MzrA chimeras. This was further corroborated through the isolation of loss-of-function, single-amino-acid substitutions in the conserved periplasmic domain of MzrA that interfered with MzrA-EnvZ binding in a bacterial two-hybrid system. Together, the data suggest that the binding of MzrA to EnvZ influences the ability of EnvZ to receive and/or respond to environmental signals in the periplasm and modulate its biochemical output to OmpR.
Effect of Physical Training on Pulmonary Function Tests in Border Security Force Trainees of India

Abstract Regular exercise enhances physical capabilities and physiological responses of the human body and the lungs are no exception. The present study was undertaken to study the effects of physical training and regular exercise on the lung functions. Pulmonary function tests (PFTs) of Border Security Force (BSF) trainees were compared with those of controls.We evaluated PFTs in 100 healthy BSF trainees before and after their rigorous physical training of 9 months duration and compared the values so obtained with 100 healthy medical students who were chosen as controls. Both were in the age group of 18-23 years. The PFTs were carried out with a computerized spirometer “Med-Spiror”. The various data was collected, compiled, statistically analysed and valid conclusions were drawn. Higher lung volumes and flow rates were achieved in BSF trainees after their training period, as compared to their own values obtained before their training period and to those of controls. Better mechanical factors and lower airway resistance influenced during the training period might have benefited in improving lung volumes and flow rates.
Evaluation of Antioxidant Activity and Antiproliferative Effect of Fruit Juices Enriched with Pycnogenol® in Colon Carcinoma Cells. The Effect of In Vitro Gastrointestinal Digestion

The aim of this study was to examine the effect of in vitro gastrointestinal digestion on the antioxidant and antiproliferative effect of fruit juices enriched with Pycnogenol® (0.5 g/L) on a colon carcinoma cell line (Caco‐2). The total phenolic concentration (TPC), antioxidant activity and inhibition cell growth were studied in fresh and digested pineapple juice and red fruits juice (both enriched with pine bark extract and not). After in vitro digestion the level of detectable phenolic compounds (expressed as gallic acid equivalent) was higher in both pineapple and red fruits juices enriched with Pycnogenol® than in non‐enriched commercial juices (155.6 mg/100 mL vs 94.6 mg/100 mL and 478.5 mg/100 mL vs 406.9 mg/100 mL, respectively). Increased antioxidant activity (measured by 2,2'‐azino‐bis(3‐ethylbenzothiazoline‐6‐sulphonic acid) (ABTS) and oxygen radical absorbance capacity assay (ORAC) methods) was observed in digested enriched juices with respect to the same samples before digestion. Pycnogenol® enrichment led to a high antiproliferative effect between 24 and 72 h of incubation with undigested pineapple juice compared with the non‐enriched juice. It can be concluded that enrichment of fruit juices with Pycnogenol® provides a source of phenolic compounds with high stability to in vitro gastrointestinal conditions; however, the antioxidant properties of fruit juices were affected to a different extent. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Specific fragmentation of tRNA and rRNA at a 7-methylguanine residue in the presence of methylated carrier RNA.

The reaction of site-specific cleavage of tRNA at a 7-methylguanine residue, including subsequent treatment with sodium borohydride and aniline [Wintermeyer, W. and Zachau, H.G. (1975) FEBS Lett. 58, 306-309], was shown to work only within a certain range of tRNA concentrations (higher than 30 microM). The Escherichia coli 16S rRNA, which contained a unique m7G (position 527), could not be split by this method when taken at any concentration. It was found that the presence of statistically methylated carrier RNA in the reaction mixture at the borohydride stage significantly stimulates site-specific fragmentation of 16S rRNA and 32P-labeled tRNAs. Direct sequencing proved that 16S rRNA and tRNA are cleaved by this procedure successfully at the m7G residue. The E. coli 16S rRNA was preparatively cleaved by the described procedure into two fragments. The 5'-terminal fragment (1-526) and the 3'-terminal fragment (528-1542) were isolated in the pure form and their secondary structure investigated by the circular dichroism method. The results of this study showed that the secondary and tertiary structures of the 5'-terminal one-third of the 16S rRNA are at least as ordered as those of intact 16S rRNA or its 3'-terminal two-thirds.