Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Why Does Collaborative Filtering Work? Transaction-Based Recommendation Model Validation and Selection by Analyzing Bipartite Random Graphs

A large number of collaborative filtering algorithms have been proposed in the literature as the foundation of automated recommender systems. However, the underlying justification for these algorithms is lacking, and their relative performances are typically domain and data dependent. In this paper, we aim to develop initial understanding of the recommendation model/algorithm validation and selection issues based on the graph topological modeling methodology. By representing the input data in the form of consumer--product interactions as a bipartite graph, the consumer--product graph, we develop bipartite graph topological measures to capture patterns that exist in the input data relevant to the transaction-based recommendation task. We observe the deviations of these topological measures of real-world consumer--product graphs from the expected values for simulated random bipartite graphs. These deviations help explain why certain collaborative filtering algorithms work for particular recommendation data sets. They can also serve as the basis for a comprehensive model selection framework that “recommends” appropriate collaborative filtering algorithms given characteristics of the data set under study. We validate our approach using three real-world recommendation data sets and demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed bipartite graph topological measures in selection and validation of commonly used heuristic-based recommendation algorithms, the user-based, item-based, and graph-based algorithms.
Alcohol consumption and risk for coronary heart disease in men with healthy lifestyles.

BACKGROUND Although moderate alcohol intake is associated with lower risk for myocardial infarction (MI), guidelines generally suggest that adults seek other lifestyle measures to reduce cardiovascular risk. We studied whether alcohol consumption is inversely associated with risk for coronary heart disease in men who report consistently favorable lifestyle behaviors. METHODS From 51 529 male participants of the Health Professionals Follow-up Study who have reported diet and other lifestyle factors in biennial questionnaires since 1986, we defined a cohort of 8867 men free of major illness to participate in a prospective study. All participants reported 4 healthy lifestyle behaviors, including a body mass index (calculated as weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared) of less than 25, moderate to vigorous activity for 30 minutes or more per day, abstention from smoking, and a summary diet score in the top 50% for men. High dietary scores reflected a high intake of vegetables, fruits, cereal fiber, fish, chicken, nuts, soy, and polyunsaturated fat; low consumption of trans-fat, and red and processed meats; and multivitamin use. We ascertained the incidence of nonfatal MI and fatal coronary heart disease according to reported intake of beer, wine, and liquor every 4 years. RESULTS During 16 years of follow-up, we documented 106 incident cases of MI. Compared with abstention, the hazard ratios for MI were 0.98 (95% confidence interval, 0.55-1.74) for alcohol intake of 0.1 to 4.9 g/d, 0.59 (95% confidence interval, 0.33-1.07) for alcohol intake of 5.0 to 14.9 g/d, 0.38 (95% confidence interval, 0.16-0.89) for alcohol intake of 15.0 to 29.9 g/d, and 0.86 (95% confidence interval, 0.36-2.05) for alcohol intake of 30.0 g/d or more. In men who met 3 criteria, the lower risk associated with alcohol intake of 5.0 to 29.9 g/d tended to be similar to the lower risk associated with the remaining healthy lifestyle behavior. CONCLUSION Even in men already at low risk on the basis of body mass index, physical activity, smoking, and diet, moderate alcohol intake is associated with lower risk for MI.
Immunohistochemical Identification of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor in Pig Latissimus Dorsi Musculocutaneous Flaps Following Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury

Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF), a potent angiogenic, mitogenic and vascular permeability enhancing protein, appears to improve survival of ischemic flaps independent of its route of administration. The purpose of this study was to examine VEGF protein expression in biopsies of surgical flaps with immunohistochemical techniques. In 6 male Yorkshire-type pigs, 10 cm × 15 cm Latissimus dorsi musculocutaneous flaps were elevated bilaterally. Flap zones I, II, and III were established according to their distance from the vascular pedicle. After isolation of the thoracodorsal artery and vein, one flap was randomly assigned to ischemia by temporary occlusion of the vascular pedicle. Ischemia (4 hours) was followed by 2 hours of reperfusion (ischemia group, n = 6). The contralateral (nonischemic) flap served as a control (control group, n =6). Skin and muscle biopsies of flaps were taken at the end of the protocol for immunohistochemical staining using a VEGF antihuman monoclonal antibody. Epidermis of flap skin did not demonstrate VEGF-positive staining, but the dermis and subcutaneous tissue did. Muscle components of biopsies demonstrated staining of interfascicular septa and staining of myocytes. A semi-quantitative scoring system with a scale of 0 to 3 was used for grading of immunohistochemical staining. In skin, areas adjacent to the flap showed an overall mean VEGF staining score of 0.7. All zones of ischemic flaps showed increased mean immunohistochemical staining for VEGF (scores = 1.2, 1.6, and 1.4 in zones I, II, and III, respectively). In muscle, however, only zone I showed increased VEGF immunohistochemical staining from 0.7 in adjacent areas to 1.7 in ischemic flaps. The results indicate only moderate endogenous up-regulation of VEGF in flaps, supporting the utilization of exogenous VEGF as an adjunct in microsurgical therapy.
Volume Graphics Modeling of Ice Thawing

Image synthesis of natural phenomena is one of the fundamental research areas in volume graphics. Since the pursuit of photoreality requires physically-based computation at the cost of interactivity, much more attention has been paid to phenomenological models, which are intended to produce the same visual effect as physically-based models, without highly-complex computations. This paper focuses on ice thawing as a quite common phenomenon in our daily life, and presents volume modeling of the phenomenon using mathematical morphology and cellular automaton.
Quantitative Estimation of Ideal Body Weight in Uremic Patients

There is no definite way to estimate the ideal body fluid level in uremic patients. We developed a simple method to quantitatively estimate the ideal body weight. Hemofiltration (HF) was performed 9 times in 5 uremic patients. Urea-nitrogen concentration was measured in plasma before and after HF and in total ultrafiltrate mixture. Creatinine concentration was measured in plasma after HF and before the next HF and in urine collected between those two HF therapies. Total body fluid volume, TBF, was obtained, based on urea kinetics principles, as 36.8 ± 1.8 L after HF, assuming that urea is distributed uniformly within total body fluid. Creatinine generation rate, Gcr, was calculated as the sum of urinary creatinine excretion rate, creatinine accumulation rate within body fluids and extra-renal creatinine excretion rate. It is known that solid mass, SM, is related to Gcr and that the TBF to lean body mass (=SM + TBF) ratio is constant under ideal fluid level conditions. Thus, TBF under ideal body fluid level conditions (37.8 ± 3.0 L), SM (13.7 ± 1.1 kg) and fat mass (3.7 ± 2.3 kg) were derived, and finally we found body weight value under ideal fluid level conditions to be 55.1 ± 4.2 kg. The ideal body weight estimated this way was found to be significantly correlated with the dry weight (54.0 ± 3.5 kg) determined clinically by conventional means (r=0.9; p<0.01); no significant difference was found between these body weight values. Our results suggest that the ideal body weight can be estimated simply by applying both urea and creatinine kinetics principles in uremic patients.
Decreased expression and aberrant methylation of RASSF5A correlates with malignant progression of gastric cardia adenocarcinoma

Due to alternative splicing and differential promoter usage, RASSF5 exists in at least three isoforms, RASSF5A, RASSF5B, and RASSF5C. Expression and epigenetic inactivation of different transcripts of RASSF5 in gastric cardia adenocarcinoma (GCA) progression have not been evaluated. Quantitative real‐time RT‐PCR and immunohistochemistry (IHC) methods were used respectively to detect the role of RASSF5A, RASSF5B, and RASSF5C in 132 GCA cases and BS‐MSP method was used to clarify the critical CpG sites of RASSF5A. Expression of RASSF5A and RASSF5C transcripts were easily detectable in all normal gastric cardia epithelial tissues; however, expression of RASSF5B was rare detected in normal gastric cardia epithelial tissues and tumor tissues. Both RASSF5A and RASSF5C expression were frequently downregulated in GCA tumor tissues and RASSF5A was more commonly down‐regulated compared to RASSF5C. Abnormal reduction of RASSF5A was more commonly observed in advanced stage and poor differentiated tumors. The methylation frequency of CpG island 1 region of RASSF5A in GCA tumor tissues was significantly higher than that in corresponding normal tissues and was inversely correlated with RASSF5A expression. Aberrant promoter methylation of RASSF5C was not found in GCA. RASSF5A methylation and protein expression were independently associated with GCA patients' survival. These results indicate that down‐regulation of RASSF5A and RASSF5C expression is a tumor‐specific phenomenon and RASSF5A may be a more common target for inactivation in GCA. Inactivation of RASSF5A through CpG island 1 methylation may play an important role in GCA carcinogenesis and may serve as a prognostic biomarker for GCA. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Variability robustness enhancement for 7nm FinFET 3T1D-DRAM cells

3T1D-DRAM cells will still be operative with 7nm FinFETs but their performance is significantly degraded when factoring in variability. In order to improve the cell robustness against device process variation and high environment temperatures, we propose a Dual-VT strategy. Our results show a larger retention time, significant cell spread reduction and reliable behavior up to 100°C.
Progression in Primary Angle Closure Eyes

PurposeTo study the long-term course of primary angle closure (PAC) eyes after iridotomy. MethodsSeventy-two eyes of 72 patients diagnosed as PAC, having occludable angles with evidence of closure, but no ocular hypertension, were studied. Laser iridotomy was carried out in all eyes at baseline. Standard achromatic perimetry and tonometry were recorded at baseline and serially every 6 months, for at least 4 years. Changes on perimetry and the intraocular pressure (IOP) were analyzed. ResultsAt 1 year, 10 eyes and at final review, 26 eyes had developed ocular hypertension and required topical antiglaucoma medication. Eight eyes developed visual field defects on standard achromatic perimetry, over a mean period of 6.89±2.4 years. Eyes that progressed on perimetry, had a significantly narrower angle recess, less than or equal to 10 degrees, P=0.04, and a higher baseline MD and PSD, P=0.004 and 0.03, respectively. They also showed having a larger intervisit IOP fluctuation of 8.9±2.3 mm Hg, cf stable eyes, 6.2±3 mm Hg, P=0.003, and a longer duration of follow-up, P=0.01. ConclusionA third of PAC eyes, with very narrow angles, higher global indices, intervisit IOP fluctuations, and a longer duration of follow-up were observed to develop ocular hypertension. A third of the PAC eyes with hypertension, that is 11.1% overall, went on to develop PAC glaucoma.
MACHINE LEARNING TECHNIQUES FOR ACQUIRING NEW KNOWLEDGE IN IMAGE TRACKING

The purpose of this research is to apply data mining (DM) to an optimized surveillance video system with the objective of improving tracking robustness and stability. Specifically, the machine learning has been applied to blob extraction and detection, in order to decide whether a detected blob corresponds to a real target or not. Performance is assessed with an Evaluation function, which has been developed for optimizing the video surveillance system. This Evaluation function measures the quality level reached by the tracking system.
Human T-cell responses to Mycoplasma arthritidis-derived superantigen

When injected into mice, Mycoplasma arthritidis causes a chronic arthritis that resembles rheumatoid arthritis, histologically. The organism produces a superantigen termed Mycoplasma arthritidis mitogen or MAM, that in humans preferentially expands T cells whose antigen receptors express V beta 17. T cells with this phenotype appear to be increased in rheumatoid synovial effusions. We describe a novel approach to isolating and characterizing human MAM-reactive T-cell lines and determining their T-cell receptor (TCR) V beta usage. Lines were prepared from T cells that clustered with dendritic cells during a 2-day exposure to MAM. Cluster and noncluster fractions of T cells were then expanded by using feeder cells and a polyclonal mitogen. Most of the MAM reactivity was found in dendritic T-cell clusters, as were most of the T cells expressing TCR V beta 17. After expansion, 76% of the cluster-derived T-cell lines were MAM reactive, while no reactivity was seen in cell lines derived from the noncluster fraction. Of the MAM-reactive lines, 49% expressed V beta 17 on some or all of the cells. Cell lines from both cluster and noncluster fractions were analyzed for TCR V beta mRNA expression by PCR amplification. Other V beta genes (5.1, 7, 8, 12, and 20) were found to be expressed by lines that were MAM reactive, although these were not a major component of the cluster-derived T cells. Some non-cluster-derived lines expressed V beta s 17, 12, and 7, but these proved to be nonreactive to MAM. Therefore, dendritic cells can be used to immunoselect and characterize T cells that express superantigen-reactive TCRs.
An examination of the sensitivity of the six-item Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression in a sample of patients suffering from major depressive disorder.

OBJECTIVES To compare the sensitivity of the 6-item Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD6) with the more widely used 17-item Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD17) in patients suffering from major depressive disorder, with or without melancholia and/or dysthymic disorder. A secondary objective was to compare the sensitivity of the HRSD6 to the Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS). DESIGN Retrospective analysis of 4 clinical trials that tested antidepressant therapies. SETTING Outpatient treatment in a major psychiatric hospital. PARTICIPANTS One hundred and forty-three male and female outpatients meeting the criteria of the DSM-III-R or DSM-IV for major depressive disorder. OUTCOME MEASURES HRSD17, HRSD6 and MADRS. RESULTS The HRSD6 correlated strongly with the HRSD17, both at baseline and termination of treatment, and for the subgroups of double depression and melancholia. The HRSD6 was also correlated significantly with the MADRS at both measurement times, and for the subgroups. Paired t-tests with the HRSD6, HRSD17 and MADRS demonstrated equal sensitivity to change over the course of treatment, both in the full sample and in the dysthymic and melancholic subgroups. CONCLUSIONS The HRSD6 appears to be as sensitive to change over treatment as the HRSD17 and the MADRS. A shorter, less time-consuming measure of depression may have utility in clinical practice and research.
An expert panel review of clinical challenges in psychiatry RECENT FINDINGS AND CURRENT STATUS OF AUGMENTATION STRATEGIES

Introduction Augmentation strategies have become popular in patients with a partial response or residual symptoms. In a survey conducted by the American Society of Consultant Pharmacists, 65% of 169 psychiatrists indicated that they would augment treatment as the next step in a partial responder in contrast to non-responders in whom they would switch to another drug (J.C. Nelson, unpublished data). This decision is based on common sense and practicality rather than empirical evidence. Many clinicians and patients think that if a patient achieves at least a partial response to a medication, it makes sense to continue that drug and add a second. To some extent, the patient preferences for treatment shown in the Systematic Treatment Alternatives to Relieve Depression (STAR*D) study reflect this approach. This discussion will update clinicians on the use of augmentation agents for the treatment of major depressive disorder (MDD).
Towards a phylogenetic classification of reef corals: the Indo‐Pacific genera Merulina, Goniastrea and Scapophyllia (Scleractinia, Merulinidae)

Recent advances in scleractinian systematics and taxonomy have been achieved through the integration of molecular and morphological data, as well as rigorous analysis using phylogenetic methods. In this study, we continue in our pursuit of a phylogenetic classification by examining the evolutionary relationships between the closely related reef coral genera Merulina, Goniastrea, Paraclavarina and Scapophyllia (Merulinidae). In particular, we address the extreme polyphyly of Favites and Goniastrea that was discovered a decade ago. We sampled 145 specimens belonging to 16 species from a wide geographic range in the Indo‐Pacific, focusing especially on type localities, including the Red Sea, western Indian Ocean and central Pacific. Tree reconstructions based on both nuclear and mitochondrial markers reveal a novel lineage composed of three species previously placed in Favites and Goniastrea. Morphological analyses indicate that this clade, Paragoniastrea Huang, Benzoni & Budd, gen. n. , has a unique combination of corallite and subcorallite features observable with scanning electron microscopy and thin sections. Molecular and morphological evidence furthermore indicates that the monotypic genus Paraclavarina is nested within Merulina, and the former is therefore synonymised.
The African contribution to the present‐day population of the Azores Islands (Portugal): Analysis of the Y chromosome haplogroup E

Among the settlers that, from 1432 onwards, arrived to the Azores Islands were individuals of North and sub‐Saharan African origin. A previous study of markers of the Y chromosome revealed that haplogroup E is the second more frequent in the Azores (13%). Since this haplogroup is heterogeneous and may contain subtypes of African or non‐African origin, we analyzed an extended sample of 319 Azoreans, originating from the three groups of islands (Eastern, Central, and Western), to evaluate the African contribution to the present‐day population of the Azores. Samples belonging to the E clade were distributed into six haplogroups, from which the most frequent was E3b1a, representing 47.2% of the E chromosomes (6.3% of the total sample). The sub‐Saharan haplogroup E3a was found in 7.1% of E chromosomes (0.9% of the total), corresponding to the highest frequency reported so far in a Portuguese population. No significant differences were detected in the haplogroup distribution among groups of islands, as well as between Azores and most of other European populations compared. The present‐day representation of sub‐Saharan lineages in Azores, although reduced, is higher than in other Portuguese populations, where the demographic representation of sub‐Saharan slaves is reported as similar. Am. J. Hum. Biol., 2007. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Treatment of youth depression in primary care under usual practice conditions: observational findings from Youth Partners in Care.

OBJECTIVES The effectiveness of treatments for youth depression in primary care, under usual practice conditions, is largely unstudied. This study aims at estimating the effect of "appropriate treatment," defined as treatment that approximates guideline standards, on clinical outcomes for depressed primary care youth patients by using observational analyses from a randomized trial. METHODS Participants were 344 youths aged 13-21 enrolled in the Youth Partners in Care trial. Youths screening positive for depression from six primary care practices in five different health care organizations were randomly assigned to either (1) usual care enhanced by provider education on depression evaluation and management, or (2) a quality improvement (QI) intervention designed to improve access to antidepressant medications and/or cognitive behavior therapy for depression; usual practice conditions otherwise applied. Observational analysis was conducted on the effects of appropriate treatment (antidepressant medication use by algorithms or 6 or more psychotherapy visits) on severe depression (Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression score ≥ 24) at 6 months. Selection into treatment is accounted for by using instrumental variables analysis, with randomized QI intervention status as the instrument. RESULTS At 6 months, youths receiving "appropriate treatment," compared with others, were significantly less likely to have severe depression (10.9% vs. 45.2%, p<0.0001). Similar findings were observed among youths with depressive disorders and sub-syndromal depressive symptoms, and among Latino and other youths. CONCLUSIONS Among depressed primary care youths, care that approximates guideline standards but retains leniency substantially reduces the likelihood of severe depression at 6 months. Such findings apply to youths with or without depressive disorder, and among Latino youth.
Predicting the movie popularity using user-identified tropes

Tropes are recurrent themes and narrative frames that appear throughout literature, news, and popular media. We built a model that uses characterand plotbased user-identified trope labels (source: TV Tropes) to predict audience ratings for movies (source: IMDb). First, we used the DBTropes.org and node-imdb-api APIs to collect our initial data. Then, we implemented and trained a naive Bayes model and k-means clustering algorithm as first experiments for supervised and unsupervised learning, respectively. We found that TODO: briefly summarize results TODO: breifly summarize analysis Our next steps include TODO: list next steps.
Updating land-cover maps by using texture information from very high-resolution space-borne imagery

The process of updating existing land-cover databases is an issue of great concern and is needed to maintain the value of existing and expensive information. Often, this problem is one of integrating appropriately multitemporal data sets that are completely different in nature, such as the updating of old vector data with new image data. In this paper, a methodology is proposed for the updating of land-cover databases of rural areas by using very high-resolution panchromatic space-borne imagery. The task is to identify the extension of urban and industrial areas. At a given scale, the homogeneity of texture derived from newly acquired imagery is measured within the polygons to update by means of a knowledge-based segmentation approach. In a successive step, the new region boundaries are compared with the existing polygons. This basically transforms the change-detection problem into one of image segmentation. Experimental results for the updating of land-cover maps by IRS-1C panchromatic imagery indicate the usefulness of the direction that is adopted.