Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Association of serum C-reactive protein level with sex-specific type 2 diabetes risk: a prospective finnish study.

OBJECTIVE Our objective was to assess whether the association of serum C-reactive protein (CRP) with type 2 diabetes risk is modified by sex. DESIGN AND SUBJECTS We prospectively followed 12,861 Finnish men and women who were 35-74 yr of age, and free of diabetes, coronary heart disease, stroke, and cancer at baseline. Hazard ratios of type 2 diabetes were estimated for different levels of serum CRP. RESULTS During the follow-up, 208 men and 113 women developed diabetes. The multivariable-adjusted (age, physical activity, education, smoking, alcohol and coffee drinking, family history of diabetes, use of antihypertensive drugs, cholesterol-lowering agents, and hormone replacement therapy in women, systolic blood pressure, serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, serum triglycerides, and body mass index) hazard ratios of diabetes at three different levels of CRP (0.05-0.99, 1.0-2.99, and > or =3.0 mg/liter) based on the recommendation by Centers for Disease Control and the American Heart Association were 1.00, 1.46, and 1.85 (P for trend = 0.006) in men, and 1.00, 3.83, and 8.37 (P for trend <0.001) in women, respectively. CRP had a stronger association with diabetes risk in women than men (P for interaction: chi2 = 6.42; 1 df; P < 0.025). This positive association between CRP and diabetes risk did not change when participants were stratified by age group, smoking status, level of obesity, alcohol drinking habit, or family history of diabetes. CONCLUSIONS High baseline level of serum CRP was associated with an increased risk of diabetes among both men and women, but this association was stronger in women than men.
Association of Depressive Symptomatology and Elder Mistreatment in a U.S. Chinese Population: Findings From a Community-Based Participatory Research Study

Elder mistreatment (EM) is associated with increased morbidity and mortality. The objective of this study is to examine the association between depressive symptoms and EM in a U.S. Chinese population. A community-based participatory research approach was implemented to partner with the Chicago Chinatown population. Self-reported EM was assessed using a modified Vulnerability to Abuse Screening Scale instrument. Depressive symptomatology was assessed using the short form Geriatric Depression Scale. Exact logistic regression was used to assess these associations. Of the 78 participants, mean age was 74.8 (SD = 7.8) years and 52.6% were women. EM was reported in 20.5% of participants. After adjusting for potential confounding factors, higher numbers of depressive symptoms were independently associated with increased risk of EM (Exact OR, 1.99, 95% CI [1.23, 3.41]). Interaction terms analyses suggest that higher educational levels might buffer the risk of EM associated with depressive symptoms. Longitudinal studies are needed to confirm these findings in this U.S. Chinese population.
Detection of Occlusal Caries by Laser Fluorescence: Basic and Clinical Investigations

Summary Objectives: Motivated by the poor sensitivity of visual inspection and radiography in the detection of occlusal caries hidden under a macroscopically sound surface, we explored the implementation of fluorescence as an alternative diagnostic tool. Methods and Results: Fluorescence spectroscopic investigations revealed considerable contrast between sound and carious tooth hard tissue when excited by red (655 nm) light. For this excitation wavelength on inorganic tooth components only negligible fluorescence was observed. Advanced caries, however, show readily detectable fluorescence. The latter, at least in part, originates from porphyrins produced by bacteria. Based on red excited fluorescence a novel caries detector was constructed (DIAGNOdent™, KaVo, Biberach). The system measures fluorescence quantitatively. The minimum amount of protoporphyrin IX that can be detected is approximately 1 pmol. Clinical investigations yielded a sensitivity ≥0.92 in detection of occlusal caries, compared to 0.63 for bitewing radiography, and ≤0.62 for visual inspection. Intra- and interexaminer reproducibility tests resulted in Cohen's Kappa value of 0.93 in vivo. Conclusions: Detection of occlusal caries with the DIAGNOdent™ system has a much better sensitivity than conventional methods. Because the readings are correlated to the status of the carious lesion, treatment decisions can be aided by the measurement. Additionally, excellent reproducibility allows monitoring of lesions over time to facilitate preventive based management of dental decay.
Achievement goals and emotions: The mediational roles of perceived progress, control, and value.

BACKGROUND The link between achievement goals and achievement emotions is well established; however, research exploring potential mediators of this relationship is lacking. The control-value theory of achievement emotions (Pekrun, 2006, Educational Psychology Review, 18, 315) posits that perceptions of control and value mediate the relationship between achievement goals and achievement emotions, whereas the bidirectional theory of affect (Linnenbrink & Pintrich, 2002, Educational Psychologist, 37, 69) proposes that perceived progress mediates this relationship. AIMS The present study empirically evaluated three hypothesized mediators of the effects of achievement goals on learning-related emotions as proposed in the control-value theory and the bidirectional theory of affect. SAMPLE Undergraduate students (N = 273) from humanities, social science, and STEM disciplines participated. METHODS Participants completed web-based questionnaires evaluating academic achievement goals, perceptions of control, perceived task value, and achievement emotions. RESULTS Results provided empirical support primarily for perceived progress as a mediator of mastery-approach goal effects on positive emotions (enjoyment, hope), showing indirect effects of mastery- and performance-approach goals on outcome-related emotions (hope, anxiety) via perceived control. Indirect effects of mastery- and performance-approach goals were further observed on anxiety via perceived value, with higher value levels predicting greater anxiety. CONCLUSIONS Study findings partially support Linnenbrink and Pintrich's (2002, Educational Psychologist, 37, 69) bidirectional theory of affect while underscoring the potential for indirect effects of goals on emotions through perceived control as proposed by Pekrun (2006, Educational Psychology Review, 18, 315).
Children's understanding of the addition/subtraction complement principle.

BACKGROUND In the last decades, children's understanding of mathematical principles has become an important research topic. Different from the commutativity and inversion principles, only few studies have focused on children's understanding of the addition/subtraction complement principle (if a - b = c, then c + b = a), mainly relying on verbal techniques. AIM This contribution aimed at deepening our understanding of children's knowledge of the addition/subtraction complement principle, combining verbal and non-verbal techniques. SAMPLE Participants were 67 third and fourth graders (9- to 10-year-olds). METHODS Children solved two tasks in which verbal reports as well as accuracy and speed data were collected. These two tasks differed only in the order of the problems and the instructions. In the looking-back task, children were told that sometimes the preceding problem might help to answer the next problem. In the baseline task, no helpful preceding items were offered. The looking-back task included 10 trigger-target problem pairs on the complement relation. RESULTS Children verbally reported looking back on about 40% of all target problems in the looking-back task; the target problems were also solved faster and more accurately than in the baseline task. These results suggest that children used their understanding of the complement principle. The verbal and non-verbal data were highly correlated. DISCUSSION This study complements previous work on children's understanding of mathematical principles by highlighting interindividual differences in 9- to 10-year-olds' understanding of the complement principle and indicating the potential of combining verbal and non-verbal techniques to investigate (the acquisition of) this understanding.
Efficiently Constructing the Visibility Graph of a Simple Polygon with Obstacles

This paper describes an output-sensitive scheme to construct the visibility graph of a simple polygon with m obstacles and n vertices in optimal O(|E| +T + m log n ) time where |E| is the size of the visibility graph and T is the time required to triangulate the simple polygon with obstacles. We use a partition of the space into regions called corridors which eases the efforts of the construction. Our algorithms are simple and the data structures used are only linked lists.
Tenomodulin is highly expressed in adipose tissue, increased in obesity, and down-regulated during diet-induced weight loss.

CONTEXT Tenomodulin (TNMD), a putative angiogenesis inhibitor, is expressed in hypovascular connective tissues. Global gene expression scans show that the TNMD gene also is expressed in human adipose tissue and that its expression is regulated in response to weight reduction; however, more detailed information is lacking. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to investigate TNMD tissue distribution and TNMD gene expression in human adipose tissue in relation to obesity and metabolic disease. DESIGN, PATIENTS, AND INTERVENTIONS TNMD gene expression, tissue distribution, and TNMD gene expression in adipose tissue from different depots, from lean and obese subjects, and during diet-induced weight reduction were analyzed by DNA microarray and real-time PCR. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE We primarily measured TNMD gene expression. RESULTS The TNMD gene was predominantly expressed in sc adipose tissue. TNMD gene expression was higher in sc than omental adipose tissue both in lean (P = 0.002) and obese subjects (P = 0.014). In both women and men, TNMD gene expression was significantly higher in the obese subjects compared to the lean subjects (P = 1.1 x 10(-26) and P = 0.010, respectively). In a multiple linear regression analysis, BMI was a significant independent predictor of TNMD gene expression. TNMD gene expression was down-regulated during diet-induced weight loss, with a 65% decrease after 18 wk of diet (P < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS We conclude that human adipose tissue TNMD gene expression is highly affected by obesity, adipose tissue location, and weight loss, indicating that TNMD may play a role in adipose tissue function.
Papel de las placas complejas de ateroma aórtico en la recurrencia del infarto cerebral de etiología incierta

Introduccion y objetivos En un subgrupo de pacientes con infarto cerebral, las exploraciones diagnosticas no invasivas no permiten establecer un diagnostico etiologico. Hemos estudiado su evolucion y el valor del ecocardiograma transesofagico en el diagnostico del ateroma complejo aortico en pacientes con infarto cerebral de etiologia incierta que presentan recurrencia. Pacientes y metodo Al evaluar a 1.840 pacientes consecutivos con un primer infarto cerebral mediante un protocolo restrictivo para la ecocardiografia transesofagica, en 248 no pudo establecerse un diagnostico etiologico. Durante 1 ano de seguimiento con farmacos antiplaquetarios, se practico un ecocardiograma transesofagico en caso de nuevo episodio isquemico cerebral. Se comparo la prevalencia de placas complejas aorticas en estos pacientes con recurrencia respecto a la de los infartos cerebrales de etiologia incierta del French Study of Aortic Plaques in Stroke que no presentaron un segundo infarto cerebral. Resultados Presentaron un segundo infarto cerebral 17 de los 248 pacientes con etiologia incierta (6,9%). El ecocardiograma transesofagico establecio la etiologia en 15 de ellos (88,2%), que fue atribuida a placas complejas de ateroma aortico en 14 casos (82,4%). En cambio, entre los pacientes del French Study con infarto cerebral de etiologia incierta que no presentaron reinfarto cerebral durante el primer ano de seguimiento, la prevalencia de placas complejas aorticas fue del 21,1% (p Conclusiones Durante el primer ano de seguimiento con antiagregantes, la mayoria de los pacientes con infarto cerebral de etiologia incierta no presenta recurrencia. En el subgrupo con recurrencia isquemica cerebral, el ecocardiograma transesofagico permite establecer el diagnostico definitivo en el 88,2% de los casos; la principal etiologia implicada es la ateromatosis avanzada de la aorta toracica.
Serial offenders: theory and practice

On first glance I found this book to be a fascinating read with interesting examples, such as the psychological profile of Jack the Ripper and an analysis of how Hitler was predicted to die. Did I find this book fascinating because I am a behavioural scientist? Probably yes. However, what I want to stress is that this book is well researched with a good balance between empirical research and police case studies. Moreover, the contributors all have expertise in their specific area, such as a 30-year career in the FBI, or expertise in linking serial crime scenes or victim and offender profiling. The book has 13 chapters each covering a different issue. Chapters 1, 2 and 13 are introductory and concluding chapters. Chapters 3 to 6 cover serial rape, paedophilia, adult sex offenders and serial stalkers. Issues covered include linkage blindness in serial rapes, the importance of DNA in rape cases, the characteristics of both adult and child victims and their offenders, and investigation and types of search warrants required for cyber paedophilia. In Chapter 4, several case studies of child victims are presented. I found the case studies informative in that, for me, it changed the context from academic text to real life. Chapter 7 covers serial arson, which given Australia’s climate and history of serial arson/bushfires may be of interest to forensic scientists and law enforcement personnel. This chapter presents an overview of the types of serial arsonists and also discusses pyromania. There is also a discussion of common motivators for fire lighting (extremism, vandalism, revenge, excitement, etc) and the problems of juvenile firelighters. Although just an overview it does give the reader a good overall picture of what is currently known. Any reader who wants to learn more can use the reference list as a good resource for further research. Chapter 8 covers the unique issue in Africa of ‘muti murder’, which is serial murder carried out to gain body parts that can be sold to the makers of, or used by practitioners in, ritualistic medicine (a.k.a., traditional healers/witch doctors). The chapter looks at the difficulties the police face in distinguishing ‘muti’ as either sacrificial offering or other types of murder. There are several cases that document how lucrative body parts for medicine are. Although this chapter may not reflect the usual types of homicides in Australia, it is interesting to reflect upon the crosscultural differences that underpin why people commit murder. Chapter 9 covers profiling and starts with some overviews of famous people, such as the Lindberg kidnapper and how closely the actual offender matched his offender profile, created in 1932. Later in the chapter there is a discussion of contemporary types of profiling, from offence profiles at crime scenes, geographical profiling, investigative psychology and offender profiling. An example is also given of how Australian Journal of Forensic Sciences Vol. 44, No. 4, December 2012, 403–406
A Decomposition Theorem for Task Systems and Bounds for Randomized Server Problems

A lower bound of $\Omega(\sqrt{\log k / \log \log k})$ is proved for the competitive ratio of randomized algorithms for the k-server problem against an oblivious adversary. The bound holds for arbitrary metric spaces (having at least k+1 points) and provides a new lower bound for the metrical task system problem as well. This improves the previous best lower bound of $\Omega(\log \log k)$ for arbitrary metric spaces [H. J. Karloff, Y. Rabani, and Y. Ravid, SIAM J. Comput. , 23 (1994), pp. 293--312] and more closely approaches the conjectured lower bound of $\Omega(\log k)$. For the server problem on k+1 equally spaced points on a line, which corresponds to a natural motion-planning problem, a lower bound of $\Omega(\frac{\log k}{\log \log k})$ is obtained. The results are deduced from a general decomposition theorem for a simpler version of both the k-server and the metrical task system problems, called the "pursuit-evasion game. " It is shown that if a metric space $\cal M$ can be decomposed into two spaces $\cal M_L$ and $\cal M_R$ such that the distance between them is sufficiently large compared to their diameter, then the competitive ratio for this game on $\cal M$ can be expressed nearly exactly in terms of the ratios on each of the two subspaces. This yields a divide-and-conquer approach to bounding the competitive ratio of a space.
Duality in [bold H]INFINITY Cone Optimization

Positive real cones in the space $\Har^\infty$ appear naturally in many optimization problems of control theory and signal processing. Although such problems can be solved by finite-dimensional approximations (e.g., Ritz projection), all such approximations are conservative, providing one-sided bounds for the optimal value. In order to obtain both upper and lower bounds of the optimal value, a dual problem approach is developed in this paper. A finite-dimensional approximation of the dual problem gives the opposite bound for the optimal value. Thus, by combining the primal and dual problems, a suboptimal solution to the original problem can be found with any required accuracy.
Numerical Approximations for Stochastic Differential Games

The Markov chain approximation method is a widely used, robust, relatively easy to use, and efficient family of methods for the bulk of stochastic control problems in continuous time for reflected-jump-diffusion-type models. It has been shown to converge under broad conditions, and there are good algorithms for solving the numerical problems if the dimension is not too high. Versions of these methods have been used in applications to various two-player differential and stochastic dynamic games for a long time, and proofs of convergence are available for some cases, mainly using PDE-type techniques. In this paper, purely probabilistic proofs of convergence are given for a broad class of such problems, where the controls for the two players are separated in the dynamics and cost function, and which cover a substantial class not dealt with in previous works. Discounted and stopping time cost functions are considered. Finite horizon problems and problems where the process is stopped on first hitting an a priori given boundary can be dealt with by adapting the methods of [H. J. Kushner and P. Dupuis, Numerical Methods for Stochastic Control Problems, in Continuous Time, 2nd ed., Springer-Verlag, Berlin, New York, 2001] as done in this paper for the treated problems. The essential conditions are the weak-sense existence and uniqueness of solutions, an "almost everywhere" continuity condition, and that a weak local consistency condition holds "almost everywhere" for the numerical approximations, just as for the control problem. There are extensions to problems with controlled variance and jumps.
Learning with serious games: Is fun playing the game a predictor of learning success?

Serious games are generally considered to induce positive effects in the areas of learning motivation and learning gains. Yet few studies have examined how these factors are related. Therefore, an empirical study was conducted to test the relationship between anticipated enjoyment and willingness to play, as well as between game enjoyment, self-reported cognitive and motivational learning gains and test results. In an explorative study, 74 children from five primary schools played the learning game AWWWARE. The results of pre- and post-tests were analysed using multiple linear regressions. The analysis showed that anticipated enjoyment played only a minor part in students' willingness to learn with serious games. Of greater importance was the students' expectation that the learning game would be easy and instructive. The level of actual enjoyment of the game also had a smaller influence than expected. While there was a correlation between enjoyment and the motivation to continue being engaged with the subject matter of the game, no effect was found with respect to self-assessed or tested learning gains. The results lead to the conclusion that other factors, such as explicit learning tasks, instruction and support inherent in the game or supplemented by teachers, may be more decisive than the experience of fun during the game. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
A Leader-Follower Stochastic Linear Quadratic Differential Game

A leader-follower stochastic differential game is considered with the state equation being a linear Ito-type stochastic differential equation and the cost functionals being quadratic. We allow that the coefficients of the system and those of the cost functionals are random, the controls enter the diffusion of the state equation, and the weight matrices for the controls in the cost functionals are not necessarily positive definite. The so-called open-loop strategies are considered only. Thus, the follower first solves a stochastic linear quadratic (LQ) optimal control problem with the aid of a stochastic Riccati equation. Then the leader turns to solve a stochastic LQ problem for a forward-backward stochastic differential equation. If such an LQ problem is solvable, one obtains an open-loop solution to the two-person leader-follower stochastic differential game. Moreover, it is shown that the open-loop solution admits a state feedback representation if a new stochastic Riccati equation is solvable.
2-Regularized Nyquist Criterion in Linear Continuous-Time Periodic Systems and Its Implementation

First, by using the 2-regularized determinant technique for Hilbert--Schmidt operators, the computation formula, infinite-product convergence, and analyticity of the 2-regularized determinant of the modified harmonic state operator in finite-dimensional linear continuous-time periodic (FDLCP) systems are derived in this paper. Second, based on these results, a 2-regularized Nyquist criterion is established for asymptotic stability analysis of a class of FDLCP systems for the first time. Third, a numeric implementation algorithm for the 2-regularized Nyquist criterion is also proposed via the staircase truncation on the harmonic transfer operator of the FDLCP system concerned. Finally, to illustrate the results of this paper, asymptotic stability of the lossy Mathieu differential equation is investigated.