Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Machine Learning-based Estimation of Cardiac Contractility from Peripheral Pressure Waveform Machine Learning - Project 2

—Machine learning is now a well embedded method for scientiﬁc data analysis and also various types of predictions. According to the World Health Organization, cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are the leading cause of death in the world and are held responsible for more than 30 % of deaths worldwide per year [1]. Part of those deaths occur prematurely and could be avoided if high risk factors were identiﬁed early enough to provide suitable treatments. Bikia et al. recently investigated the role that machine learning could play in predicting CVD’s risk factors in the population based on non-invasive pressure-based inputs, which can be easily acquired in the clinic. Various machine learning algorithms have been applied to several cardiac and aortic pressure measurements to predict aortic systolic pressure (aSBP), cardiac output (CO) as well as end-systolic elastance (E es ) and exhibited encouraging results for further studies on enhancing the predictions’ accuracy [3]. In the present project, we investigate how E es ’s prediction can be improved without the use of Ejection Fraction (EF), a parameter which has been often used by prior methods to estimate E es . To this end, we have explored the potential in accurately estimating E es by leveraging non-invasive features extracted from the entire peripheral (brachial) blood pressure wave. We tested various regression algorithms and compared their performance to the one of Convolutional Neural Network (CNN).
Sarcodia suieae Acetyl-xylogalactan Down-regulate RAW264.7 Macrophage Apoptosis Factors Ddit3 and Hyou1 Expression Under Heat Stress

We aimed to evaluate the protective effects of acetyl-xylogalactan on the activity of RAW264.7 macrophages against heat stress. To this end, we assessed cell survival, phagocytic activity, intracellular Ca2+ level, mitochondria potential exchange, apoptotic assay findings, galactosidase activity and the RNA-seq by NGS and real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) expression. In our evaluation of macrophage morphology at 37°C and 41°C, the macrophages showed an oval shape at 41°C, unlike the spindle shape at 37°C. Therefore, 41°C was chosen as the heat stress condition. Subsequently, we designed an experiment to evaluate changes in the RAW264.7 macrophages after acetyl-xylogalactan treatment under heat stress. The survival of RAW264.7 macrophages treated with acetyl-xylogalactan was higher than that of controls that were not treated with acetyl-xylogalactan. Moreover, on the basis of the results of the annexin-V detection assay, the apoptotic activity of macrophages appeared to have reduced after treatment with acetyl-xylogalactan. Moreover, treatment with acetyl-xylogalactan resulted in a stronger recovery trend in the intracellular Ca2+ and mitochondrial membrane potential after heat stress. RNA sequencing and real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) illustrated that Sarcodia suieae acetyl-xylogalactan could upregulate the expression of the anti-apoptosis Cflar gene and downregulate the expression of the apoptosis factors Ddit3, and Hyou1 to protect macrophages under heat
Seroprevalence of Porcine Cysticercosis in South-Eastern Côte d'Ivoire

Abstract : Background : porcine cysticercosis is an endemic parasitic zoonosis in many developing countries. The objective was to estimate the seroprevalence of porcine cysticercosis in traditional pig farms in the departments of Dabou, Aboisso and Agboville where blood samples were taken from pigs and analyzed by ELISA (IgG) and western blot. Data on farming practices and pig characteristics were collected. Categorical variables were compared with the Chi2 test and continuous variables with the Student test. Multivariate logistic regression models were constructed to identify risk factors. Results: A total of 668 pigs were sampled from 116 farms. The seroprevalence of cysticercosis was estimated at 13.2%. Overweight [ORa=2.6; 95%CI(1.3-4.9)] and fat pigs [ORa=2.3; 95%CI(1.0-4.8)] were twice as likely to be seropositive for cysticercosis. This risk was increased in farms using well water for drinking [aOR=2.5; 95%CI(1.0-6.3)] as well as those reporting veterinary care of the animals (ORa=2.9; 95%CI (1.2-7.3)). Conclusions: This study demonstrated the circulation of T. solium in pig farms in southern Côte d'Ivoire.
Determination of bone age using deep convolutional neural networks

Aim: Bone age assessment is an important measure of skeletal maturity in children with a growth development disorder. Furthermore, age estimation is an important method applied in various situations such as growth observation, immigrant registration, legal criminal justice, and body detection. In this study, we aimed to develop a computer-assisted bone age detection system. Materials and Methods: This detection is usually evaluated by a trained physician using a radiological examination of the left wrist and a reference model. However, this evaluation method was stated to cause differences brought by interobserver and intraobserver variabilities. Several automated approaches have been proposed to overcome these problems, but none of them have been proven to be generalized according to different races, age ranges, and gender. Considering today's technology, it is observed that developments in the software are already used in the field of health. In this study, bone age was determined from X-rays of the left wrist using convolutional neural networks, which are a popular subject of recent years. Results: In the study, in which a total of 150 patients' images were used, different deep learning architectures were used and the results were compared. On average, the success rate was best at 98.39% with different training-testing split rates. Conclusion: This study demonstrated that deep learning could be used to determine bone age.
Social Status and Intergenerational Equality of Opportunity

Is long-term income inequality consistent with equality of opportunity (EOp) ethic? In this paper we study the effectiveness of intergenerational EOp policies in an environment with two social groups and infinite generations of individuals, where the outcomes of one generation define the circumstances of the next. Circumstances in this paper have to do either with different preferences among individuals from different social groups or with both resources and preferences due to these resources. We show that in the former case EOp policies reduce inequality and also the EOp policy is the same as the Utilitarian one. In the latter case, inequality is not reduced and its level depends on the relative population of the two social groups. ∗Goldsmiths, University of London †Queen Mary, University of London
Flood Prediction and Prevention System

Natural disaster is a common phenomenon which regularly affects both living and non-living entities that belong to the environment. Our society is increasingly dependent on embedded systems for activities of several important days today. Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN) are used widely today nearly everywhere, including both residential and undeveloped riverside areas. Human beings do not have the ability to fully eliminate the natural disaster, but the only thing that human beings can do is foresee natural disaster and take drastic measures to prevent it. There are several technologies available for forecasting natural calamity and avoiding it. In this paper use of Wireless Sensor Networking (WSN) technology to predict & avoid flooding. WSN is preferred because of its cost-effectiveness, faster data transfer & accurate calculation of the required flood prediction & prevention parameter. Another beauty of WSN technology is that could calculate the required parameter by taking very few environmental parameters into consideration. In this paper a flood prediction & prevention survey is conducted via the wireless sensor network.
Window-Dressing and the Fed’s RRP Facility in the Repo Market∗

We analyze repurchase agreement (repo) markets in the wake of Basel III regulations and the reverse repo facility of the Federal Reserve (Fed). Using a proprietary data set of repo transactions, we find that differences in regional implementation of these regulations intensified window-dressing by European dealers who reduced their borrowing by 17% on financial reporting days. Consequently, money funds cut their repo lending by half and lent to the Fed instead when European dealers withdraw. In a difference-in-differences setting, we quantify these effects on relationships, and find that funds ineligible for Fed trades lent 15% less to European dealers compared with eligible funds.
Pgp3 Antibody Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay, a Sensitive and Specific Assay for Seroepidemiological Analysis of <italic toggle='yes'>Chlamydia trachomatis</italic> Infection

Pgp3 Antibody Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay, a Sensitive and Specific Assay for Seroepidemiological Analysis of Chlamydia trachomatis Infection Gillian S. Wills,† Patrick J. Horner,† Rosy Reynolds, Anne M. Johnson, David A. Muir, David W. Brown, Alan Winston, Andrew J. Broadbent, David Parker, and Myra O. McClure* Jefferiss Trust Laboratories, Wright-Fleming Institute, Imperial College London, Research Department of Infection and Population Health, University College London, Department of Diagnostic Virology, St Mary’s Hospital, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, and Health Protection Agency Centre for Infections, Colindale, London, Department of Social Medicine, University of Bristol, and Department of Medical Microbiology, North Bristol NHS Trust, Bristol, and Novel Consulting, Crown House, Home Gardens, Dartford, United Kingdom
University of Dundee Polymorphism in a lincRNA Associates with a Doubled Risk of Pneumococcal Bacteremia in Kenyan Children Rautanen,

Rautanen, Anna; Pirinen, Matti; Mills, Tara C; Rockett, Kirk A; Strange, Amy; Ndungu, Anne W; Naranbhai, Vivek; Gilchrist, James J; Bellenguez, Céline; Freeman, Colin; Band, Gavin; Bumpstead, Suzannah J; Edkins, Sarah; Giannoulatou, Eleni; Gray, Emma; Dronov, Serge; Hunt, Sarah E; Langford, Cordelia; Pearson, Richard D; Su, Zhan; Vukcevic, Damjan; Macharia, Alex W; Uyoga, Sophie; Ndila, Carolyne; Mturi, Neema; Njuguna, Patricia; Mohammed, Shebe; Berkley, James A; Mwangi, Isaiah; Mwarumba, Salim; Kitsao, Barnes S; Lowe, Brett S; Morpeth, Susan C; Khandwalla, Iqbal; Blackwell, Jenefer M; Bramon, Elvira; Brown, Matthew A; Casas, Juan P; Corvin, Aiden; Duncanson, Audrey; Jankowski, Janusz; Markus, Hugh S; Mathew, Christopher G; Palmer, Colin N A; Plomin, Robert; Sawcer, Stephen J; Trembath, Richard C; Viswanathan, Ananth C; Wood, Nicholas W; Deloukas, Panos; Peltonen, Leena; Williams, Thomas N; Scott, J Anthony G; Chapman, Stephen J; Donnelly, Peter; Hill, Adrian V S; Spencer, Chris C A; Kenyan Bacteraemia Study Group
The Effects of Temperature, Light, and Feeding on the Physiology of Pocillopora damicornis, Stylophora pistillata, and Turbinaria reniformis Corals

Evidence has shown that individually feeding or reduced light can mitigate the negative effects of elevated temperature on coral physiology. We aimed to evaluate if simultaneous low light and feeding would mitigate, minimize, or exacerbate negative effects of elevated temperature on coral physiology and carbon budgets. Pocillopora damicornis, Stylophora pistillata, and Turbinaria reniformis were grown for 28 days under a fully factorial experiment including two seawater temperatures (ambient temperature of 25 ◦C, elevated temperature of 30 ◦C), two light levels (high light of 300 μmol photons m−2 s−1, low light of 150 μmol photons m−2 s−1), and either fed (Artemia nauplii) or unfed. Coral physiology was significantly affected by temperature in all species, but the way in which low light and feeding altered their physiological responses was species-specific. All three species photo-acclimated to low light by increasing chlorophyll a. Pocillopora damicornis required feeding to meet metabolic demand irrespective of temperature but was unable to maintain calcification under low light when fed. In T. reniformis, low light mitigated the negative effect of elevated temperature on total lipids, while feeding mitigated the negative effects of elevated temperature on metabolic demand. In S. pistillata, low light compounded the negative effects of elevated temperature on metabolic demand, while feeding minimized this negative effect but was not sufficient to provide 100% metabolic demand. Overall, low light and feeding did not act synergistically, nor additively, to mitigate the negative effects of elevated temperature on P. damicornis, S. pistillata, or T. reniformis. However, feeding alone was critical to the maintenance of metabolic demand at elevated temperature, suggesting that sufficient supply of heterotrophic food sources is likely essential for corals during thermal stress (bleaching) events.
Photodegradation of atmospheric chromophores: changes in oxidation state and photochemical reactivity

Abstract. Atmospheric chromophoric organic matter (COM) plays a fundamental role in photochemistry and aerosol aging. However, the effects of photodegradation on chemical components and photochemical reactivity of COM remain unresolved. Here, we report the potential effects of photodegradation on carbon contents, optical properties, fluorophore components and photochemical reactivity in aerosol. After 7 d of photodegradation, fluorescent intensity and the absorption coefficient of COM decrease by 71.4 % and 32.0 %, respectively. Photodegradation makes a difference to the chemical component of chromophore and the degree of aerosol aging. Low-oxidation humic-like substance (HULIS) is converted into high-oxidation HULIS due to photooxidation. Photodegradation also changes the photochemical reactivity. The generation of triplet-state COM (3COM*) decreases slightly in ambient particulate matter (ambient PM) but increases in primary organic aerosol (POA) following photodegradation. The results highlight that the opposite effect of photodegradation on photochemical reactivity in POA and ambient PM. However, the generation of singlet-oxygen (1O2) decreases obviously in POA and ambient PM, which could be attributed to photodegradation of precursors of 1O2. The combination of optical property, chemical component and reactive oxygen species has an important impact on the air quality. The new insights on COM photodegradation in aerosol reinforce the importance of studying dissolved organic matter (DOM) related with the photochemistry and aerosol aging.
Is the accuracy of individuals' survival beliefs associated with their knowledge of population life expectancy?

BACKGROUND On average, individuals underestimate their survival chances, which could yield suboptimal long-term decisions. OBJECTIVE Is the accuracy of individuals’ survival beliefs associated with their knowledge of population life expectancy of people of their age and gender? METHODS We use the 1995 and 1996 waves of the Dutch DNB Household Survey (DHS) with data on individuals’ survival beliefs and their knowledge of population life expectancy, supplemented with death registry data for the years 1995 to 2018. The accuracy of their survival beliefs is measured by comparing these beliefs with (actual) survival during the years after the survey was conducted. We provide prima facie evidence on the association between individuals’ knowledge of population life expectancy and the accuracy of their survival beliefs, and quantify this association using mortality risk models that control for socioeconomic status and health-related characteristics. RESULTS Individuals with only some overor underestimation of population life expectancy had, on average, about a one-third smaller difference between their survival beliefs and survival rate than those who severely underestimated population life expectancy. In line with this prima facie evidence, we find that, after controlling for socioeconomic and health characteristics, 55-year-old individuals with one-year of better knowledge of population life expectancy underestimated their lifetime with, on average, about 0.3 years less (95% CI: 0.09–0.52). 1 Universiteit Utrecht, the Netherlands. Email: A.S. Kalwij@uu.nl. 2 Munich Center for the Economics of Aging (MEA), Germany. Email: KutluKoc@mea.mpisoc. mpg.de. Kalwij & Kutlu Koc: Accuracy of individuals’ survival beliefs and knowledge of population life expectancy 454 https://www.demographic-research.org CONTRIBUTION We provide empirical evidence in support of the hypothesis that individuals with a better knowledge of population life expectancy have more accurate survival beliefs.
Simulating glacial dust changes in the Southern Hemisphere using ECHAM6.3-HAM2.3

Abstract. Mineral dust aerosol constitutes an important component of the Earth’s climate system, not only on short timescales due to direct and indirect influences on the radiation budget, but also on long timescales by acting as a fertilizer for the biosphere and thus affecting the global carbon cycle. For a quantitative assessment of its impact on the global climate, state-of-the-art atmospheric and aerosol models can be utilized. In this study, we use the ECHAM6.3-HAM2.3 model to perform global simulations of the mineral dust cycle for present-day (PD), pre-industrial (PI) and Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) climate conditions. The intercomparison with marine sediment and ice core data as well as other modeling studies shows that the obtained annual dust emissions of 1221, 923 and 5159 Tg for PD, PI and LGM, respectively, generally agree well with previous findings. Our analyses focussing on the Southern Hemisphere suggest that over 90 % of the mineral dust deposited over Antarctica are of Australian or South American origin during both PI and LGM. However, contrary to previous studies, we find that Australia contributes a higher proportion during the LGM, which is mainly caused by changes in the precipitation patterns. Obtained increased particle radii during the LGM can be traced back to increased sulphate condensation on the particle surfaces as a consequence of longer particle lifetimes. The meridional transport of mineral dust from its source regions to the South Pole takes place at different altitudes, depending on the grain size of the dust particles. We find a trend of generally lower transport heights during the LGM compared to PI as a consequence of reduced convection due to colder surfaces, indicating a vertically less extensive Polar Cell.
News-driven inflation expectations

Using a large news corpus and machine learning algorithms we investigate the role played by the media in the expectations formation process of households, and conclude that the news topics media report on are good predictors of both inflation and inflation expectations. In turn, in a noisy information model, augmented with a simple media channel, we document that the time series features of relevant topics help explain the time-varying information rigidity among households. As such, we provide a novel estimate of state dependent information rigidities, and present new evidence highlighting media’s role for understanding inflation expectations and information rigidities. JEL-codes: C11, C53, D83, D84, E13, E31, E37
Antioxidant Activity of Opuntia SP. Fruit Extracts on Human Sperm Quality and Cryopreservation Cycle

Opuntia sp. contain antioxidant phytochemicals resistant to ROS damage, whose excess negatively affect fertilization. We investigate the activity of fruit extracts of O. dillenii and O. ficus indica (cv red and yellow) on sperm quality and cryopreservation. In the first experiment, we exposed the samples to extracts (50 µl) for 1 hour to then evaluate semen parameters (vitality, motility, acrosome reaction, DNA fragmentation and oxidative stress). The results showed a significant increase in the motility (86%±0.19 for OFI cv yellow, 82%±0.15 for OFI cv red and 90%±0.08 for O. dillenii) compared to the control (80%±0.17). Moreover, we noted a reduction of DNA fragmentation on treated (3%±0.03 in OFI cv yellow, 7%±0.09 in OFI cv red and 5%±0.07 in O. dillenii) than the control (40%±0.14). Furthermore, the oxidative stress was reduced after exposure to solutions (3.15mV in the control and 2.94mV in the treated). In the second experiment, 50 µl of solutions were added to the Freezing medium. After thawing, we observed an improvement in vitality and the number of intact acrosomes. Our results suggest that Opuntia sp. fruit extracts improve sperm quality, both before and after cryopreservation, optimizing the potential of fertilization of sperm cells.
Economic costs of biological invasions within North America

Invasive species can have severe impacts on ecosystems, economies, and human health. Though the economic impacts of invasions provide important foundations for management and policy, up-to-date syntheses of these impacts are lacking. To produce the most comprehensive estimate of invasive species costs within North America (including the Greater Antilles) to date, we synthesized economic impact data from the recently published InvaCost database. Here, we report that invasions have cost the North American NeoBiota 67: 485–510 (2021) doi: 10.3897/neobiota.67. 58038 https://neobiota.pensoft. net Copyright Robert Crystal-Ornelas et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. RESEARCH ARTICLE Advancing research on alien species and biological invasions A peer-reviewed open-access journal
BPMJ-03-2020-0104_proof 306..327

Purpose – Lean Thinking is an operationmanagement discipline which aims to identify, map and analyse the activities forming a process to detect “value waste” and outline themost effective flow of activities to execute in sequence. Processmapping is often developed in lean projects through the use of the Value StreamMap (VSM). Like many other management tools, the VSM adopts a static and non-systemic perspective in the representation of an organizational process. This may result in the implementation of Lean projects inconsistent with the overall organizational long-term strategy, thus leading to dysfunctional performance. In order to overcome this limit, the paper suggests combining VSM with System Dynamics (SD) modelling. Design/methodology/approach – The paper is based on a review of the literature on VSM. This review is matched with an analysis of SD modelling principles aimed at explaining the practical and theoretical contribution of this approach to operation and strategic management practices. An illustrative case study is then provided to explore the practical implications of the proposed approach. Findings – Our results show that SD modelling provides robust methodological support to VSM and Lean Thinking due to its inner characteristics, namely: simulation, systemic view, explicit link between system structure and behaviour and effective visual representation. Originality/value – This research proposes a novel approach to design VSMs aimed at fostering a strategic perspective in Lean Thinking applications. Such an approach connects two fields of research and practice – i.e. VSM and SD modelling – which have traditionally been kept separated or, at least, partially combined for specific organizational sub-systems, thereby neglecting a broader strategic view of the entire process system.