Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Facilitating Enrollment in a Cancer Registry Through Modified Consent Procedures: A Pilot Study

Research registries are increasingly important in medical research and are essential to the mission of cancer centers. However, designing enrollment and data collection procedures that are consistent with ethical norms and regulatory requirements yet are efficient and cost effective is a major challenge. Current standard consent forms can be a barrier to enrollment because of their length, multiple components, and technical language. We pilot tested an IRB-approved registry booklet and simplified one-page, tiered consent form, allowing for choice of extent of participation. The booklet was mailed to patients with breast cancer as part of their routine information packet prior to the first clinic appointment. A research nurse met with 27 patients at initial treatment to review the booklet, answer questions, obtain informed consent, and collect quality of life data. The consent rate was 78% with 21 patients enrolling in the study. Twelve of the 21 patients (57%) did not read the booklet prior to the visit. The 9 patients (43%) who had read the booklet prior to arrival found it easy to understand. The multistage, simplified consent process and data collection were acceptable to these patients and readily integrated into clinical operations. An easy-to-read registry booklet may be an effective guide for discussion, but in-person consent procedures and further testing of the approach are required.
Participants' Recall and Understanding of Genomic Research and Large-Scale Data Sharing

As genomic researchers are urged to openly share generated sequence data with other researchers, it is important to examine the utility of informed consent documents and processes, particularly as these relate to participants' engagement with and recall of the information presented to them, their objective or subjective understanding of the key elements of genomic research (e.g., data sharing), as well as how these factors influence or mediate the decisions they make. We conducted a randomized trial of three experimental informed consent documents (ICDs) with participants (n = 229) being recruited to genomic research studies; each document afforded varying control over breadth of release of genetic information. Recall and understanding, their impact on data sharing decisions, and comfort in decision making were assessed in a follow-up structured interview. Over 25% did not remember signing an ICD to participate in a genomic study, and the majority (54%) could not correctly identify with whom they had agreed to share their genomic data. However, participants felt that they understood enough to make an informed decision, and lack of recall did not impact final data sharing decisions or satisfaction with participation. These findings raise questions about the types of information participants need in order to provide valid informed consent, and whether subjective understanding and comfort with decision making are sufficient to satisfy the ethical principle of respect for persons.
A New Technique for Classification of Digital Signal Types

Classification of the communication signals has seen under increasing demands. In this paper, we present a new technique that identifies a variety of digital communication signal types. This technique utilizes a radial basis function neural network (RBFN) as the classifier. Swarm intelligence, as an evolutionary algorithm, is used to construct RBFN. A combination of the higher-order moments and the higher-order cumulants up to eight are selected as the features of the considered digital signal types. In conjunction with RBFN, we have used k-fold cross-validation to improve the generalization potentiality. Simulation results show that the proposed technique has high performance for classification of different communication signals even at very low signal-to-noise ratios.
A 1.7-ns Access Time SRAM Using Variable Bulk Bias wordline-Controlled transistors

The design of a 1.7-ns access time prototype CMOS SRAM is presented. The threshold voltages of the wordline-controlled transistors (WCT) of the proposed memory cells are dynamically variable to achieve high-speed and low-power operations. When the cell is in the read or write (R/W) mode, the VTH of the wordline-controlled transistors is pulled low by increasing the bulk bias such that the drain current will be increased. By contrast, if it is idle in a standby mode, the bulk bias will be reduced by short-circuiting to a ground voltage to subside the leakage current. The highest operating clock rate of the proposed SRAM is measured to be 667 MHz. Moreover, the proposed memory cell possess high stability, the static noise margin is close to 635 mV given the worst case (75°C, FF model, VDD = 1.6 V).
Solving a Single Machine Scheduling Problem by a Discrete Version of Electromagnetism-like Method

The electromagnetism-like method (EM) is a population based meta-heuristic algorithm utilizing an attraction-repulsion mechanism to move sample points (i.e., our solutions) towards the optimality. In general, the EM has been initially used for solving continuous optimization problems and could not be applied on combinatorial optimization ones. This paper proposes a discrete binary version of the EM for solving combinatorial optimization problems. To show the efficiency of our proposed EM, we solve a single machine scheduling problem and compare our computational results with the solutions reported in the literature. Finally, we conclude that our proposed method is capable of solving such well-known problems more efficiently than the previous studies.
Hippocampal CA1 apical neuropil atrophy in mild Alzheimer disease visualized with 7-T MRI

Objectives: In Alzheimer disease (AD), mounting evidence points to a greater role for synaptic loss than neuronal loss. Supporting this notion, multiple postmortem studies have demonstrated that the hippocampal CA1 apical neuropil is one of the earliest sites of pathology, exhibiting tau aggregates and then atrophy before there is substantial loss of the CA1 pyramidal neurons themselves. In this cross-sectional study, we tested whether tissue loss in the CA1 apical neuropil layer can be observed in vivo in patients with mild AD. Methods: We performed ultra-high-field 7-T MRI on subjects with mild AD (n = 14) and age-matched normal controls (n = 16). With a 2-dimensional T2*-weighted gradient-recalled echo sequence that was easily tolerated by subjects, we obtained cross-sectional slices of the hippocampus at an in-plane resolution of 195 μm. Results: On images revealing the anatomic landmarks of hippocampal subfields and strata, we observed thinning of the CA1 apical neuropil in subjects with mild AD compared to controls. By contrast, the 2 groups exhibited no difference in the thickness of the CA1 cell body layer or of the entire CA1 subfield. Hippocampal volume, measured on a conventional T1-weighted sequence obtained at 3T, also did not differentiate these patients with mild AD from controls. Conclusions: CA1 apical neuropil atrophy is apparent in patients with mild AD. With its superior spatial resolution, 7-T MRI permits in vivo analysis of a very focal, early site of AD pathology.
Sonography-Guided Pyelocentesis and Pyelography in Cats: The Sonographer’s Role

Cats are commonly afflicted with chronic renal dysfunction and ureteral obstruction. Concurrent disease can be catastrophic. Sonography-guided pyelocentesis and pyelography provide a method of evaluating potential ureteral obstruction without relying on renal excretory function but are technically demanding. The methodology for these procedures is described in detail to aid the sonographer faced with assisting in this challenge.
Lesson study in Indonesia: an Indonesia University of Education experience

Purpose – Since its introduction in early 2000s, lesson study has been viewed as a promising and powerful approach to professional development and school improvement in Indonesia. The purpose of this article is to discuss the historical development and unique perspective of lesson study at Indonesia University of Education.Design/methodology/approach – Through a systematic review of the related literature to analyse practitioners and official point of views regarding adaptability and sustainability of the lesson study effort, the author portrays the progress and challenge faced by practitioners of lesson study in Indonesia. The author also points out its “existence proof” through the “story of adaptation” in order to describe the “steady change and improvement” and the “local proof route” in practice.Findings – The review shows consecutive changes that started from reforming student learning, teachers’ learning and empowering the learning community, though reaching the core of instructional improvement is.
From Locks to Correct and Efficient Transactional Memory

Transactional memory addresses a number of important issues in lock-based parallel programs. Unfortunately, the semantics of transactions are different from those of critical sections defined by locks. The semantic differences make it difficult to correctly port existing lock-based programs to transaction-based programs. Experienced programmers accustomed to lock-based programming can easily make mistakes in transaction-based programming as parallel programs running correctly using locks can run incorrectly when critical sections are converted to using transactions. This problem becomes even more severe in porting lock-based programs to use the efficient software transactional memory. In this paper, we first identify three necessary properties in a program for the program execution using transactions to be equivalent to the program execution using locks. Assuming that the input lock-based program satisfies the necessary properties (i.e., a well-behaved parallel program), we next present a correctness condition to verify the transactional memory implementation in order for the program execution using transactions to be equivalent to the program execution using locks. Finally, we develop a correct and efficient software transactional memory implementation that satisfies the correctness condition so that locks in the well-behaved parallel programs can be converted to use the efficient software transactional memory easily and correctly.
On-Line Supply voltage Scaling Based on in situ Delay Monitoring to Adapt for Pvta variations

The presented Pre-Error Adaptive Voltage Scaling (AVS) approach tunes the supply voltage of digital circuits dependent on the present Process, Voltage and Temperature variations as well as Aging (PVTA). By exploiting unused timing margin, produced by state-of-the-art worst-case designs, power consumption is minimized. Timing information of the circuit is obtained by in situ delay monitors (Pre-Error flip-flops), detecting late-arriving signals (pre-errors) in critical paths. Based on the occurrence of pre-errors, the voltage is adjusted by a low-overhead control unit connected to the on-chip voltage regulator. As the voltage is adapted during normal circuit operation (on-line), the randomness of the applied input pattern has to be considered. We developed a Markov chain model, based on transistor level simulations, to describe the resulting statistics of the closed-loop voltage control. With this model, the risk of overcritical voltage reductions and the effect of global and local variations on the closed-loop control can be analyzed. For an arithmetic circuit, synthesized in an industrial 65nm design-flow, an average power saving of 23% (including all overheads) is achieved for very low error rates below 1E-11.
A Selective Read-before-Write Scheme for Energy-Aware Spin Torque Transfer RAM (STT-RAM) Cache Design

Due to its low leakage power and high density, spin torque transfer RAM (STT-RAM) has become a good candidate for future on-chip cache. However, STT-RAM suffers from higher write energy compared to the SRAM. One state-of-the-art technique to alleviate this problem is read-before-write (RBW). In this paper, we study the pattern of the write accesses to the L2 cache and show that directly applying the RBW to a STT-RAM L2 cache can be problematic from energy perspective. We then propose a selective read-before-write (SRW) scheme to further reduce the dynamic write energy of the STT-RAM cache. Additional optimizations are included in the design of SRW so that it can save a considerable amount of energy at negligible overheads. The experimental results show that SRW achieves a 86.0% reduction in write energy consumption vs. a baseline without any write optimization techniques, and a 6.55% more reduction compared to the RBW scheme.
Implementing Low-Cost Fault Tolerance via Hybrid Synchronous/Asynchronous Checks

As semiconductor technologies scale down to deep sub-micron dimensions, transient faults will soon become a critical reliability concern. Due to their prohibitive costs, traditional high-end solutions are unacceptable for the mainstream commodity market. This paper presents FTPIPE, a hybrid software/hardware solution, which provides sufficient fault coverage with affordable overhead for single-threaded programs running on commodity systems. Leveraging existing exception mechanisms with minor modifications to handle exception-causing faults, FTPIPE focuses on tolerating silent data corruptions by using compile-time analysis and performing selective instruction replication in a modern superscalar pipeline extended with minimal hardware overhead. Unlike existing instruction replication-based solutions, which detect faults by synchronous checks, the FTPIPE platform has exploited a novel hybrid synchronous/asynchronous check method for the replicated instructions. In this manner, better performance can be obtained without degradation of fault coverage. By synchronous checks, the validation of the result of a replicated instruction must be finished before it is committed, whereas such a guarantee is not required by an asynchronous check. Evaluation using a set of nine programs from the Mibench benchmark suite demonstrates that FTPIPE can tolerate 89.8% of transient faults under a modest performance overhead of 20.1%.
Charge amplifier Design Methodology for PVDF-Based Tactile Sensors

This paper proposes and describes a charge amplifier-based interface electronics design methodology approach for piezoelectric polymer tactile sensors to be used for humanoid robot applications. The tactile sensor–consisting of a PVDF single sensor element–is illustrated, the electromechanical thickness mode behavior is modeled and a fabricated prototype is presented. The model allows associating the PVDF charge response to the effective load applied on the outer surface of the sensor. The model is also used as a key in the proposed design methodology to estimate the charge to be detected by the charge amplifier. A case study based on the design methodology approach is reported. The system (PVDF single taxel + interface electronics) is analyzed firstly, considering it as ideal and then when the nonidealities come into play. A charge amplifier-based interface electronics prototype is also presented. The implementation is used to validate the followed approach and then defining the design specs towards the dedicated IC design. Some experimental results are also reported.
Use of colposcopy for detection of squamous intraepithelial lesions

Introduction Pap smear, the main tool of cervical cancer screening is not always available, but some patients are in urgent need for proper diagnostic. Aim of this article was to investigate accuracy of colposcopy for detection of squamous intraepithelial lesions of low or high grade (LGSIL, HGSIL) and to promote colposcopy as useful tool for detection of patients in need for immediate further diagnostics. Methods Prospective multicentric study performed in BH 95% CI = 42.024 to 5713.304). HGSIL was confirmed in 27 (87%) cases by histology (CIN II /CIN III). There were no statistically significant differences between colposcopic finding and histology results (Yates-corrected χ2 = 0.33 P = .5637) Conclusions This study showed high level of correlation between colposcopy and PAP results (63-64%) and to histology for HGSIL (87%). In absence of PAP test colposcopy could be used to select patients in need for biopsy.
Differences in Ethnic Background between Regular and Forensic Youth Mental Health Care Patients

The ethnic composition of the group of patients treated at both regular and forensic youth mental health care in a big city area in the Netherlands was compared to that of the regional youth population. In this way more accurate information about the mental health care utilization of different ethnic groups was obtained. Based on patient and population statistics, treatment percentages and relative risks were calculated for the major ethnic groups with Dutch natives as a reference. For most immigrant children (age 5-10) the relative risk on receiving regular mental health treatment was about half of that of their Dutch native peers. For the adolescents (age 11-19) the results of immigrants compared to Dutch natives were about the same, whereas the relative risk on treatment in forensic facilities was much higher for immigrant youths than for Dutch natives. Because it is known from epidemiological research that the prevalence of child and adolescent mental disorders is at least as high for ethnic minority groups as for majorities, we concluded that the accessibility of the regular and the forensic child and adolescent mental health facilities was strongly biased by ethnic factors.
An Empirical Robotic Framework for Initiating Interaction with the Target Human in Multiparty Settings

Currently work in robotics is expanding from industrial robots to robots that are employed in the living environment. For robots to be accepted into the real world, they must be capable to behave in such a way that humans do with other humans, and initiate interaction in the same way. This paper focuses on designing a robotic framework that is able to perform an important social function such as, initiating interaction with the target human in multiparty setting in a natural and social ways. However, it is not easy task for the robot to initiate an interaction process with a particular human, especially when the robot and the human are not facing each other or the intended target human is intensely engaged his/her work. In order to initiate an interaction process, we propose a framework that consists of two parts: capturing attention and ensuring attention capture. Evaluation experiments reveal the effectiveness of the proposed system in four viewing situations namely, central field of view (CFOV), near peripheral field of view (NPFOV), far peripheral field of view (FPFOV), and out of field of view (OFOV) respectively.
Low bone mass in newly diagnosed multiple sclerosis and clinically isolated syndrome

Objective: Osteoporosis is common in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) with long-standing disease. Hypovitaminosis D is a candidate risk factor for MS, and vitamin D also mediates bone mineralization. If vitamin D exerts a major effect on MS risk, skeletal consequences of hypovitaminosis D could be apparent shortly after the onset of MS. In order to test this hypothesis, we assessed bone mineral density (BMD) at early stages of disease in patients with no or minor disability. Methods: A population-based case-control study was conducted on 99 consecutive and newly diagnosed patients with clinically isolated syndrome or MS, and on 159 age-, sex-, and ethnicity-matched controls. BMD was measured by dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry of the femoral neck, total hip, anterior-posterior lumbar spine, total body, and nondominant ultradistal radius. Results: A total of 50.5% of the patients exhibited either osteopenia (−2.5 < T score < −1.0) or osteoporosis (T score ≤−2.5) in at least one skeletal site, compared to 37.1% of controls (p = 0.034). After adjusting for possible confounders, left femoral total hip T score and lumbar spine BMD and T score were significantly lower in patients than in controls (p = 0.023, 0.039, and 0.026, respectively). Conclusions: Low bone mass appears to occur early in MS. This is compatible with shared etiologic or pathogenic factors in MS and osteoporosis, and calls for an active approach to optimize bone health in early stages of MS.
Cervical Computed Tomography (CT) and CT Myelography in Live Horses: 16 Cases

Reasons for performing study Cervical spine lesions are often suspected in horses with neurological signs, abnormal head/neck position and obscure forelimb lameness. Computed tomography (CT) has the potential to image the cervical spine in 3 dimensions in superior anatomical detail; e.g. lesions that cause compression of the spinal cord and nerve roots, small fragments, and osteoarthritis of the articular process joints may be more easily detected. Objectives To investigate if CT and CT myelography of the entire cervical spine is possible in horses, describe the technique used, the type of horses and distribution of cervical lesions detected. Study design Retrospective case series. Methods Horses undergoing cervical CT and CT myelography from June 2013 to February 2014 were reviewed. The horses were anaesthetised in left lateral recumbency using continuous intravenous anaesthesia. A Philips Brilliance Big Bore 16 slice scanner and a custom made equine CT table (Solving, Finland) were used. Results Cervical CT was performed on 16 horses, 11 of which also had CT myelography: 12 Warmblood, 2 ponies, 1 Standardbred and 1 Paint Horse. Horses ranged in age from 1 to 21 years, and in weight from 406 to 670 kg. Presenting complaints were: neurological symptoms (n = 8), abnormal head/neck position (n = 5), forelimb lameness (n = 4), Horners syndrome (n = 1). In all cases (n = 16) the cervical spine from the skull to C7 could be imaged, in 3 cases T1 was imaged and in one case T3. Significant lesions were detected in 14 horses. The sites of the most significant lesions were: C4–C5 (n = 3), C5–C6 (n = 2), C6–C7 (n = 5) and C7–T1 (n = 2), cervical stenosis C5–T2 (n = 1) and muscle injury (n = 1). Length of anaesthesia ranged from 35 to 70 min (median 60 min), with one complicated recovery. Conclusions Cervical CT and CT myelography can be performed in large adult horses. CT may be the future gold standard to evaluate equine cervical lesions. Further studies are needed. Ethical animal research: Ethical committee oversight not currently required by this congress: retrospective study of clinical records. Explicit owner informed consent for participation in this study was not stated. Sources of funding: None. Competing interests: None.