Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Denoising fluorescence molecular image by K-Means clustering

Fluorescence molecular imaging tomography has the advantages of early intervention, low cost and easy use. FMT can acquire the distribution area of fluorophore in body without cutting the body or putting something into the body. But fluorescence molecular image is very sensitive to many kind of noises, such as autofluorescence, white noise and some other noises. The fluorescence signal is the major component in fluorescence image, the intensity of autofluorescence and other background signals are relatively low in the experiment result. The methods represented in this paper is to eliminate high frequency noises by Gaussian smoothing in frequency domain, then, to extract the major components of the fluorescence signals by wavelet transform, finally, K-Means clustering is used to separate the major component and background of the fluorescence image. Experiment results show that the proposed method is efficacy, it could obtain the fluorescence signal while eliminate the background noise, and increase the quality of fluorescence image.
Update on research and application of problem‐based learning in medical science education

Problem‐based learning (PBL) is a unique form of pedagogy dedicated to developing students' self‐learning and clinical practice skills. After several decades of development, although applications vary, PBL has been recognized all over the world and implemented by many medical schools. This review summarizes and updates the application and study of PBL in medical education through the literature published between 1993 and early 2017. It focuses on understanding real medical PBL courses and ways to improve PBL to achieve better learning outcomes. PBL aims to develop lifelong skills to solve practical problems rather than limiting learning to theoretical knowledge. To achieve this goal, strict and reasonable procedures need to be designed and implemented. Rigorous monitoring and timely feedback and evaluation are indispensable to constant improvements and perfecting of the process. © 2017 by The International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 46(2):186–194, 2018.
Filtration properties of electrospinning nanofibers

Electrospinning is a relatively simple method to produce submicron fibers from solutions of dif- ferent polymers and polymer blends. The extensive applica- tion in future of electrospinning nanofibers is filtration. In this article, the filtration properties of electrospinning nano- fibers were investigated. During the experiments, nanofibers layers with different area weight were electrospun on the spunbonded or meltblown sublayers. Fiber diameter, pore diameter, filtration efficiency as well as filtration resistance of nanofibers web and sublayers were measured, respec- tively, through a series of experiments. The results show that the fiber diameter of nanofibers is much smaller than that of sublayers. It is also found that the pore diameter of nanofi- bers web is much smaller than sublayers and coefficient variation of the pore diameter of nanofibers web is much smaller than sublayers. Moreover, the filtration efficiency and filtration resistance of sublayers are lower than nanofi- bers webs. The balance between efficiency and press drop is also investigated in the article. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 102: 1285-1290, 2006
Indications for medical compression stockings in venous and lymphatic disorders: An evidence-based consensus statement

Objective Medical compression stockings are a standard, non-invasive treatment option for all venous and lymphatic diseases. The aim of this consensus document is to provide up-to-date recommendations and evidence grading on the indications for treatment, based on evidence accumulated during the past decade, under the auspices of the International Compression Club. Methods A systematic literature review was conducted and, using PRISMA guidelines, 51 relevant publications were selected for an evidence-based analysis of an initial 2407 unrefined results. Key search terms included: ‘acute', CEAP', ‘chronic', ‘compression stockings', ‘compression therapy', ‘lymph', ‘lymphatic disease', ‘vein' and ‘venous disease'. Evidence extracted from the publications was graded initially by the panel members individually and then refined at the consensus meeting. Results Based on the current evidence, 25 recommendations for chronic and acute venous disorders were made. Of these, 24 recommendations were graded as: Grade 1A (n = 4), 1B (n = 13), 1C (n = 2), 2B (n = 4) and 2C (n = 1). The panel members found moderately robust evidence for medical compression stockings in patients with venous symptoms and prevention and treatment of venous oedema. Robust evidence was found for prevention and treatment of venous leg ulcers. Recommendations for stocking-use after great saphenous vein interventions were limited to the first post-interventional week. No randomised clinical trials are available that document a prophylactic effect of medical compression stockings on the progression of chronic venous disease (CVD). In acute deep vein thrombosis, immediate compression is recommended to reduce pain and swelling. Despite conflicting results from a recent study to prevent post-thrombotic syndrome, medical compression stockings are still recommended. In thromboprophylaxis, the role of stockings in addition to anticoagulation is limited. For the maintenance phase of lymphoedema management, compression stockings are the most important intervention. Conclusion The beneficial value of applying compression stockings in the treatment of venous and lymphatic disease is supported by this document, with 19/25 recommendations rated as Grade 1 evidence. For recommendations rated with Grade 2 level of evidence, further studies are needed.
Defining successful aging: a tangible or elusive concept?

PURPOSE OF THE STUDY Everyone wants to age successfully; however, the definition and criteria of successful aging remain vague for laypersons, researchers, and policymakers in spite of decades of research on the topic. This paper highlights work of scholars who made significant theoretical contributions to the topic. DESIGN AND METHODS A thorough review and evaluation of the literature on successful aging was undertaken. RESULTS Our review includes early gerontological definitions of successful aging and related concepts. Historical perspectives reach back to philosophical and religious texts, and more recent approaches have focused on both process- and outcome-oriented models of successful aging. We elaborate on Baltes and Baltes' theory of selective optimization with compensation [Baltes, P. B. , & Baltes, M. M. (1990a). Psychological perspectives on successful aging: The model of selective optimization with compensation. In P. B. Baltes & M. M. Baltes (Eds.), Successful aging: Perspectives from the behavioral sciences (pp. 1-34). United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press], Kahana and Kahana's preventive and corrective proactivity model [Kahana, E. , & Kahana, B. (1996). Conceptual and empirical advances in understanding aging well through proactive adaptation. In V. Bengtson (Ed.), Adulthood and aging: Research on continuities and discontinuities (pp. 18-40). New York: Springer], and Rowe and Kahn's model of successful aging [Rowe, J. W. , & Kahn, R. L. (1998). Successful aging. New York: Pantheon Books], outlining their commonalities and differences. Additional views on successful aging emphasize subjective versus objective perceptions of successful aging and relate successful aging to studies on healthy and exceptional longevity. IMPLICATIONS Additional theoretical work is needed to better understand successful aging, including the way it can encompass disability and death and dying. The extent of rapid social and technological change influencing views on successful aging also deserves more consideration.
Impact of Online Health Information on Patient-physician Relationship and Adherence; Extending Health-belief Model for Online Contexts

Physicians have information advantage over patients in terms of professional knowledge and expertise, implying patients have to fully depend on them for diagnosis, prescription and treatment. However, in the wake of abundant online health information (OHI) on the internet and through mobile apps, these days patients appear to be better-informed when approaching their physicians. As per health-belief model, patients would be motivated better to adhere to physicians’ prescribed treatments if they feel threatened by their symptoms and/or when they are convinced about the benefits of the treatment. This research proposes improved healthbelief model incorporating use of OHI. It identifies different types of OHI shaping up patients’ perceptions prior to interactions with physicians. It suggests that patient-physician meetings (relationship) and consequent adherence behavior of the patients are inter-related and deeply affected by the initial perceptions of the patients based on consumed OHI. The proposed model is being tested using anonymous survey data collected immediately after patient-physician meetings in clinics/hospitals and subsequent adherence data from the same patients. Key contribution of this paper is combining individual’s information behavior with health behavior which provides much better understanding for management of emergent healthcare delivery models in the digital economy.
Model-Based Learning for Accelerated, Limited-View 3-D Photoacoustic Tomography

Recent advances in deep learning for tomographic reconstructions have shown great potential to create accurate and high quality images with a considerable speed up. In this paper, we present a deep neural network that is specifically designed to provide high resolution 3-D images from restricted photoacoustic measurements. The network is designed to represent an iterative scheme and incorporates gradient information of the data fit to compensate for limited view artifacts. Due to the high complexity of the photoacoustic forward operator, we separate training and computation of the gradient information. A suitable prior for the desired image structures is learned as part of the training. The resulting network is trained and tested on a set of segmented vessels from lung computed tomography scans and then applied to in-vivo photoacoustic measurement data.
Stabilizing electrochemical interfaces in viscoelastic liquid electrolytes

Viscoelastic liquid electrolytes composed of ultrahigh molecular weight polymer solutions stabilize electrodeposition of metals by suppressing electroconvection. Electrodeposition is a widely practiced method for creating metal, colloidal, and polymer coatings on conductive substrates. In the Newtonian liquid electrolytes typically used, the process is fundamentally unstable. The underlying instabilities have been linked to failure of microcircuits, dendrite formation on battery electrodes, and overlimiting conductance in ion-selective membranes. We report that viscoelastic electrolytes composed of semidilute solutions of very high–molecular weight neutral polymers suppress these instabilities by multiple mechanisms. The voltage window ΔV in which a liquid electrolyte can operate free of electroconvective instabilities is shown to be markedly extended in viscoelastic electrolytes and is a power-law function, ΔV : η1/4, of electrolyte viscosity, η. This power-law relation is replicated in the resistance to ion transport at liquid/solid interfaces. We discuss consequences of our observations and show that viscoelastic electrolytes enable stable electrodeposition of many metals, with the most profound effects observed for reactive metals, such as sodium and lithium. This finding is of contemporary interest for high-energy electrochemical energy storage.
A Guide to Structured Illumination TIRF Microscopy at High Speed with Multiple Colors

Optical super-resolution imaging with structured illumination microscopy (SIM) is a key technology for the visualization of processes at the molecular level in the chemical and biomedical sciences. Although commercial SIM systems are available, systems that are custom designed in the laboratory can outperform commercial systems, the latter typically designed for ease of use and general purpose applications, both in terms of imaging fidelity and speed. This article presents an in-depth guide to building a SIM system that uses total internal reflection (TIR) illumination and is capable of imaging at up to 10 Hz in three colors at a resolution reaching 100 nm. Due to the combination of SIM and TIRF, the system provides better image contrast than rival technologies. To achieve these specifications, several optical elements are used to enable automated control over the polarization state and spatial structure of the illumination light for all available excitation wavelengths. Full details on hardware implementation and control are given to achieve synchronization between excitation light pattern generation, wavelength, polarization state, and camera control with an emphasis on achieving maximum acquisition frame rate. A step-by-step protocol for system alignment and calibration is presented and the achievable resolution improvement is validated on ideal test samples. The capability for video-rate super-resolution imaging is demonstrated with living cells.
Comparison of the Detection Limits of EDS and EELS in S/TEM

The detection limit for analytical techniques has been the subject of many publications. [1] The most general approach [2] is to define the detection limit at 99% confidence limit of detecting a minor element as Ip-Ib > 3*SQRT(2*Ib) where Ip is the total intensity in an energy window for a given element and Ib is the background intensity under the same window. The ionization cross-section of a given element determines the number of innershell energy loss events in both EDS and EELS, but there are 3 major differences: 1. the X-ray production for an inner-shell transition competes with the generation of Auger electrons, giving rise to a Z-dependent fluorescence yield factor (ω<1) 2. the detection efficiency of EELS systems is generally much higher (up to 80% at low count rates) than for EDS systems (< 1%) 3. the peak-to-background ratios (P/B=Ip-Ib/Ib)) for EELS are generally much lower for EELS than EDS, especially near the detection limit. These differences make EELS a much more sensitive technique for light elements and EDS for heavy elements. However, with the advent of new detector technology it has been possible to improve the EDS detection efficiency by an order of magnitude [3]. This paper re-examines the detection limits of the two techniques under identical conditions in an FEI 200kV S/TEM equipped with a Super-X EDS detector with 0.9 sr collection angle and an EELS spectrometer. The detection efficiency (as a %age of 4π) of the Super-X is compared with Si(Li) detectors in Fig.1; the high efficiency for low X-ray energy (light elements) is due to the absence of a window in front of the detector. The dead time is also much lower for Super-X at the same energy resolution (Fig.1 right) Fig.2 shows simultaneous spectra acquired on a titanium alloy (0.5%Fe, 3%Cr, 5%V, 5%Mo by wt.) of medium specimen thickness, containing Fe-rich precipitates. All the minor elements in the alloy are visible in the EDS spectra, but not in EELS. The P/B ratio of Ti is 35 in EDS compared to ~3 in EELS; for Fe in the precipitates the P/B ratios are 3 for EDS and ~0.01 for EELS. In Fig.3 a line scan from the edge of the specimen shows the specimen thickness t varying from about 0.1 to 0.8 times the inelastic mean free path MFP (λ). In the thin regions (t<0.3 λ) both the EDS and the EELS spectra show iron signals in the precipitates, but the P/B ratio is very low (P/B <0.01) in the EELS case, making accurate quantifications impossible. For a relatively thick (t~0.8λ) region the Fe peak is not visible in EELS signals due to multiple scattering, but is strong in the EDS spectra. The detection limit for EDS is therefore better than for EELS at all specimen thicknesses for all the elements in this alloy. Further examples will be given for a wide range of Z numbers, for example on a chromium doped TiB2 WB alloy, for which the detection limits have been determined by both techniques. 1312 doi:10.1017/S1431927610058940 Microsc. Microanal. 16 (Suppl 2), 2010 © Microscopy Society of America 2010
Engineering trust- and reputation-based security controls for future internet systems

Reputation as a decision criteria for whom to trust has been successfully adopted by a few internet-based businesses such as ebay or Amazon. Moreover, trust evaluation is becoming of increasing importance for future internet systems such as smart grids, because these contain potentially millions of users, their data, and a huge number of subsystems. The resulting scale and complexity makes them ideal candidates for trust and reputation based security controls, but currently engineering methodologies are missing that provide structured step-by-step instructions on how to design such controls. We contribute such a methodology including tool support that helps (i) to elicit trust relationships, (ii) to reason about how to construct trust and reputation engines for these and finally (iii) to specify consequent security controls. The methodology is based on formal OCL-expressions that provide (semi-)automatic support analysing UML models with regard to trust and reputation information.
Cellulose fibrils : Isolation, characterization, and capability for technical applications

Cellulose fibril aggregates embedded in a lignin matrix in the cell wall are a predominant reason for the outstanding specific tensile strength of wood. In order to convert these mechanical properties to practical use for polymer composites, the fibrils can be isolated out of sulphite pulp. The obtained fibrils have diameters below 100 nanometer and lengths in the micrometer range. Homogeneous, translucent fibril films and polymer composites with hydroxypropyl cellulose can be prepared. For mechanical characterization tensile tests and nanoindentation experiments were carried out. The addition of fibrils led to an up to three times higher modulus of elasticity and an up to five times higher tensile strength of the polymers. Network formation was identified by Transmission Electron and Atomic Force Microscopy in films with a filling ratio of at least 10 %. The perspectives of producing new bio-based nanomaterials are promising.
Depth Sensitivity Of The Dielectric Properties OfHuman Skin: Simulations And Measurements

It has been shown that in vivo glucose level changes affect the dielectric characteristics of the skin and underlying tissue, which can be measured non-invasively by impedance spectroscopy (IS). For a successful implementation of such an impedance sensor it is necessary that the sensor, when placed in contact with human skin, has a sufficient field penetration depth so that it is not only sensitive to changes in the dielectric properties of the upper skin layer, but also has a higher sensitivity to changes in the deeper skin layers. This is due to the fact that the upper layers of the skin are poorly vascularised, therefore their dielectric properties have a low sensitivity to changes associated with blood and intravascular fluids. A simplified model of the human skin and underlying tissue has been developed using electromagnetic field finite element simulations. This model can be used to optimise the electrode design of the impedance sensor. Initially, the applicability of the simulation concepts has been tested by comparing simulations with measurements of reference materials using sensors of various sizes. Subsequently, simulations of the skin model are compared with measurements on human subjects using two experimental procedures. In the first procedure, the blood perfusion of the deeper skin layers is changed by the restriction of the blood outflow (using a pressure cuff). It is shown that the sensitivity to these changes is larger with the sensor with the deeper field penetration, in agreement with simulation results. Similar sensors are then used in a second procedure where the blood glucose concentration is changed. The largest sensitivity to this glucose change is again obtained with the sensor that has the deepest field penetration. Future work will concentrate on quantifying perturbing factors, their effects on the different electrode geometries and the differences between various skin types.
Cognitive reappraisal ability buffers against the indirect effects of perceived stress reactivity on Type 2 diabetes.

OBJECTIVE Stress contributes to poor health outcomes; importantly, a stress reaction begins with the negative appraisal of a situation. The ability to use cognitive reappraisal, an emotion regulation strategy that involves reinterpreting an initial appraisal to change its emotional impact, could be a protective factor against the health consequences of stress reactivity. The present study investigated (a) if cognitive reappraisal ability (CRA) acts as a stress buffer against a body mass index (BMI) indicative of being overweight (≥25 kg/m2) or obese (≥30 kg/m2), and (b) if this buffering effect persists against the indirect influences of perceived stress reactivity (PSR) on Type 2 diabetes. METHOD One hundred fifty participants (54% female; mean age = 40.4 years ± 12.4 years) completed an online CRA task, self-report measures of PSR, height, weight, and Type 2 diabetes diagnosis on Amazon's Mechanical Turk. RESULTS Results revealed that CRA significantly interacted with PSR to predict BMI, which indirectly predicted Type 2 diabetes. Individuals with higher PSR and higher CRA exhibited BMIs within a normal weight range and lower incidence of Type 2 diabetes. In contrast, individuals with higher PSR and lower CRA were overweight or obese, with a higher incidence of Type 2 diabetes. Interestingly, higher CRA was not protective in those who had lower levels of PSR. CONCLUSIONS Findings from this study suggest that emotion regulation interventions can be developed to indirectly target Type 2 diabetes and similar obesity-related illnesses, and that emotion regulation interventions should be tailored to the individual. (PsycINFO Database Record
Natural Facial and Head Behavior Recognition using Dictionary of Motion Primitives

This paper proposes a natural facial and head behavior recognition method using hybrid dynamical systems. Most existing facial and head behavior recognition methods focus on analyzing deliberately displayed prototypical emotion patterns rather than complex and spontaneous facial and head behaviors in natural conversation environments. We first capture spatio-temporal features on important facial parts via dense feature extraction. Next, we cluster the spatio-temporal features using hybrid dynamical systems, and construct a dictionary of motion primitives to cover all possible elemental motion dynamics accounting for facial and head behaviors. With this dictionary, the facial and head behavior can be interpreted into a distribution of motion primitives. This interpretation is robust against different rhythms of dynamic patterns in complex and spontaneous facial and head behaviors. We evaluate the proposed approach under natural tele-communication scenarios, and achieve promising results. Furthermore, the proposed method also performs favorably against the state-ofthe-art methods on three benchmark databases. key words: facial and head behaviors, dynamical systems, motion primitives