Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effectiveness of the Multidisciplinary Team Model in Treating Colorectal Cancer

The multidisciplinary team (MDT) model involves multiple medical professionals providing integrated medical care. Colorectal cancer (CRC) has the highest prevalence of cancer in Taiwan. This study examines and evaluates the survival rates of CRC patients treated under the MDT model. In this retrospective and prospective study, 651 CRC patients were recruited. They were divided into 2 groups: the MDT group and the traditional care (TC) group. The MDT group comprised 326 patients who received care from a MDT. The TC group comprised 325 patients who received care from a TC. The outcome variables were survival rates, follow-up appointment compliance, and 14-day readmission rates. Adopting the MDT model for CRC care increased patient follow-up appointment compliance rates at the first week, first month, and third month (p = .032, p = .007, p = .001, respectively). The model also effectively reduced patients' 14-day readmission rates. The results indicated that the survival rates of the MDT care were superior to those of TC. The adoption of the MDT model to treat CRC effectively enhanced clinical treatment adherence, increased survival rates, and reduced the 14-day readmission rate.
Two-stage sketch colorization

Sketch or line art colorization is a research field with significant market demand. Different from photo colorization which strongly relies on texture information, sketch colorization is more challenging as sketches may not have texture. Even worse, color, texture, and gradient have to be generated from the abstract sketch lines. In this paper, we propose a semi-automatic learning-based framework to colorize sketches with proper color, texture as well as gradient. Our framework consists of two stages. In the first drafting stage, our model guesses color regions and splashes a rich variety of colors over the sketch to obtain a color draft. In the second refinement stage, it detects the unnatural colors and artifacts, and try to fix and refine the result. Comparing to existing approaches, this two-stage design effectively divides the complex colorization task into two simpler and goal-clearer subtasks. This eases the learning and raises the quality of colorization. Our model resolves the artifacts such as water-color blurring, color distortion, and dull textures. We build an interactive software based on our model for evaluation. Users can iteratively edit and refine the colorization. We evaluate our learning model and the interactive system through an extensive user study. Statistics shows that our method outperforms the state-of-art techniques and industrial applications in several aspects including, the visual quality, the ability of user control, user experience, and other metrics.
Practical SVBRDF acquisition of 3D objects with unstructured flash photography

Capturing spatially-varying bidirectional reflectance distribution functions (SVBRDFs) of 3D objects with just a single, hand-held camera (such as an off-the-shelf smartphone or a DSLR camera) is a difficult, open problem. Previous works are either limited to planar geometry, or rely on previously scanned 3D geometry, thus limiting their practicality. There are several technical challenges that need to be overcome: First, the built-in flash of a camera is almost colocated with the lens, and at a fixed position; this severely hampers sampling procedures in the light-view space. Moreover, the near-field flash lights the object partially and unevenly. In terms of geometry, existing multiview stereo techniques assume diffuse reflectance only, which leads to overly smoothed 3D reconstructions, as we show in this paper. We present a simple yet powerful framework that removes the need for expensive, dedicated hardware, enabling practical acquisition of SVBRDF information from real-world, 3D objects with a single, off-the-shelf camera with a built-in flash. In addition, by removing the diffuse reflection assumption and leveraging instead such SVBRDF information, our method outputs high-quality 3D geometry reconstructions, including more accurate high-frequency details than state-of-the-art multiview stereo techniques. We formulate the joint reconstruction of SVBRDFs, shading normals, and 3D geometry as a multi-stage, iterative inverse-rendering reconstruction pipeline. Our method is also directly applicable to any existing multiview 3D reconstruction technique. We present results of captured objects with complex geometry and reflectance; we also validate our method numerically against other existing approaches that rely on dedicated hardware, additional sources of information, or both.
Online failure prediction for microservice architectures

In many modern software architectures, failure avoidance strategies are already an integral part of the system since they provide many ways to contribute to software resilience. Failures are the cause of system downtimes and latencies and often, they can not be completely prevented. In contrast to fully virtualized servers on which applications are run, some microservice architectures allow microservies to operate natively on the underlying OS and they might therefore interact with each other on a much higher level. Microservices that are deployed on the same node may also affect each other much more than VM’s, for example by putting a high workload on the underlying host. Traditional VM’s run their own Operating system, often in an isolated memory region and a predetiermined, mostly static CPU share whereas microservices are able to cooperate by sharing the same IP-address and other resources. The goal of this thesis is to show how and to which degree microservices can affect each other when they are being executed on the same host and to discuss the effects that these side effects have on failure predictors. For this, a number of simulations are run on a selected containerized application that demonstrate the container-induced side effects. Certain metrics like the CPU-usage of the containers will be evaluated for each scenario and online failure prediction methods are implemented that try to forecast failures based on these metrics. The results show, that independent microservices can affect each other in various ways, for example, by over-utilizing the CPU resources of the host on which they are deployed on. This effect makes failure prediction with monolithic approaches that do not consider the architecture of the host very difficult. This thesis shows and discusses various scenarios in which hierarchical failure prediction methods show significantly better results than monolithic aproaches when such a side-effect is introduced into the system.
Human Leukocyte Antigen Class I and II Knockout Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell–Derived Cells: Universal Donor for Cell Therapy

Background We aim to generate a line of “universal donor” human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) that are nonimmunogenic and, therefore, can be used to derive cell products suitable for allogeneic transplantation. Methods and Results hiPSCs carrying knockout mutations for 2 key components (β2 microglobulin and class II major histocompatibility class transactivator) of major histocompatibility complexes I and II (ie, human leukocyte antigen [HLA] I/II knockout hiPSCs) were generated using the Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR)/CRISPR associated protein 9 (Cas9) gene‐editing system and differentiated into cardiomyocytes. Pluripotency‐gene expression and telomerase activity in wild‐type (WT) and HLAI/II knockout hiPSCs, cardiomyocyte marker expression in WT and HLAI/II knockout hiPSC‐derived cardiomyocytes, and assessments of electrophysiological properties (eg, conduction velocity, action‐potential and calcium transient half‐decay times, and calcium transient increase times) in spheroid‐fusions composed of WT and HLAI/II knockout cardiomyocytes, were similar. However, the rates of T‐cell activation before (≈21%) and after (≈24%) exposure to HLAI/II knockout hiPSC‐derived cardiomyocytes were nearly indistinguishable and dramatically lower than after exposure to WT hiPSC‐derived cardiomyocytes (≈75%), and when WT and HLAI/II knockout hiPSC‐derived cardiomyocyte spheroids were cultured with human peripheral blood mononuclear cells, the WT hiPSC‐derived cardiomyocyte spheroids were smaller and displayed contractile irregularities. Finally, expression of HLA‐E and HLA‐F was inhibited in HLAI/II knockout cardiomyocyte spheroids after coculture with human peripheral blood mononuclear cells, although HLA‐G was not inhibited; these results are consistent with the essential role of class II major histocompatibility class transactivator in transcriptional activation of the HLA‐E and HLA‐F genes, but not the HLA‐G gene. Expression of HLA‐G is known to inhibit natural killer cell recognition and killing of cells that lack other HLAs. Conclusions HLAI/II knockout hiPSCs can be differentiated into cardiomyocytes that induce little or no activity in human immune cells and, consequently, are suitable for allogeneic transplantation.
Computer oriented formulation of equations and analysis of switched-capacitor networks

The computational aspects of the analysis of switched-capacitor (SC) networks having ideal elements and an arbitrary number of phases are discussed. In each phase, a special two-graph preprocessing step eliminates all switches and topologically compresses the resulting matrices to the minimum. Subsequently, a new solution method reduces the problem to the solution of the compressed system. in a single phase. The majority of steps are transferred into preprocessing and done only once. A summary of various analyses, available in the WATSCAD program, is presented as well.
Blind adaptive beamforming for cyclostationary signals with robustness against cycle frequency mismatch

Blind adaptive beamforming algorithms using cyclostationarity of signals have found numerous important applications in signal processing because they do not depend on any reference signal. However, these methods are based on the assumption that the cycle frequency of the desired signal is precisely known, which may not be true in practice. We propose three efficient robust schemes based on the conventional cyclic adaptive beamforming (CAB) algorithm to combat the mismatch in the cycle frequency. The performance of the proposed techniques is compared with that of existing blind cyclic beamforming approaches by computer simulations, the results of which demonstrate a marked improvement in the robustness against inexact knowledge of the cycle frequency.
The Embodied Conversational Agent Toolkit : a new modularization approach.

This thesis shows a new modularization approach for Embodied Conversational Agents (ECAs). This approach is titled the Embodied Conversational Agent Toolkit (ECAT). ECAT builds upon the SAIBA framework, which proposed a three stage modularization of ECAs. ECAT focuses on the third stage, called behavior realization. The process of behavior realization can be summarized as: turning high-level behavior specifications into audiovisual rendering of an ECA. Internally this boils down to firstly converting high-level specifications into low-level specifications and secondly rendering these low-level specifications. In between these two tasks is exactly where ECAT proposes a split. ECAT defines compilation as being the process of converting high-level specifications into low-level specifications and translation as the rendering of these low-level specifications. In addition to these two stages one preliminary stage is introduced called interpretation. Interpretation is meant to bridge between the wide variety of applications which are generating behaviors on the one hand and on the other hand the stage of compilation. An ECA using ECAT uses one component for each stage: one Interpreter, one Compiler and one Translator. These three components are separated by two TCP/IP socket interfaces. This keeps the different components language and platform independent of each other. Both interfaces use XML languages for communication. The first interface currently uses the Multimodal Utterance Representation Markup Language (MURML). In addition to MURML this interface has future support for the Behavior Markup Language (BML), which is also used in the SAIBA framework. The second interface uses a custom markup language. Proof-of-concept prototype components have been implemented for each of the three stages. One functional pipeline, including three components, is based on an existing ECA called NUMACK. Parts of this ECA have been reimplemented and modularized according to the three stages of ECAT. The performance of the ECAT version of NUMACK is similar to the original version. This shows that ECAs can be successfully implemented using ECAT. The proof-of-concept components can serve as an example for future components. The ultimate goal is to create a repository of components which can be shared and reused among researchers. Since ECAT supports and builds upon BML as an interface, a collection of ECAT components will also help the SAIBA framework to grow to a wider accepted standard.
Accelerated age‐related cortical thinning in mild traumatic brain injury

Mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) can result in many structural abnormalities in the cerebral cortex. While thinning of the cortex has been shown in mTBI patients, there is high regional variability in reported findings. High‐resolution imaging can elucidate otherwise unnoticed changes in cortical measures following injury. This study examined age‐related patterns of cortical thickness in U.S. active duty service members and veterans with a history of mTBI (n = 66) as compared to a normative population (n = 67).
Craniovertebral Junction Anomalies in Small Breed Dogs with Atlantoaxial Instability: A Multicentre Case–Control Study

Abstract Objective The main purpose of this study was to define criteria to systemically describe craniovertebral junction (CVJ) anomalies and to report the prevalence of CVJ anomalies in small breed dogs with and without atlantoaxial instability (AAI). Materials and Methods Retrospective multicentre matched case–control study evaluating magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomographic images of small breed dogs with and without AAI for the presence of CVJ anomalies. Results One hundred and twenty-two dogs were enrolled (61 with and 61 without AAI). Only dogs with AAI had dens axis anomalies such as separation (n = 20) or a short-rounded conformation (n = 35). Patients with AAI were more likely to have atlantooccipital overlapping based on transection of McRae's line by the dorsal arch of the atlas (odds ratio [OR] = 5.62, p < 0.01), a transection of Wackenheim's clivus line (OR = 41.62, p < 0.01) and rostral indentation of the occipital bone (OR = 2.79, p < 0.05). Patients with AAI were less likely to have a larger clivus canal angle (OR = 0.94, p < 0.01) and larger occipital bone lengths (OR = 0.89, p < 0.05). Clinical Significance Small breed dogs with AAI are more likely to have other CVJ anomalies such as atlantooccipital overlapping or dens anomalies. The grade of brachycephaly does not differ between patients with and without AAI. Certain objective criteria from human literature were found useful for the assessment of both AAI and atlantooccipital overlapping such as McRae's line, Wackenheim's clivus line, and clivus canal angle. The classification criteria used can help to evaluate CVJ anomalies in a more systematic way.
Tackling the Awkward Squad: monadic input/output, concurrency, exceptions, and foreign-language call

Functional programming may be beautiful, but to write real applications we must grapple with awkward real-world issues: input/output, robustness, concurrency, and interfacing to programs written in other languages. These lecture notes give an overview of the techniques that have been developed by the Haskell community to address these problems. I introduce various proposed extensions to Haskell along the way, and I offer an operational semantics that explains what these extensions mean. This tutorial was given at the Marktoberdorf Summer School 2000. It will appears in the book “Engineering theories of software construction, Marktoberdorf Summer School 2000”, ed CAR Hoare, M Broy, and R Steinbrueggen, NATO ASI Series, IOS Press, 2001, pp47-96. This version has a few errors corrected compared with the published version. Change summary: • Feb 2008: Fix typo in Section 3.5 • May 2005: Section 6: correct the way in which the FFI declares an imported function to be pure (no “unsafe” necessary). • Apr 2005: Section 5.2. 2: some examples added to clarify evaluate. • March 2002: substantial revision
Differential induction of interferon stimulated genes between type I and type III interferons is independent of interferon receptor abundance

It is currently believed that type I and III interferons (IFNs) have redundant functions. However, the preferential distribution of type III IFN receptor on epithelial cells suggests functional differences at epithelial surfaces. Here, using human intestinal epithelial cells we could show that although both type I and type III IFNs confer an antiviral state to the cells, they do so with distinct kinetics. Type I IFN signaling is characterized by an acute strong induction of interferon stimulated genes (ISGs) and confers fast antiviral protection. On the contrary, the slow acting type III IFN mediated antiviral protection is characterized by a weaker induction of ISGs in a delayed manner compared to type I IFN. Moreover, while transcript profiling revealed that both IFNs induced a similar set of ISGs, their temporal expression strictly depended on the IFNs, thereby leading to unique antiviral environments. Using a combination of data-driven mathematical modeling and experimental validation, we addressed the molecular reason for this differential kinetic of ISG expression. We could demonstrate that these kinetic differences are intrinsic to each signaling pathway and not due to different expression levels of the corresponding IFN receptors. We report that type III IFN is specifically tailored to act in specific cell types not only due to the restriction of its receptor but also by providing target cells with a distinct antiviral environment compared to type I IFN. We propose that this specific environment is key at surfaces that are often challenged with the extracellular environment. Author summary The human intestinal tract plays two important roles in the body: first it is responsible for nutrient absorption and second it is the primary barrier which protects the human body from the outside environment. This complex tissue is constantly exposed to commensal bacteria and is often exposed to both bacterial and viral pathogens. To protect itself, the gut produces, among others, secreted agents called interferons which help to fight against pathogen attacks. There are several varieties (type I, II, and III) of interferons and our work aims at understanding how type I and III interferon act to protect human intestinal epithelial cells (hIECs) during viral infection. In this study, we confirmed that both interferons can protect hIECs against viral infection but with different kinetics. We determined that type I confer an antiviral state to hIECs faster than type III interferons. We uncovered that these differences were intrinsic to each pathway and not the result of differential abundance of the respective interferon receptors. The results of this study suggest that type III interferon may provide a different antiviral environment to the epithelium target cells which is likely critical for maintaining gut homeostasis. Our findings will also help us to design therapies to aid in controlling and eliminating viral infections of the gut.
Low Levels of Vitamin D in a Cohort of Women with Impalpable Breast Lesions from Rio de Janeiro/Brazil

Background: Low levels of vitamin D have been described as a risk factor for the development of breast cancer. The aim of this study was to evaluate the serum levels of vitamin D (25OHD) in patients with impalpable breast lesions comparing with a control group. Methods: Vitamin D quantification (25OHD) was assessed in the plasma of 65 patients with impalpable breast lesions and from 20 health controls using a chemiluminescent microparticle immunoassay. Pearson’s chi-square test and nonparametric t-Student were used to evaluate statistical significance between the clinical variables and the means of quantification of vitamin D. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to evaluate the correlation between age and vitamin sufficiency for the cases and the controls. Results: The prevalence of vitamin D deficiency and/or insufficiency in women with malignant lesions was 84% and 60% for the control group. Using the chi-square or Fisher’s exact test, the relationship between vitamin D levels and age presented significant association only for the control group (P=0.002). Using ROC curve, the plot area (0.778) for the control group defined a cut-off value of 45 years to age, with specificity and sensitivity of 60% and 50%, respectively. Thus, the odds ratio for vitamin D insufficiency in women over 45 years was 1.37 (P=0.011). For the case group, clinical characteristics, histological grade, and lymph node involvement did not show any significant association. Conclusion: The prevalence of vitamin D deficiency/insufficiency is high in women with impalpable breast lesions, as well as in the control group, even in a tropical city. According to the results the age advancement may be involved with the decrease in vitamin D levels in plasma, but there was no statistical association between low levels of Vitamin D and breast cancer.
Doctors’ Opinion Papers in Long-term Care Need Certification in Japan: Comparison between Clinic and Advanced Treatment Hospital Settings

The Doctor’s Opinion Paper (DOP) in long-term care insurance addresses the patient’s chronic conditions of daily life. It is expected to be written by a doctor who knows the patient well. However, DOPs are sometimes written by doctors at advanced treatment hospitals (ATHs) who might not know the patient well. Japanese government is promoting functional differentiation of medical care. We discuss appropriateness that specialists of ATH who have to provide a higher medical care take on a role to write DOP which addresses the patient’s chronic conditions of daily life. The purpose of this study is to compare DOPs completed by clinic doctors with those completed by ATH doctors, in order to examine who should write a DOP. Data: The DOPs which were used at the Care Need Certification Committee meeting held in March 2012 in Tokyo. Subjects: 403 DOPs for patients aged 65 or older. Results indicated that DOPs written by doctors in ATHs included less information than DOPs written by doctors in clinics. We need to discuss who would be appropriate doctors to write DOPs and how to educate older adults to choose the right health care facility and their doctors for their health condition. Keywords: Doctor’s opinion paper, certification of need for long-term care, long-term care insurance, advanced treatment hospital, clinic, family doctor, Japan