Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Prevalence and Factors Associated With Herbal Medicine Use among HIV Positive Patients on Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy in Selected Hospitals in Nairobi County

Background: Traditional remedies have been used for many years in Africa to treat various ailments before the introduction of conventional medicines into the continent. Concurrent use of traditional herbal medicines (THM) with highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) is widespread among HIV infected patients. Studies done in different parts of the world show conflicting health outcomes among HIV positive patients using HAART and herbal medicine concurrently with some reporting better health outcomes while others report increased risk of adverse drug reactions. However, the extent of THM use is not known in most settings in Sub-Saharan Africa Kenya included. This study aimed to determine the prevalence and factors associated with THM use among HIV infected patients on highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) attending two comprehensive care centers in Nairobi County. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted at Kenyatta National Teaching and Referral Hospital and Mbagathi District Hospital. From the two centers a total of 370 participants were selected via systematic random sampling. The participants included were those aged 18 years and above, on HAART, and had consented to participate in the study. Data was collected using an interviewer-administered semi-structured questionnaire seeking information on herbal medicine use, socio-demographic and economic factors associated with herbal medicine use and the association between herbal medicine use and occurrence of adverse drug reactions. THM use referred to someone who had ever used or was currently using herbal medicine while on highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) by the time of the study. Data was captured in excel sheet and exported to STATA for analysis. Results: The study established that the prevalence of herbal medicine use among HIV positive patients taking HAART was 15.5%. About 77.8% of the patients who had used herbal medicine had never disclosed to the doctor or any health care worker at the CCC about their herbal medicine use. Herbal medicine use led to decreased adherence to HAART. The longer the duration between HIV diagnosis and HAART start, the more likely a HIV positive patient was to use herbal medicine. Patients who use herbal medicine with HAART were more likely to experience adverse drug reactions. There were 59.7% participants who had good /fair adherence while 40.3% had poor adherence. Majority of those who had poor adherence had significantly higher proportion of side effects as compared to those had good/fair adherence. Conclusion: The prevalence of THM use among participants on HAART was high. This raises clinical and pharmacological concerns that need attention by the health care service providers. Keywords : Herbal Medicine, HIV, Antiretroviral Therapy DOI : 10.7176/JBAH/9-4-11
Implementation and calorimetric verification of models for IGBT-based inverters for small drives

Models have been developed in Pspice to predict the losses, arising principally from the IGBTs of inverters for use in small (up to 1 kW) drives. The Hefner model has been used for the IGBTs and its accuracy has been confirmed using a test-rig. Loss predictions have been verified by a novel calorimetric method, which gives superior accuracy to normal direct methods of measurement. The results show how the models can be successfully used to investigate issues in inverter design, including the choice of grade of IGBT, without recourse to prototyping.
INITIATING AND ASSESSING AN E-NUDGING MODEL FOR HIGHER EDUCATION IN SAUDI ARABIA

Decisions related to education are complex and have long-term consequences. For higher education students, particularly first-year students, most of these decisions are made when students are young and with little academic experience; these decisions can potentially influence students’ futures. This study aims to propose an e-nudging model for higher education that offers an early and low-cost support for universities to encourage better education decision-making for students in a digital environment (i.e. learning systems). The empirical study will be conducted in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) using a mixed-methods approach to assess the effectiveness of the proposed model derived from the literature review. Also, the study will examine the current factors (behavioral, cognitive, and environmental barriers) that influence the effectiveness of the e-nudging model. The research will enhance the understanding of behavioral and cognitive barriers in a digital environment, and how these influence students’ decisions. The research will contribute by establishing a relationship between digital nudging, the field of Information Systems (IS) and Human Computer Interaction (HCI), in particular by assisting designers to understand student behaviors and guide users to make the most desirable choice. Lastly, the proposed e-nudging model will improve our understanding of the concept of digital nudging and its application in the learning and teaching field in the KSA and generally in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries.
Generative temporal planning with complex processes

Autonomous vehicles are increasingly being used in mission-critical applications, and robust methods are needed for controlling these inherently unreliable and complex systems. This thesis advocates the use of model-based programming, which allows mission designers to program autonomous missions at the level of a coach or wing commander. To support such a system, this thesis presents the Spock generative planner. To generate plans, Spock must be able to piece together vehicle commands and team tactics that have a complex behavior represented by concurrent processes. This is in contrast to traditional planners, whose operators represent simple atomic or durative actions. Spock represents operators using the RMPL language, which describes behaviors using parallel and sequential compositions of state and activity episodes. RMPL is useful for controlling mobile autonomous missions because it allows mission designers to quickly encode expressive activity models using object-oriented design methods and an intuitive set of activity combinators. Spock also is significant in that it uniformly represents operators and plan-space processes in terms of Temporal Plan Networks, which support temporal flexibility for robust plan execution. Finally, Spock is implemented as a forward progression optimal planner that walks monotonically forward through plan processes, closing any open conditions and resolving any conflicts. This thesis describes the Spock algorithm in detail, along with example problems and test results.
Integrasi Sumber Daya Strategis, Orientasi Kewirausahaan dan Dinamika Lingkungan sebagai Basis Strategi Bersaing serta Pengaruhnya terhadap Kinerja Usaha (Studi pada Usaha Kecil & Menengah di Bali)

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menganalisis, menguji, dan menjelaskan pengaruh sumber daya strategis, orientasi kewirausahaan dan dinamika lingkungan terhadap strategi bersaing dan kinerja usaha. Penelitian ini dilakukan pada UKM manufaktur yang berorientasi ekspor di Bali berdasarkan Daftar Eksportir tahun 2009 dari Disperindag Propinsi Bali. Sampel penelitian ditentukan sebanyak sebanyak 174 unit usaha, dan dipilih menggunakan metode disproportionate sampling. Unit analisis dalam penelitian ini adalah UKM (perusahaan), serta menempatkan para pemilik/pengelola sebagai responden. Data dari instrumen penelitian yang layak digunakan adalah sebanyak 153 unit (87.93%) dan dianalisis menggunakan Structural Equation Modeling dengan software AMOS. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa sumber daya strategis, orientasi kewirausahaan, dan dinamika lingkungan dijadikan sebagai landasan untuk menerapkan strategi bersaing. Kunci sukses terhadap kinerja usaha ditentukan oleh sumber daya strategis & strategi bersaing secara langsung, serta efek tak langsung sumber daya strategis, orientasi kewirausahaan, dan dinamika lingkungan melalui mediasi strategi bersaing. Hasil menarik dari penelitian ini adalah orientasi kewirausahaan terbukti bukan determinan langsung dari kinerja usaha, melainkan sebagai kapabilitas penting dalam penerapan strategi bersaing untuk menghasilkan variasi-variasi kinerja usaha yang lebih besar. Selain itu, penelitian ini menemukan strategi bersaing sebagai mediator kunci yang mampu menyelaraskan sumber daya strategis dan orientasi kewirausahaan dengan dinamika lingkungan yang dihadapi, sehingga kinerja usaha menjadi semakin meningkat. Hasil temuan penelitian secara keseluruhan mengindikasikan bahwa kombinasi sumber daya strategis dan orientasi kewirausahaan merupakan instrumen strategis yang mendasari UKM untuk menerapkan strategi bersaing, sehingga mampu memperbaiki atau meningkatkan posisi kompetitifnya. Posisi kompetitif yang lebih baik diperoleh UKM, karena mampu menyelaraskan dinamika lingkungan bisnis yang dihadapi, dan menghantarkan UKM untuk meraih peningkatan kinerja usaha. Apabila UKM tidak menerapkan strategi bersaing yang dilandasi pengintegrasian sumber daya strategis dan orientasi kewirausahaan, maka dinamika lingkungan yang dihadapi dapat menghambat atau menurunkan pencapaian kinerja usaha. Kata kunci: sumber daya strategis, orientasi kewirausahaan, dinamika lingkungan, strategi bersaing, kinerja usaha
Rotavirus vaccines in low-income settings

Rotavirus vaccines in low-income settings Lauren Michelle Schwartz Chair of the supervisory committee: M. Elizabeth Halloran Professor Biostatistics, Epidemiology Background: An estimated 200,000 deaths due to rotavirus diarrhea occur annually in children with most of the burden in low-income settings. Rotavirus is a double stranded RNA virus transmitted via the fecal-oral route. Without a vaccine, nearly all children <5 years old become infected with rotavirus and recurrent infection is common. Rotavirus vaccines continue to be the key intervention needed to reduce the global burden of severe rotavirus diarrhea. Two rotavirus vaccines are used worldwide (Rotarix [RV1]) and (RotaTeq [RV5]). Large multi-site randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of both vaccines in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia demonstrated moderate vaccine efficacy (VE) against severe rotavirus diarrhea during the first year of life. As of March 2018, 93 countries, including 43 Gavi-eligible countries, have introduced a rotavirus vaccine into its immunization schedule. This dissertation sought to evaluate the test-negative design as an appropriate epidemiologic study design to measure rotavirus vaccine effectiveness in lowincome settings (Aim 1), estimate the population-level impact of rotavirus vaccine introduction in Matlab, Bangladesh (Aim 2), and assess the role of host genetic determinants in rotavirus vaccine failure (Aim 3). Methods: Each aim of the dissertation uses a separate data source. For Aim 1, test-negative vaccine effectiveness (VE-TND) estimates were derived from three large randomized placebocontrolled trials of RV1 and RV5 in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia. Derived VE-TND estimates were compared to the original RCT vaccine efficacy estimates (VE-RCTs). The core assumption of the TND (i.e., rotavirus vaccine has no effect on rotavirus-negative diarrhea) was also assessed. For Aim 2, interrupted time series were used to estimate the impact of RV
Theoretical Approach to Predicting Traffic Queues at Short-Term Work Zones on High-Volume Roadways in Urban Areas

A new theoretical approach is described that more accurately predicts the length of queues that will develop when one or more lanes are closed for short-term freeway road work in an urban area. A model was developed that represents the interactions between diversion and traffic queuing on the freeway. The model is based on macroscopic fluid-flow analogies of traffic and a new perspective of the freeway corridor as a section of permeable pipe. Historical traffic volumes on the roadway serve as the primary data input into the model. Unlike other work zone analysis methods, the model presents a rational representation of how traffic queues stabilize upstream of temporary work zone bottlenecks in urban areas. The model can be calibrated to reasonably represent the magnitude of traffic queues developing upstream of actual work zone lane closures on urban freeways in Texas.
Ethanolamine regulates CqsR quorum-sensing signaling in Vibrio cholerae

The pathogen that causes cholera, Vibrio cholerae, uses the cell-cell communication process known as quorum sensing (QS) to regulate virulence factor production and biofilm formation in response to changes in population density and complexity. QS is mediated through the detection of extracellular chemical signals called autoinducers. Four histidine kinases, LuxPQ, CqsS, CqsR and VpsS, have been identified as receptors to activate the key QS regulator LuxO at low cell density. At high cell density, detection of autoinducers by these receptors leads to deactivation of LuxO, resulting in population-wide gene expression changes. While the cognate autoinducers that regulate the activity of CqsS and LuxQ are known, the signals that regulate CqsR have not been determined. Here we show that the common metabolite ethanolamine specifically interacts with the ligand-binding CACHE domain of CqsR in vitro and induces the high cell-density QS response through CqsR kinase inhibition in V. cholerae cells. We also identified residues in the CqsR CACHE domain important for ethanolamine detection and signal transduction. Moreover, mutations disrupting endogenous ethanolamine production in V. cholerae delay the onset of, but do not abolish, the high cell-density QS gene expression. Finally, we demonstrate that modulation of CqsR QS response by ethanolamine occurs inside animal hosts. Our findings suggest that V. cholerae uses CqsR as a dual-function receptor to integrate information from the self-made signals as well as exogenous ethanolamine as an environmental cue to modulate QS response. IMPORTANCE Many bacteria use quorum sensing to regulate cellular processes that are important for their survival and adaptation to different environments. Quorum sensing usually depends on the detection on chemical signals called autoinducers made endogenously by the bacteria. We show here ethanolamine, a common metabolite made by various bacteria and eukaryotes, can modulate the activity of one of the quorum-sensing receptors in Vibrio cholerae, the etiological agent of the disease cholera. Our results raise the possibility that V. cholerae or other quorum-sensing bacteria can combine environmental sensing and quorum sensing to control group behaviors.
A full procedure to model high frequency transformer windings

A full procedure to model high frequency magnetic components has been developed. A finite element analysis (FEA) tool is used to compute the frequency behavior of the windings, taking into account geometry and frequency effects, like skin, proximity, interleaving, gap and end effects. The capacitive effects among the windings of the components are also taken into account. From these data, a model for the windings is developed by means of discrete components and differential equations that present the same frequency behavior as the actual component. Although the model has been developed for behavioral simulators, it can also be used in electrical simulators. <<ETX>>
Public health insurance and migration of farm workers in the U.S

ABSTRACT Labour shortages have been a major challenge for U.S. agriculture. Migrant farm workers who constitute a crucial agricultural labour force across the country have experienced a notable decline in recent years. Using the Propensity Score Matching method, this study examines how public health insurance of the Medicaid programme affects the migration of farm workers of different legal statuses. Unlike citizen farm workers, permanent-resident and undocumented farm workers decreased migration across states due to the impact of Medicaid. The findings suggest that a more suitable health insurance design that does not disrupt farm workers’ migration patterns during production seasons is needed to increase agricultural labour supply.
Which Personnel Measures are Effective in Increasing Productivity of Old Workers?

In this study, we investigate the effect of five specific human resource measures for old employees (SMOE) on their relative productivity. Despite the fact that SMOE are applied in the majority of establishments, this is the first representative study on the effectiveness of these measures. We find that the relative productivity contributions of old workers are significantly higher in establishments that provide either specific equipment of work places or age-specific jobs for old workers. In establishments that apply mixed-age working teams the productivity contributions of old and of young employees are significantly higher than in establishments without this measure. Working time reductions and specific training for old employees are not associated with higher relative productivity of these employees. Our paper provides a joint explanation for two recent findings, the only modest decline of the productivity contributions of old workers and the high variance for estimates of age-productivity profiles.
Fitness: A Lifetime Commitment

1. Benefits of Fitness. 2. Lifestyle Diseases. 3. Health Fitness Assessment. 4. Flexibility and Low-Back Care. 5. Development of Cardiorespiratory Endurance. 6. Development of Strength and Muscular Endurance. 7. Exercise Injuries and Disorders. 8. Nutrition. 9. Weight Management. 10. Stress and Depression. 11. Circulatory, Respiratory, and Muscular Systems.
Validation of Electronic Foot Function Index in Patients with Foot and Ankle Disease: A Randomized, Prospective Multicenter Study

CC This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/ by-nc/4.0) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Copyright 2019 Korean Foot and Ankle Society. All rights reserved. c Purpose: To evaluate the efficiency of the electronic foot function index (eFFI) through a prospective, random based, multi-institutional study. Materials and Methods: The study included 227 patients ranging in age from 20 to 79 years, visited for surgery in different 15 institutes, and agreed to volunteer. The patients were assigned randomly into a paper-based evaluated group (n=113) and tablet-based evaluated group (n=114). The evaluation was done on the day of hospital admission and the method was changed on the second day of surgery 족부 족관절 질환 환자에서 전자식 족부 기능 지수의 인증: 임의 배정, 전향적, 다기관 연구 이동연, 김유미*, 이준형*, 김 진*, 김지범, 김범수, 최기원, 서상교, 김준범, 박세진**, 김윤정, 최영락, 이동오, 조재호, 천동일, 김형년***, 박재용
Unconscious anchoring in maternal imitation that helps find the correspondence of a caregiver's vowel categories

It is a formidable issue how robots can show behaviors to be considered as the corresponding human's ones since the body structure is different between robots and humans. As a simple case for such a correspondence problem, this paper presents a robot that learns to vocalize vowels through the interaction with its caregiver. Inspired by the findings of developmental psychology, we focus on the roles of maternal imitation (i.e., imitation of the robot voices by the caregiver) since it could play a role to instruct the correspondence of the sounds. Furthermore, we suppose that it causes unconscious anchoring in which the imitated voice by the caregiver is performed unconsciously, closely to one of his/her own vowels and hereby helps to make the robot's utterances to be more vowel-like. We propose a method for vowel learning with an imitative caregiver, under the assumptions that the robot knows the desired categories of the caregiver's vowels, and the rough estimate of mapping between the region of sounds that the caregiver can generate and the region that the robot can. Through experiments with a Japanese imitative caregiver, we show that a robot succeeds in acquiring more vowel-like utterances than a robot without such a caregiver, even when it is given different types of mapping functions.
Novel 6-phase Fractional-slot Permanent Magnet Machine for Electric Vehicle Applications

To tackle the issues concerning the global warming and the international energy security, the only way forward is the wide spread adoption of plug-in electric vehicles (EV) in the transportation industry. High power dense and highly efficient electrical machines pave the way for the swift realization of EV. The research underpinned in this thesis describes the new winding configurations and associated slot-pole combinations for permanent magnet (PM) brushless machines that lead to improved performance and facilitate cost reduction. The current state-of-the-art machine technologies and their topologies are weighed against one another qualitatively through a comprehensive literature survey, and quantitatively by a preliminary design study of the most competitive machine technologies for a micro-sized EV application. Compared to the current state-of-the-art, the salient feature of the proposed winding designs is elimination and/or reduction of undesirable space harmonics which result from the existing fractional-slot per pole per phase PM machines with concentrated windings. This brings the benefits of significant reduction of the eddy current loss in the rotor permanent magnets, shorter end-windings and hence reduced copper loss and copper usage, increased power/torque density, reduction in manufacturing cost, and improved energy efficiency. In order to improve power drivetrain availability for EV applications, the thesis proposes the design of 6-phase PM machine as two independent 3-phase systems using the proposed winding configuration. A number of possible phase shifts between two sets of 3-phase windings due to their slot-pole combination and winding configuration are investigated and the optimum phase shift is selected by analysing the harmonic distributions and their effect on machine performance including the eddy current loss in the magnets. The proposed 6-phase winding configuration is applied to the design of an interior permanent magnet (IPM) machine for segment-A EV, under the electrical, thermal, and volumetric constraints, and demonstrated by a series of preliminary functional tests on the prototype machines. The design study and the measurement results show that the proposed winding configuration results into high torque/power dense PM machine with high efficiency over wide operating range. The important design aspects of the new machine topologies for EV application are investigated in detail, which include effect of phase shifts on magnet eddy current loss and unbalanced magnetic pull of the machine, demagnetization assessment of the new machine topology under various fault conditions, and thermal analyses over the driving cycles.
Assessment of wood particleboards milling by means of energy consumption tests

Abstract In this paper, an experimental procedure is proposed, in order to evaluate the machinability of different particleboards. A dedicated test stand has been built to measure the power consumption during the process for different typologies of particleboards. This methodology could constitute a quick particleboard grading system, in order to maximise the feeding rate during the working process, and, at the same time, minimise the tool wear and the loads on the shaft of the electrical spindle, with a considerable improvement in the overall production costs.