Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Clinical and Radiological Outcomes of Trochanteric AO/OTA 31A2 Fractures: Comparison between Helical Blade and Lag Screw – A Retrospective Cohort Study

Abstract Introduction The purpose of this study was to compare the clinical and radiological outcomes of AO/OTA type 31A2 fractures treated by the use of trochanteric nails either with a blade or a screw. Patients and Methods This study was designed retrospectively. Between May 2007 and May 2014, a total of 144 patients with trochanteric fractures were admitted to the clinic, and only 65 of them met the inclusion criteria. Thirty-two of them (blade group) were treated with a helical blade and the rest of the 33 patients (screw group) were treated with a screw. The mean ages of the patients were 76.01 and 75.82, respectively (p = 0.905). The mean follow-up time was 27.6 months (blade group: 34.2 ± 19.1 months; screw group: 18.6 ± 7.9 months; p < 0.001). Between these two groups, we evaluated the differences in tip apex distances (TAD), calcar-referenced tip-apex distances (Cal-TAD), implant positions, cut-out rates, and implant failures. Functional outcomes were measured with the help of the Harris Hip Score. Results No significant differences were seen between the blade and screw groups by means of cutting out, implant positions, and varus collapse. Cutting out was seen in a total of six patients (blade group n = 2; screw group = 4; p = 0.672) and varus collapse in nine patients (blade group n = 5, screw group n = 4; p = 0.733). Harris Hip Scores were similar between the two groups (blade group: 72.70 ± 18.43; screw group: 80.83 ± 18.75; p = 0.84).
Periodontitis in elderly patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: impact on gut microbiota and systemic inflammation

Elderly patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) exhibit considerable periodontitis frequency, which causes tooth loss and poor quality of life. To investigate the impact of periodontitis on gut microbiota, we used 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing to characterize the composition and structure of gut microbiota among elderly patients with T2DM and periodontitis (T2DM_P), elderly patients with T2DM alone (T2DM_NP), and healthy volunteers. We identified 34 key gut microbiota markers that distinguished participants with different periodontal conditions and investigated their connections to other gut bacteria, as well as their clinical correlates. The most striking differences in co-occurrence networks between the T2DM_P and T2DM_NP groups comprised interactions involving dominant genera in the oral cavity (i.e., Streptococcus and Veillonella). Of the 34 identified key gut microbiota markers that distinguished participants with different periodontal conditions, 25 taxa were correlated with duration of diabetes, dry mouth or the peripheral levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines (e.g., tumor necrosis factor-α, interferon-γ, prostaglandin E2, interleukin-17, and interleukin-6) and metabolic parameters (e.g., hemoglobin A1c), respectively. Our findings suggest that gut microbial shifts driven by periodontitis may contribute to systemic inflammation and metabolic dysfunction during the progression of T2DM.
Short Cycle Covers of Graphs with at Most 77% Vertices of Degree Two

Let $G$ be a bridgeless multigraph with $m$ edges and $n_2$ vertices of degree two and let $cc(G)$ be the length of its shortest cycle cover. It is known that if $cc(G) < 1.4m$ in bridgeless graphs with $n_2 \le m/10$, then the Cycle Double Cover Conjecture holds. Fan (2017) proved that if $n_2 = 0$, then $cc(G) < 1.6258m$ and $cc(G) < 1.6148m$ provided that $G$ is loopless; morever, if $n_2 \le m/30$, then $cc(G) < 1.6467m$. We show that for a bridgeless multigraph with $m$ edges and $n_2$ vertices of degree two, $cc(G) < 1.6148m + 0. 0741n_2$. Therefore, if $n_2=0$, then $cc(G) < 1.6148m$ even if $G$ has loops; if $n_2 \le m/30$, then $cc(G) < 1.6173m$; and if $n_2 \le m/10$, then $cc(G) < 1.6223|E(G)|$. Our improvement is obtained by randomizing Fan's construction.
Synthesis of Progressive Varying Texture Through Blending Laplacian Pyramid Coefficients

We generate a texture synthesis algorithm where there is a gradual progression of merged textures in the output image. The goal of the algorithm is to merge the textures based on the given measure of texture proportion. The proportion of texture contents defines how much of the textures from each input will be preserved in the output and how the distribution of texture will occur after merging. By merging two textures, a continuous and seamless output texture is formed. We design the algorithm in such a way, that both the local high and low frequency texture contents are preserved in the output. We generate the Laplacian pyramids for each input. At each level of the pyramids we blend the coefficients from the inputs using the weighted smooth maximum function. The algorithm is applicable for any random phase textures. It is also applicable for some non-random phase textures which are stochastic and there are no well-defined visual structures. Our method of progressively variant texture synthesis is distinguished from previous techniques by being able to produce a gradual as well as a scattered distribution of the merged textures in the output. This irregular distribution gives a realistic view in the merged region of the output. The transition of textures is not sudden rather it is smooth, coherent and continuous.
Exploring the Constraints on Simulated Aerosol Sources and Transport Across the North Atlantic With Island‐Based Sun Photometers

Atmospheric aerosol over the North Atlantic Ocean impacts regional clouds and climate. In this work, we use a set of sun photometer observations of aerosol optical depth (AOD) located on the Graciosa and Cape Verde islands, along with the GEOS‐Chem chemical transport model to investigate the sources of these aerosol and their transport over the North Atlantic Ocean. At both locations, the largest simulated contributor to aerosol extinction is the local source of sea‐salt aerosol. In addition to this large source, we find that signatures consistent with long‐range transport of anthropogenic, biomass burning, and dust emissions are apparent throughout the year at both locations. Model simulations suggest that this signal of long‐range transport in AOD is more apparent at higher elevation locations; the influence of anthropogenic and biomass burning aerosol extinction is particularly pronounced at the height of Pico Mountain, near the Graciosa Island site. Using a machine learning approach, we further show that simulated observations at these three sites (near Graciosa, Pico Mountain, and Cape Verde) can be used to predict the simulated background aerosol imported into cities on the European mainland, particularly during the local winter months, highlighting the utility of background AOD monitoring for understanding downwind air quality.
Health's kitchen: TV, edutainment and nutrition

Beeinflusst die Medienexposition das Gesundheitsverhalten? Und wie? Wir nutzen die Umstellung auf digitales Fernsehen in den italienischen Regionen, die exogen die Zahl der nationalen Free-View-Kanale erhoht hat, und verknupfen dies mit hochfrequenten Daten uber das Angebot an lebensmittelbezogenen Inhalten im Fernsehen. Wir stellen fest, dass eine erhohte Exposition gegenuber diesen Inhalten die Grose und die Zusammensetzung der Lebensmittelwarenkorbe der Haushalte verbesserte und insbesondere zu einer Verringerung der Ausgaben fur Lebensmittel mit hohem Fett- und Kohlenhydratgehalt und zu einer Erhohung der Ausgaben fur Lebensmittel mit hohem Proteingehalt fuhrte. Im Einklang mit einer solchen Veranderung der Zusammensetzung der Lebensmittelwarenkorbe dokumentieren wir auch eine signifikante Verringerung des BMI bei Personen, die starker mit lebensmittelbezogenen Fernsehinhalten in Beruhrung kommen. Diese kann nicht durch eine Veranderung der korperlichen Aktivitat erklart werden. Schlieslich finden wir Unterstutzung fur den Imitations- und Learning-by-Watching-Mechanismus als Triebfeder unserer Ergebnisse, indem wir eine signifikante Zunahme des Volumens der Google- und YouTube-Suche nach Rezepten und Videorezepten dokumentieren. Unsere Ergebnisse stellen die gesundheitsbezogenen negativen Stereotypen in Frage, die oft mit der TV-Exposition in Verbindung gebracht werden, und unterstreichen ihr Potenzial als neuer gesundheitspolitischer Hebel.
Sero-genetic Variation for Toxoplasma gondii diagnostic among women with early spontaneous abortions.

Background:-Toxoplasma gondii is common foodborne parasite that generally infects wild, domestic and companion animals. Toxoplasmosis is traditionally identified by serum anti-Toxoplasma antibodies using serological methods, such as enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA)and immunoflorescence assay(IFA). However, IFA and ELISA toxoplasmosis diagnosis are time exhausting, costly and these assays have variable sensitivity and specificity. Moreover, T. Gondii specific antigens and antibodies may not appear early, particularly immunodeficient individuals, and during parasite reactivation, specific antibodies, especially IgM, may not appear. Thus, serological methods have certain limitations. Contrary to technology of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) , in which the reaction is executed with cycles or alternating chain of temperature processing. Amplification of isothermal does not demand a cycle or is performed at a stable temperature Thus, the current work aimed to evaluate the challengein Toxoplasma diagnosis in human sample. Material and methods: One hundred thirteen enrolled women acquired by aborted women and 23 controls in Babel Hospital for Women and Children. All samples were checked by LAMP assay (SAG1, B1, and SAG2) and nPCR. Same sample was also tested by ELISA and enzyme-linked immunofiltration assay. Results: The presented LAMP method successfully diagnosed T. gondii infection; the LAMP results corresponded to those of indirect fluorescentantibody test (IFAT) and ELISA. In the nPCR assays, all samples were positive for T. gondii. This finding was completely opposite those of IFAT and ELISA. Furthermore, two bands were observed in 1.5% agarose gel electrophoresis of nPCR. Conclusion: The LAMP assay supplies easy, sensitive, specific and rapid technique for T. gondii genomic DNA diagnosis.
NICER: Aesthetic Image Enhancement with Humans in the Loop

Fully- or semi-automatic image enhancement software helps users to increase the visual appeal of photos and does not require in-depth knowledge of manual image editing. However, fully-automatic approaches usually enhance the image in a black-box manner that does not give the user any control over the optimization process, possibly leading to edited images that do not subjectively appeal to the user. Semi-automatic methods mostly allow for controlling which pre-defined editing step is taken, which restricts the users in their creativity and ability to make detailed adjustments, such as brightness or contrast. We argue that incorporating user preferences by guiding an automated enhancement method simplifies image editing and increases the enhancement's focus on the user. This work thus proposes the Neural Image Correction & Enhancement Routine (NICER), a neural network based approach to no-reference image enhancement in a fully-, semi-automatic or fully manual process that is interactive and user-centered. NICER iteratively adjusts image editing parameters in order to maximize an aesthetic score based on image style and content. Users can modify these parameters at any time and guide the optimization process towards a desired direction. This interactive workflow is a novelty in the field of human-computer interaction for image enhancement tasks. In a user study, we show that NICER can improve image aesthetics without user interaction and that allowing user interaction leads to diverse enhancement outcomes that are strongly preferred over the unedited image. We make our code publicly available to facilitate further research in this direction.
Evaluation de la fluoroacidité en milieux de sels fondus

Cette these concerne l'etude d'une des principales proprietes physico-chimiques des milieux de fluorures fondus, la fluoroacidite (notee pF et equivalente au pH en solvant aprotique), et son impact sur le procede. La valeur de la fluoroacidite () de chacun des melanges de fluorures fondus n'est actuellement pas connue. L'objet de ces travaux est de construire une echelle relative de fluoroacidite. Cette etude a ete menee dans une premiere partie au travers de deux approches : - une etude cinetique de la stabilite des ions B(III) et Si(IV) dont la reaction conduisant aux especes gazeuses BF3(g) et SiF4(g) est influencee par la fluoroacidite. La comparaison des constantes de vitesse de degagement gazeux a permis de classer les differents milieux et d'etablir une echelle de fluoroacidite relative. - l'influence de la fluoroacidite sur le transport en solution a ete determinee par la mesure du coefficient de diffusion et du nombre adimensionnel de Schmidt (Sc=v/D). La dependance entre fluors pontants, viscosite et fluoroacidite a ete montree, et le classement precedent a ete valide. Dans une seconde partie, une electrode de reference stable en fluorures fondus a ete mise au point. Elle a permis de realiser des mesures de forces electromotrices de piles de concentration et d'etudier l'impact de la fluoroacidite sur le potentiel d'un couple electrochimique. Cette electrode a notamment permis de determiner des rapports d'activites de F- libres dans differents solvants.
Bank-level Analysis of the Determinants of Lending Rate Stickiness in Uganda

This study determines the existence and drivers of the asymmetrical response of lending rates to policy rate changes in Uganda’s banking sector. Uganda’s banking system seems to be faced with sticky adjustments of lending rates following changes in policy rates. Whereas interbank money-market rates have tended to track the evolution of the policy rate, bank lending rates have been stickier, only responding partially to changes in the policy rate, with lags. These lag periods appear to be longer when the policy rate is reduced than when it is raised, which has created challenges for monetary policy implementation. The analysis is based on bank-level data covering 17 commercial banks for the period POLICY BRIEF Bank-level Analysis of the Determinants of Lending Rate Stickiness in Uganda
Crowding-out the in-group bias: a nationalist policy paradox?

Using a dictator game experiment, we investigate if a policy of introducing material incentives to favour one’s own group members will be effective in raising the in-group bias in behaviour. It is not: the introduction of the material incentives in our experiment crowds-out the in-group bias in our subjects’ social preferences. Specifically, we find evidence that is consistent with the social identification with own group members weakening through the introduction of material incentives towards the in-group bias. This result potentially creates a nationalist policy paradox whereby policies like tariffs and discriminatory employment regulations designed to encourage materially the employment of home rather than foreign workers will, on the evidence of this experiment, weaken individuals’ preferences for favouring home over foreign workers. JEL Codes: C72, C91, D31, D63, D91, J70, Z18
Borrowing constraints and export decision

This paper examines the impact of borrowing constraints and productivity on the export decision of Vietnamese firms, where we approximate borrowing constraints by leverage and the tangible asset ratio. Using a large firm-level dataset for the years 2009-2014, we show that borrowing constraints play an important role in the export decision. There is an inverse U-shaped relationship between leverage and the export probability for private manufacturers. The marginal effect of leverage is declining with leverage, but positive up till a leverage ratio of about 47 percent and negative beyond. Borrowing constraints matter both for the decision to start exporting and for the decision to continue exporting, but more so for the latter. Medium and high productive firms are more sensitive to borrowing constraints than low productive firms.
Supplier Development: The Gateway to Supply Chain Management in the Construction Industry

Question: Research Method: Design Science Findings: Main contractors with repeated projects in geographic areas can lead supplier development. Limitations: Other main contractors and other industry firms playing design and construction roles may be able to lead supplier development in different ways—a question for future research. Implications: I.1The construction industry is not reliant only on clients to lead supplier development/supply chain management. I.2 Selecting better performing suppliers increases the profitability of main contractors. I.3 Suppliers’ performance can be improved through feedback and training. Value for Practitioners: Understanding the benefits of supplier development
PANIC: A High-Performance Programmable NIC for Multi-tenant Networks

Programmable NICs have diverse uses, and there is a need for a NIC platform that can offload computation from multiple co-resident applications to many different types of substrates, including hardware accelerators, embedded FPGAs, and embedded processor cores. Unfortunately, there is no existing NIC design that can simultaneously support a large number of diverse offloads while ensuring high throughput/low latency, multi-tenant isolation, flexible offload chaining, and support for offloads with variable performance. This paper presents PANIC, a new programmable NIC. There are two new key components of the PANIC design that enable it to overcome the limitations of existing NICs: 1) A high-performance switching interconnect that scalably connects independent engines into offload chains, and 2) A new hybrid push/pull packet scheduler that provides cross-tenant performance isolation and low-latency load-balancing across parallel offload engines. From experiments performed on an 100 Gbps FPGA-based prototype, we find that this design overcomes the limitations of state-of-the-art programmable NICs.
EVALUATION OF THE PRIVATE FUNDING OF UNIVERSITY RESEARCHERS AND ITS EFFECTS ON SUBSEQUENT PATENTING; CAN THE BIOTECHNOLOGY INNOVATION MODEL BE TRANSFERRED TO ENABLE EFFICIENT DEVELOPMENT IN THE FIELD OF NANOTECHNOLOGY?

Innovation in biotechnology greatly benefits from collaboration and networking between scientists and also institutions. Collaboration, whether it be financial or intellectual, between industry and university is particularly useful because the gap between science and technology is minimal in this area of research. Many sources suggest that the model of knowledge production in nanotechnology is similar to that of biotechnology and many projects are done, taking this into consideration. To the best of our knowledge however, no quantitative analysis has led to validate this in Quebec. We use funding data from the SIRU database and patenting data extracted from the USPTO database to map and compare the process of funding and of the subsequent patenting involving academicinventors and organizations as both patent owners and funders. We find that the instances in which awarded funds actually lead to a patented invention are quite limited and that they are restricted to certain areas of nanotechnology. Furthermore, we find that the only case in which nanotechnology follows biotechnology is in the subfield of nanobiotechnology.
FINITE DEFORMATION CONSTITUTIVE RELATIONS INCLUDING DUCTILE FRACTURE DAMAGE

HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access archive for the deposit and dissemination of scientific research documents, whether they are published or not. The documents may come from teaching and research institutions in France or abroad, or from public or private research centers. L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires publics ou privés. FINITE DEFORMATION CONSTITUTIVE RELATIONS INCLUDING DUCTILE FRACTURE DAMAGE Gilles Rousselier
The teeth and their environment : physical, chemical and biochemical influences

Preface: Duckworth R. M On the Relationship between Calculus and Caries: Duckworth, R.M. Huntington, E The Structure, Function and Properties of the Acquired Pellicle: Hannig, M. Joiner, A Model Parameters and their Influence on the Outcome of in vitro Demineralisation and Remineralisation Studies: Lynch, R.J.M Tooth Wear Version 3.3: 16th February 2005: Pickles, M.J Nanomechanics, Chemistry and Structure at the Enamel Surface: Mann, A.B. Dickinson, M.E Plaque as a Reservoir for Active Ingredients: Duckworth, R.M. Gao, X.J Author Index Subject Index.
Smoking as a Risk Factor for Peri-Implantitis and Dental Implant Failure-A Literature Review

Background: Despite the fact that dental implant therapy is a very successful treatment, various studies have suggested higher Implant failure rates in smokers. The aim of this study is to assess whether smokers are at an increased risk of implant failure and peri-implantitis, as compared to non-smokers. Methods: A comprehensive search on PubMed, Cochrane library and Web of Science was conducted to identify studies investigating the association between smoking and peri-implantitis and implant failure. Only studies published between 1990 and 2016 were considered in this review. Results: From the 920 search results initially retrieved, only 20 were selected after analysis of the abstracts and titles. The quality of the included papers was assessed using the Quality Assessment Tool for Quantitative Studies. It was found that the quality rating for most of the studies included was moderate or strong. The majority of the included studies showed a relationship between cigarette smoking and dental implant failure. Conclusion: The results from the included studies showed that smoking is an important risk factor for dental implant failure. However high quality studies with additional robust epidemiological and clinical investigations are required to confirm the association between the two.
Can Nudges Increase Take-Up of the EITC?: Evidence from Multiple Field Experiments

The Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) distributes more than $60 billion to over 20 million low-income families annually. Nevertheless, an estimated one-fifth of eligible households do not claim it. We ran six pre-registered, large-scale field experiments to test whether “nudges” could increase EITC take-up (N=1million). Despite varying the content, design, messenger, and mode of our messages, we find no evidence that they affected households’ likelihood of filing a tax return or claiming the credit. We conclude that even the most behaviorally informed low-touch outreach efforts cannot overcome the barriers faced by low-income households who do not file returns.
Speeding up decimal multiplication

Decimal multiplication is the task of multiplying two numbers in base $10^N. $ Specifically, we focus on the number-theoretic transform (NTT) family of algorithms. Using only portable techniques, we achieve a 3x-5x speedup over the mpdecimal library. In this paper we describe our implementation and discuss further possible optimizations. We also present a simple cache-efficient algorithm for in-place $2n \times n$ or $n \times 2n$ matrix transposition, the need for which arises in the "six-step algorithm" variation of the matrix Fourier algorithm, and which does not seem to be widely known. Another finding is that use of two prime moduli instead of three makes sense even considering the worst case of increasing the size of the input, and makes for simpler answer recovery.