Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Evaluating GameDevTycoon for teaching software engineering

Academia and industry recognize the effectiveness of teaching Software Engineering through group-based project work supported by lectures discussing software engineering theory. However, while undertaking such project work, only a very small number of students in the team are exposed to team leadership and project management. This is because teams usually struggle with organization and timely task completion, and there is usually no time left to rotate leadership roles. To alleviate this problem, several gaming approaches have been proposed. In this paper, we analyze GameDevTycoon, the most recent addition to such games. We include a gameplay and reflection component in our group-based project course and perform a quantitative analysis of a team management and leadership aspects that the students encountered during their gameplay. We further compare and evaluate GameDevTycoon against five other software engineering-focused games. Our analysis shows the advantages and disadvantages of using GameDevTycoon for teaching project management and highlight further directions towards better inclusion in the curriculum.
jamSheets: thin interfaces with tunable stiffness enabled by layer jamming

This works introduces layer jamming as an enabling technology for designing deformable, stiffness-tunable, thin sheet interfaces. Interfaces that exhibit tunable stiffness properties can yield dynamic haptic feedback and shape deformation capabilities. In comparison to the particle jamming, layer jamming allows for constructing thin and lightweight form factors of an interface. We propose five layer structure designs and an approach which composites multiple materials to control the deformability of the interfaces. We also present methods to embed different types of sensing and pneumatic actuation layers on the layer-jamming unit. Through three application prototypes we demonstrate the benefits of using layer jamming in interface design. Finally, we provide a survey of materials that have proven successful for layer jamming.
Analysing mouse activity for cognitive load detection

User interaction and multimodal behaviour have been argued as viable indicators of cognitive load. We extend this idea to explore interactive mouse behaviour for the same. Though mouse dynamics is generally being explored as a biometric technology, we intend to adapt and enhance this usage for detecting pattern changes in user behaviour as cognitive load is varied. The scope of this paper is limited to analysing mouse interaction data generated during a larger multitier experiment (aimed at investigating effects of cognitive load on organisational trust). Mouse events data is from 88 subjects, each of which completed two different tasks (labelled T1 & T3) twice (under randomized order of high and low cognitive load levels). High cognitive load was induced using standard dual-task design. This paper brings forth core issues in mouse activity analysis and focuses on pause/break activity as possible indicator of cognitive load (in the context of performed experiment). Significant differences were found in extracted features from contemplation and hesitation type pause categories and future course of study charted.
Combining First Principles with Grey-Box Approaches for Modelling a Water Gas Heater System

This paper presents two different approaches for parameter identification in hybrid models (HM). The hybrid model consists in the parallel or cascade connection of two blocks: an approximate first principles model (FPM) and an unknown block model. The first principles model is constructed based in the balance equations of the system that could have some unknown parts. The unknown parts of the global model are modelled with two grey-box model techniques: neuro-fuzzy systems and nonlinear auto regressive models. These two types of hybrid models generate models with high interpretability degrees. The nonlinear auto regressive hybrid model (NARXHM) proposed uses a NARX model, tuned with the least squares algorithm, in cascade, with a first principles model. The neuro-fuzzy hybrid model (NFHM) proposed uses a neuro-fuzzy model, tuned with the gradient decent combined with least square algorithms, in cascade with a first principles model. The identification of the two hybrid model structures are implemented off-line. Finally, to test and compare these two transparent modelling strategies, they are applied for modelling a water gas heater nonlinear system
How open innovation could reinvigorate the pharmaceutical industry with fresh R&D opportunities

The pharmaceutical industry is struggling. It has reached a critical point in time, as most key players are asking more or less the same questions. How can we increase innovation? How can we increase productivity? How can we improve the value added to the patients and shareholders? Is the ‘blockbuster model’ viable? If not, what can be done to replace it? Pharmaceutical innovation is often divided into therapeutic innovation and pharmacological innovation, hereby distinguishing between benefits to patients versus existing treatments and improved pharmacological characteristics, not leading to clear efficacy benefits [101]. While this seems appropriate when looking at the molecules, a broader understanding of pharmaceutical innovation is required – particularly when discussing new business models. The cost of bringing new medicines to patients has increased dramatically over recent decades, while the productivity has declined [1]. It is estimated that the total capitalized cost of bringing a new molecule to the market is somewhere between €800 million and €1.3 billion [2] and the median total time to achieve this is approximately 13 years. Thus, it is not surprising that the return to shareholders for the pharmaceutical industry has decreased significantly during the last decade to a point at which it is now questionable if there is any positive return at all [3]. Many factors have contributed to the current state of business for the pharmaceutical industry. Among those most often mentioned by industry executives are the high costs of drug discovery/research tools, chronic and complex indications, clinical trial size, patient recruitment/retention during clinical trials, late stage attrition and increasing regulatory demands. The latter is probably one of the key factors for high development costs owing to risk-averse behaviors from authorities such as the US FDA [4]. In addition, the increasing focus of cost–effectiveness of new treatments and introduction of further ‘reviews’ such as Health Technology Assessments (HTA; e.g., National Institutes for Health Research [NIHR] Health Technology Assessment programme [102] and European Network for Health Technology Assessment [103]) increases the complexity of bringing new drug treatments to patients.
Effects of anabolic-androgenic steroid use or gonadal testosterone suppression on serum leptin concentration in men

Objective: Serum leptin concentration shows a sexual dimorphism that is not accounted for by gender differences in adiposity. A strong inverse association exists between serum leptin and testosterone concentrations in men, pointing to a likely influence of gonadal sex steroids on serum leptin concentration. The aim of this study was to investigate whether manipulation of sex steroid hormones in men would alter serum leptin concentration independently of changes in fat mass. Design and methods: The effects of sex steroid suppression on serum leptin concentration were investigated in nine healthy men in whom testosterone had been reversibly suppressed for 5 weeks after treatment with intramuscular triptorelin. The effects of sex steroid supplementation were investigated in nine male bodybuilders who self-administered anabolic‐androgenic steroids (AAS) for a mean period of 6.5 weeks. A control group received no hormonal treatment. Results: Testosterone concentration was significantly reduced by triptorelin administration (7.32 6 1.92 ng/ml at baseline compared with 1.15 6 0.57 ng/ml at 5 weeks, P = 0.002). High-dose AAS use was confirmed by urine analysis. Body fat percentage was unaffected by the AAS or triptorelin intervention (P > 0.19). Leptin concentration was significantly reduced after one cycle of AAS use (2.40 6 0.98 ng/ml off cycle compared with 1.63 6 0.37 ng/ml on cycle, P = 0.012), and was significantly increased by triptorelin administration (2.96 6 1.50 ng/ml at baseline compared with 6.63 6 4.67 ng/ml at five weeks, P = 0.004). No significant change occurred in the control group. Conclusion: Androgenic sex hormone supplementation decreases serum leptin concentration, whereas suppression increases serum leptin concentration, independently of changes in body fat mass in healthy men. The sexual dimorphism evident in serum leptin concentration is likely to be due to a suppressive effect of testosterone on serum leptin concentration in males.
Gaps in Discharge Planning

Discharge from an acute care hospital stresses continuity, an important aspect of care for frail, older persons. Secondary analysis of qualitative data from two studies indicated that gaps in communication were a fundamental source of discontinuity. This article describes gaps in discharge planning, identifies the constraints encountered in planning for discharge, and discusses possible solutions.
From RSSI to CSI

The spatial features of emitted wireless signals are the basis of location distinction and determination for wireless indoor localization. Available in mainstream wireless signal measurements, the Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) has been adopted in vast indoor localization systems. However, it suffers from dramatic performance degradation in complex situations due to multipath fading and temporal dynamics. Break-through techniques resort to finer-grained wireless channel measurement than RSSI. Different from RSSI, the PHY layer power feature, channel response, is able to discriminate multipath characteristics, and thus holds the potential for the convergence of accurate and pervasive indoor localization. Channel State Information (CSI, reflecting channel response in 802.11 a/g/n) has attracted many research efforts and some pioneer works have demonstrated submeter or even centimeter-level accuracy. In this article, we survey this new trend of channel response in localization. The differences between CSI and RSSI are highlighted with respect to network layering, time resolution, frequency resolution, stability, and accessibility. Furthermore, we investigate a large body of recent works and classify them overall into three categories according to how to use CSI. For each category, we emphasize the basic principles and address future directions of research in this new and largely open area.
Intensity-modulated extended-field chemoradiation plus simultaneous integrated boost in the pre-operative treatment of locally advanced cervical cancer: a dose-escalation study.

OBJECTIVE To investigate the feasibility and determine the recommended pre-operative intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) dose of extended-field chemoradiation along with simultaneous integrated boost (SIB) dose escalation. METHODS A radiation dose of 40 Gy over 4 weeks, 2 Gy/fraction, was delivered to the tumour and the lymphatic drainage (planning target volume, PTV3), which encompassed a volume larger than standard (common iliac lymphatic area up to its apex, in front of the L3 vertebra), concurrently with chemotherapy (cisplatin and 5-fluorouracil). Radiation dose was escalated to the pelvis (PTV2) and to the macroscopic disease (PTV1) with the SIB-IMRT strategy. Three dose levels were planned: Level 1 (PTV3: 40/2 Gy; PTV2: 40/2 Gy; PTV1: 45/2.25 Gy), Level 2 (PTV3: 40/2 Gy; PTV2: 45/2.25 Gy; PTV1: 45/2.25 Gy) and Level 3 (PTV3: 40/2 Gy; PTV2: 45/2.25 Gy; PTV1: 50/2.5 Gy). All treatments were delivered in 20 fractions. Patients were treated in cohorts of between three and six per group using a Phase I study design. The recommended dose was exceeded if two of the six patients in a cohort experienced dose-limiting toxicity within 3 months from treatment. RESULTS 19 patients [median age: 46 years; The International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) stage IB2: 3, IIB: 10, IIIA-IIIB: 6] were enrolled. Median follow-up was 24 months (9-60 months). The most common grade 3/4 toxicity was gastrointestinal (GI) (diarrhoea, mucous discharge, rectal/abdominal pain). At Levels 1 and 2, only one grade 3 GI toxicity per level was recorded, whereas at Level 3, two grade 3 GI toxicities (diarrhoea, emesis and nausea) were recorded. CONCLUSION The SIB-IMRT technique was found to be feasible and safe at the recommended doses of 45 Gy to PTV1 and PTV2 and 40 Gy to PTV3 in the pre-operative treatment of patients with locally advanced cervical cancer. Unfortunately, this complex technique was unable to safely escalate dose beyond levels already achieved with three-dimensional conformal radiotherapy technique given acute GI toxicity. ADVANCES IN KNOWLEDGE A Phase I radiotherapy dose-escalation trial with SIB-IMRT technique is proposed in cervical cancer. This complex technique is feasible and safe at the recommended doses.
Current management and novel insights in acute pancreatitis

Acute pancreatitis (AP) is a common and potentially lethal acute inflammatory process. Approximately 10–20% of patients develop a severe course and suffer systemic inflammatory response and/or pancreatic necrosis (PNec). To date, there is no single biomarker proven to perform better than clinical judgment in predicting severe AP. The available prognostic clinical scoring systems are used primarily for research purposes. Management of AP is limited to supportive care and treatment of complications when they develop. Patients with mild AP require regular ward admission, fluid administration, bowel rest and pain management. Patients with signs of severe AP should be identified early and admitted promptly to an intensive-care unit. Nutrition support via nasojejunal feedings should be initiated. Sterile PNec is managed conservatively. Infected PNec requires minimally invasive debridement via endoscopic or surgical approaches. The lack of scientific advancements in the management of AP reflects the limited understanding of the early pathogenetic mechanisms and our moderate-to-poor ability to predict severe course at the time of admission.
Pulmonary ground-glass nodules diagnosis: mean change rate of peak CT number as a discriminative factor of pathology during a follow-up.

OBJECTIVE We aimed to analyse the peak CT number (PEAK) in CT number histogram of ground-glass nodules (GGN), meaning the most frequent density of pixels in the image of pulmonary nodule, based on three-dimensional (3D) reconstructive model pre-operatively, and the mean rate of PEAK change (V-PEAK) during a follow-up of GGN for differential diagnosis between pre-invasive adenocarcinoma (PIA) and invasive adenocarcinoma (IAC). METHODS CT number histogram of pixels in GGN was made automatically by 3D measurement software. Diameter, total volume, PEAK and V-PEAK were measured from CT data sets of different groups classified by pathology, subtype and number of GGN, respectively. RESULTS Among all 102 cases, 47 were PIA, including atypical adenomatous hyperplasia (n = 29) and adenocarcinoma in situ (n = 18), and 55 were IAC, including minimally IAC (MIA, n = 4). By Wilcoxon test, PEAK of IAC was significantly higher than that of PIA (p < 0.001). By receiver operating curve analysis, area under the curve (AUC) was 0.857 and threshold -820.50 Hounsfield units (HU) for differentiation between PIA and IAC. V-PEAK of IAC was unexpectedly remarkably smaller than that of PIA (p < 0.001) with AUC and threshold being 0.810 and -0.829 HU day(-1), respectively. CONCLUSION Pre-operative PEAK and V-PEAK, which interpret and evaluate the change of volume and density of pulmonary nodule simultaneously from both exterior and interior perspectives, can help to distinguish IAC from PIA. ADVANCES IN KNOWLEDGE This study provided researchers of GGN another perspective, taking both volume and density of nodules into consideration for pathological evaluation.
Three- or four-dimensional hysterosalpingo contrast sonography for diagnosing tubal patency in infertile females: a systematic review with meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE To assess the diagnostic value of three-dimensional (3D) or four-dimensional (4D) hysterosalpingo contrast sonography (HyCoSy) for detecting tubal patency in infertile females. METHODS A comprehensive search was conducted to identify related research. The pooled results were calculated by diagnostic meta-analysis with bivariate mixed-effects binary regression. Subgroup analyses and publication bias were further performed. RESULTS 23 studies, including 1153 females with 2259 detected fallopian tubes, were identified. The pooled estimates of sensitivity and specificity were 0.92 [95% confidence interval (CI): 0.90-0.94, I(2) = 36.68] and 0.91 (95% CI: 0.89-0.93, I(2) = 38.99), respectively. The area under the receiver-operating characteristic curve was 0.97 (95% CI: 0.95-0.98). No publication bias was observed. CONCLUSION 3D/4D HyCoSy is an accurate test for diagnosing tubal patency in infertile females. ADVANCES IN KNOWLEDGE 3D/4D HyCoSy is an accurate test for diagnosing tubal patency in females suffering from infertility, whilst overcoming some main limitations of other methods. 3D/4D HyCoSy is recommended as a fundamental test for female infertility.
Specifying representations of machine instructions

We present SLED, a specification language for Encoding and Decoding, which describes, abstract, binary, and assembly-language representations of machine instructions. Guided by a SLED specification, the New Jersey Machine-Code Toolkit generates bit-manipulating code for use in applications that process machine code. Programmers can write such applications at an assembly language level of abstraction, and the toolkit enables the applications to recognize and emit the binary representations used by the hardware. SLED is suitable for describing both CISC and RISC machines; we have specified representations of MIPS R3000, SPARC, Alpha, and Intel Pentium instructions, and toolkit users have written specifications for the Power PC and Motorola 68000. The article includes representative excerpts from our SPARC and Pentium specifications. SLED uses four elements; fields and tokens describe parts of instructions; patterns describe binary representations of instructions or group of instructions; and constructors map between the abstract and binary levels. By combining the elements in different ways, SLED supports machine-independent implementations of machine-level concepts like conditional assembly, span-dependent instructions, relocatable addresses, object code, sections, and relocation. SLED specifications can be checked automatically for consistency with existing assemblers. The implementation of the toolkit is largely determined by our representations of patterns and constructors. We use a normal form that facilitates construction of encoders and decoders. The article describes the normal form and its use. The toolkit has been used to help build several applications. We have built a retargetable debugger and a retargetable, optimizing linker. Colleagues have built a dynamic code generator, a decompiler, and an execution-time analyzer. The toolkit generates efficient code; for example, the linker emits binary up to 15% faster than it emits assembly language, making it 1.7-2 times faster to produce an a.out directly than by using the assembler.
Can we apply the MRI BI-RADS lexicon morphology descriptors on contrast-enhanced spectral mammography?

OBJECTIVE: To assess the feasibility of using the MRI breast imaging reporting and data system (BI-RADS) lexicon morphology descriptors to characterize enhancing breast lesions identified on contrast-enhanced spectral mammography (CESM). METHODS: The study is a retrospective analysis of the morphology descriptors of 261 enhancing breast lesions identified on CESM in 239 patients. We presented the morphological categorization of the included lesions into focus, mass and non-mass. Further classifications included (1) the multiplicity for "focus" category, (2) the shape, margin and internal enhancement for "mass" category and (3) the distribution and internal enhancement for "non-mass" category. Each morphology descriptor was evaluated individually (irrespective of all other descriptors) by calculating its sensitivity, specificity, positive-predictive value (PPV) and negative-predictive value (NPV) and likelihood ratios (LRs). RESULTS: The study included 68/261 (26.1%) benign lesions and 193/261 (73.9%) malignant lesions. Intensely enhancing foci, whether single (7/12, 58.3%) or multiple (2/12, 16.7%), were malignant. Descriptors of "irregular"-shape (PPV: 92.4%) and "non-circumscribed" margin (odds ratio: 55.2, LR positive: 4.77; p-value: <0.001) were more compatible with malignancy. Internal mass enhancement patterns showed a very low specificity (58.0%) and NPV (40.0%). Non-mass enhancement (NME) was detected in 81/261 lesions. Asymmetrical NME in 81% (n = 52/81) lesions was malignant lesions and internal enhancement patterns indicative of malignancy were the heterogeneous and clumped ones. CONCLUSION: We can apply the MRI morphology descriptors to characterize lesions on CESM, but with few expectations. In many situations, irregular-shaped, non-circumscribed masses and NME with focal, ductal or segmental distribution and heterogeneous or clumped enhancement are the most suggestive descriptors of malignant pathologies. ADVANCES IN KNOWLEDGE: (1) The MRI BI-RADS lexicon morphology descriptors can be applied in the characterization of enhancing lesions on CESM with a few exceptions. (2) Multiple bilateral intensely enhancing foci should not be included under the normal background parenchymal enhancement unless they are proved to be benign by biopsy. (3) Mass lesion features that indicated malignancy were irregular-shaped, spiculated and irregular margins and heterogeneous internal enhancement patterns. The rim enhancement pattern should not be considered as a descriptor of malignant lesions unless CESM is coupled with an ultrasound examination.