Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Vulnerability as a Function of Individual and Group Resources in Cumulative Risk Assessment

Background The field of risk assessment has focused on protecting the health of individual people or populations of wildlife from single risks, mostly from chemical exposure. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently began to address multiple risks to communities in the “Framework for Cumulative Risk Assessment” [EPA/630/P02/001F. Washington DC:Risk Assessment Forum, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (2003)]. Simultaneously, several reports concluded that some individuals and groups are more vulnerable to environmental risks than the general population. However, vulnerability has received little specific attention in the risk assessment literature. Objective Our objective is to examine the issue of vulnerability in cumulative risk assessment and present a conceptual framework rather than a comprehensive review of the literature. In this article we consider similarities between ecologic and human communities and the factors that make communities vulnerable to environmental risks. Discussion The literature provides substantial evidence on single environmental factors and simple conditions that increase vulnerability or reduce resilience for humans and ecologic systems. This observation is especially true for individual people and populations of wildlife. Little research directly addresses the topic of vulnerability in cumulative risk situations, especially at the community level. The community level of organization has not been adequately considered as an end point in either human or ecologic risk assessment. Furthermore, current information on human risk does not completely explain the level of response in cumulative risk conditions. Ecologic risk situations are similarly more complex and unpredictable for cases of cumulative risk. Conclusions Psychosocial conditions and responses are the principal missing element for humans. We propose a model for including psychologic and social factors as an integral component of cumulative risk assessment.
Development of idraparinux and idrabiotaparinux for anticoagulant therapy

Summary Idraparinux is an analogue of fondaparinux binding with high affinity to antithrombin. It was designed for weekly, rather than daily, administration, with an exceptionally long half-life. One potential problem with small heparin-like fragments of this type is the difficulty of neutralising excessive activity in the case of sideeffects or overdose. The efficacy of idraparinux was was proven in clincial studies with patients suffering from venous thromboembolism (VTE) or atrial fibrillation. Due to major bleeding events during treatment for more than six months the development of idraparinux was stopped. Idrabiotaparinux has an attached biotin moiety at the non-reducing end unit, which allows its neutralisation with avidin, an egg-derived protein with low antigenicity. This compound is currently investigated in clinical trials for prevention of recurrent VTE in patients with acute pulmonary embolism. The future of idrabiotaparinux depends also on the safety and efficacy of avidin.
Knowledge and Performance of Critical Care Nurses Toward Nebulizer Therapy in the Intensive Care Unit at Assiut University Hospital

Background: A nebulizer is an important device used to inhalant the drugs to treat some pulmonary diseases. The examination of nurse's knowledge and performance regarding the nebulizer therapy has not been conducted before at Assiut University Hospital. Aim of Study: Asses critical care nurse's knowledge and performance related to nebulizer therapy. Methods: Descriptive design was adapted for this study. The sample of this study consisted of 80 nurses working in three intensive care units (38 nurses in traumatic ICU, 20 nurses in postoperative ICU and 22 in general ICU). Two tools were used to collect the required data; nurses' knowledge assessment questionnaire and skills observation checklist related to nebulizer therapy. Results: The findings revealed that (56.2%) of nurses have knowledge about nebulizer therapy at unsatisfactory level (Mean±SD=27.44±12.09) also the findings revealed that (88.8%) of nurses had performance about nebulizer therapy at unsatisfactory level (Mean±SD=29.25±15.97). There was a positive strong relationship between knowledge and performance regarding nebulizer therapy (r=0.277, p=0.013). Conclusions: Nurse's knowledge and performance about nebulizer therapy were unsatisfactory so that the nurses should be trained enough to give effective and safe care to such patients.
TOTAL BODY KINETICS: OUR DIAGNOSTIC KEY TO HUMAN MOVEMENT

INTRODUCTION In all forms of human movement (normal daily activity, athletic movements and even pathological movement) the entire body is usually involved. As such a large number of segments and museies must be controlled. If we wish to "diagnose" the detailed cause of any particular movement it is only through a kinetic analyses of the total body or the total Iimb. Here we see how the movement is being coordinated, and in "many cases how adaptations are being organized by the CNS. In fact, without such analyses it is impossible to identify multiple synergies by several museie groups and simultaneous goals being accomplished by the same museie group.
Innovation Lab for Small Scale Irrigation Upscaling analysis − from small river basin to country 1

National statistics show that SSI is not widely practiced in the three ILSSI study countries. Situation analysis of irrigating farmers provides first-hand evidence that SSI offers additional farming opportunity in the dry season and helps generate additional income to improve the welfare of rural households. Moreover, ILSSI’s ex-ante analyses of proposed SSI interventions in Ethiopia, Tanzania, and Ghana have indicated that, in general, there is groundwater or surface water available to sustain proposed SSI interventions at the target sites, although knowledge gaps requiring further research and specific constraints on the adoption of SSI (e.g., adverse environmental impacts of SSI, low soil fertility, ineffective management practices, high costs of labor and SSI technologies, irrigation water shortages) were identified. With collected field data, ILSSI has begun refining these results in ex-post analyses, and assessing candidate gaps and constraints and their mitigation. These analyses will ultimately enable ILSSI to recommend optimal SSI solutions at the study sites.
Trust-based Mutual Authentication for Bootstrapping in 6LoWPAN

IPv6 over Low Power Wireless Personal Area Network (6LoWPAN) has emerged as a promising technology to realize ambient intelligence under the vision of the Internet of Things. Under most circumstances, it is imperative that security be addressed from bootstrapping to data transmission. In this paper, we propose a secure bootstrapping scheme that includes mutual authentication and trust evaluation to provide the first security measure for 6LoWPAN. The scheme is based on multi-hop cluster-tree hierarchical topology in which pairwise keys between neighboring nodes and trust paths to the base station (BS) are established at the same time. Mutual authentication that is based on pairing requires only the storage of one key and the exchange of IDs considering the computational complexity of public key algorithms and the frangibility of shared key protocols. Trust evaluation relies on multiple criteria to achieve security and energy efficiency and to balance the whole network. The BS also maintains a dynamic blacklist to prevent denial of service (DoS) attacks. Analysis shows that the proposed scheme is secure and scalable. The energy cost in terms of computation and communication as well as storage are also analyzed and compared to that of shared key protocols and public key algorithms through quantitative analysis.
Frequency and Nature of Incidental Extra-Enteric Lesions Found on Magnetic Resonance Enterography (MR-E) in Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (IBD)

Background The aim of this study was to determine the occurrence of extra-enteric findings in a large cohort of patients undergoing magnetic resonance enterography (MR-E) and to classify the clinical significance of these findings. Materials and Methods We retrospectively analyzed 1154 MR-E performed in 1006 patients referred to our radiological department between 1999–2005. The reasons for referral were suspected or proven inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) (n = 710), further diagnostic work-up for small bowel disease because of non-specific abdominal symptoms (SBD; n = 182) or suspected small bowel malignancies (SBM; n = 114). All extra-enteric findings were reviewed by a radiologist and a gastroenterologist and were classified as having high, moderate, or low significance for further diagnostic or therapeutic procedures. Results The average age of all patients was 40±16 (Mean±SD) years (y) (IBD 35±13 y; SBD 49±16 y; SBM 57±15 y). A total of 1113 extra-enteric findings were detected in 600 of 1006 patients (59.6%). Of these findings 180 (16.2%) were judged as having a high, 212 (19.0%) a moderate and 721 (64.8%) a low significance. On a per group basis in patients with IBD 12.0% of the findings were of major clinical significance compared to 13.7% and 33.3% in patients with SBD and SBM, respectively. The most common major findings were abscesses (69.9%) in the IBD group and extraintestinal tumors, metastases or masses in the SBD and SBM groups (41.9% and 74.2%, respectively). Conclusions MR-E reveals a substantial number of extra-enteric findings, supporting the role of a cross-sectional imaging method for the evaluation of the small bowel.
NAD(P)H oxidase modulates angiogenesis and the development of portosystemic collaterals and splanchnic hyperaemia in portal hypertensive rats

Background: Recent studies have shown the presence of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-dependent splanchnic angiogenesis in experimental models of portal hypertension, and the role of such neovascularisation on the development of both portosystemic collaterals and hyperdynamic splanchnic circulation. However, the mechanisms modulating angiogenesis in portal hypertension are unknown. Experimental evidence indicates that NAD(P)H oxidase is required for VEGF-induced angiogenesis. Interestingly, we have recently shown that splanchnic NAD(P)H oxidase activity is significantly increased in portal hypertensive rats. Therefore, it could be possible that activated NAD(P)H oxidases modulate angiogenesis in portal hypertension. Aim: To determine the effects of chronic NAD(P)H oxidase inhibition on angiogenesis and splanchnic haemodynamics in portal hypertensive rats. Methods: Partial portal vein-ligated and sham-operated rats were treated with the NAD(P)H oxidase inhibitor apocynin, or with vehicle for 5 days. Then, the expression of angiogenesis markers (western blotting), the formation of portosystemic collaterals (radioactive microspheres) and the production of superoxide anion (lucigenin-enhanced chemiluminescence) were determined. Mean arterial pressure, portal pressure, and superior mesenteric arterial blood flow and resistance were also measured. Results: In portal hypertensive rats, NAD(P)H oxidase blockade significantly decreased portosystemic collateral formation, and superior mesenteric arterial flow. It also reduced the splanchnic expression of VEGF, VEGF receptor-2 and CD31, and attenuated the increased production of superoxide, compared with vehicle. Conclusions: NAD(P)H oxidase plays an important role in experimental portal hypertension, modulating splanchnic angiogenesis, the formation of portosystemic collaterals and the development of splanchnic hyperdynamic circulation. These results suggest that NAD(P)H oxidase may represent a new target in the treatment of portal hypertension.
Annual Review of Linguistics The Advantages of Bilingualism Debate

Bilingualism was once thought to result in cognitive disadvantages, but research in recent decades has demonstrated that experience with two (or more) languages confers a bilingual advantage in executive functions and may delay the incidence of Alzheimer’s disease. However, conflicting evidence has emerged leading to questions concerning the robustness of the bilingual advantage for both executive functions and dementia incidence. Some investigators have failed to find evidence of a bilingual advantage; others have suggested that bilingual advantages may be entirely spurious, while proponents of the advantage case have continued to defend it. A heated debate has ensued, and the field has now reached an impasse. This review critically examines evidence for and against the bilingual advantage in executive functions, cognitive aging, and brain plasticity, before outlining how future research could shed light on this debate and advance knowledge of how experience with multiple languages affects cognition and the brain. 1.1 A nn u. R ev . L in gu is t. 20 19 . 5 . D ow nl oa de d fr om w w w . a nn ua lre vi ew s.o rg A cc es s p ro vi de d by U ni ve rs ity o f C al ifo rn ia Sa nt a B ar ba ra o n 06 /2 2/ 18 . F or p er so na l u se o nl y. LI05CH01_Antoniou ARI 6 June 2018 12:14
Comparison of Patients With Bulimia Nervosa, Obese Patients With Binge Eating Disorder, and Nonobese Patients With Binge Eating Disorder

This study compared patients with bulimia nervosa (BN), obese patients with binge eating disorder (BED), and nonobese patients with BED. One hundred sixty-two adult women consecutively evaluated for outpatient clinical trials who met DSM-IV criteria for BN, purging type (N = 46) or for BED (N = 79 obese and N = 37 nonobese) were compared using the Eating Disorder Inventory (EDI). The three groups differed significantly on two (drive for thinness and body dissatisfaction) of the three eating-related scales and on all five of the general personality scales of the EDI. When age and depression level were controlled, findings for the eating-related scales did not change, whereas four of the five general personality scales were no longer significant. Post hoc analyses revealed that the BN group and the nonobese BED group had significantly higher drive for thinness than the obese BED group. The nonobese and the obese BED groups did not differ from each other in any area (other than drive for thinness), including body dissatisfaction. The nonobese and the obese BED groups had significantly lower maturity features than the BN group. Our findings suggest that when the effects of age and depression levels are controlled, treatment-seeking women with BN and BED are generally similar. Certain differences that do exist between women with BN and BED are associated with obesity status (drive for thinness), whereas others are associated with diagnosis (body dissatisfaction, maturity fears).
R&D Dynamics and Corporate Cash

Firms in R&D intensive industries hold more cash than firms in R&D non-intensive industries. Potential explanations in the literature for the high cash holdings of R&D intensive firms include R&D adjustment costs, financial frictions, knowledge spillover, innovation uncertainty, market competition, and tax policy. We write down a parsimonious industry equilibrium model of firms which incorporates all of the cited explanations and allows for a horserace between them. We find that R&D adjustment costs have a relatively small effect on cash holdings, while financial frictions, knowledge spillover, and market competition matter if they are shut down. Innovation uncertainty and tax policy have the largest effects on the cash holdings of R&D intensive firms, and these two factors matter at the margin as well as if they are shut down. We finally run some policy experiments to determine the value of cash under various situations.
Oscillatory Convection in Rotating Spherical Shells: Low Prandtl Number and Non-Slip Boundary Conditions

A five-degree model, which reproduces faithfully the sequence of bifurcations and the type of solutions found through numerical simulations of the three-dimensional Boussinesq thermal convection equations in rotating spherical shells with fixed azimuthal symmetry, is derived. A low Prandtl number fluid of $\sigma=0.1$ subject to radial gravity, filling a shell of radius ratio $\eta=0.35$, differentially heated, and with non-slip boundary conditions, is considered. Periodic, quasi-periodic, and temporal chaotic flows are obtained for a moderately small Ekman number, $E=10^{-4}$, and at supercritical Rayleigh numbers of order $Ra\sim O(2Ra_c)$. The solutions are classified by means of frequency analysis and Poincare sections. Resonant phase locking on the quasi-periodic branches, as well as a sequence of period doubling bifurcations, are also detected.
Comovements and Volatility Spillover in Commodity Markets

This paper analyzes comovements and connectedness of commodity futures in the past two decades. We apply dynamic conditional correlation model (DCC) to capture time-varying dependence structure of a variety of commodities across different sectors. We propose to estimate network connectedness of commodity markets by the modeling framework of Diebold and Yilmaz (2014) that studies direction and magnitude of volatility spillover using reduced-form vector autoregression (VAR) models and generalized forecast error variance decomposition. We find that both DCC and VAR models present consistent results: while comovements and connectedness of commodity markets have dramatically increased during 2007-2009 financial distress, they have returned to the pre-crisis levels after. We also find that recent downward movement of commodity prices does not necessarily indicate stronger connection between commodity markets, which poses challenges on recent studies in commodity financialization.
Association between CYP 2 D 6 polymorphisms and lung cancer risk : an update meta-analysis

Background: Genetic variants in metabolic enzymes of CYP2D6 have been shown to be associated with the pathogenesis of lung cancer. However, the results remain inconsistent. The aim of the present study was to explore the exact role of CYP2D6 polymorphisms in lung cancer risk. Methods: Online electronic databases were searched to retrieve related articles published between 2000 and 2014. The odds ratio (OR) with its 95% confidence interval (CI) were employed to assess these associations. Results: A total of 11 case-control studies were screened out, including 1634 cases and 1626 healthy controls. No significant heterogeneity was found between studies. Our results found that the T allele and TT genotype of C188T polymorphism, the C allele and CC genotype of G4268C variant, were associated with increased the risk of lung cancer. Subgroup analysis by hyphology of lung cancer showed that TT genotype of C188T polymorphism was significantly associated with adenocarcinoma risk. No relationship was found between G1934A polymorphism and lung cancer. Conclusions: Our results found that polymorphisms of C188T and G4268C in CYP2D6 gene were associated with increased the risk of lung cancer. Further large-scale studies concerning the interaction of gene-gene or gene-environment are needed.
A sliding window based meta-majority of voting ensemble for credit risk assessment

In this paper an ensemble of classifiers for credit risk assessment is proposed. A sliding window of samples with pre-specified size is adopted to train each individual classifier of ensemble in a logical ring structure. The completion of one cycle of a logical ring structure is treated as a pass. During every pass by voting mechanism classifier with higher accuracy is maintained. The final accuracy of the ensemble method is determined after completion of all cycles with a meta-voting. We have evaluated the performance of our method on two publicly available credit databases and compared it with two benchmark ensemblers such as Bagging and Boosting. Type-I and Type-II errors of this method suggest the financial institutions to assess their credit risk accurately and make them healthy.
Stylization of Virtual Humans

The growing importance of Virtual Reality (VR) in recent years has put emphasis on the topic of avatars: Especially for shared VR experiences, it is important to provide a visual representation of the user. An important question is: What will these avatars look like? Even though VR offers great artistic freedom in the design of virtual avatars, serious applications of social VR will most likely prefer a design close to the real appearance of humans. For this, a natural choice is the derivation of an avatar from the true appearance of a human person, using photographs or 3D scans, for example. While this will result in a close resemblance to the real person, achieving ultimate photo-realism is challenging, especially considering the typically uncontrolled recording conditions present in normal situations. Human avatars produced from such digital body captures are likely to be clearly distinguishable from photographs, which might result in negative reactions from observers due to conflicting cues. Instead of fighting the uphill battle to achieve ultimate photorealism, we propose a deliberate deviation from realism by means of automatic stylization of such body captures. Here we recap previous research on this topic by us and others, summarize experimental results from an automatic stylization system, and discuss potential applications and future work.
Open Innovation Session as a Tool Supporting Innovativeness in Strategies for High-Tech Companies in the Czech Republic

Open innovation has developed over several decades from a small pool of innovation pioneers, mostly active in high-tech industries, to be widely discussed and implemented in innovation strategy. The primary objective of the Open Innovation Session (OIS) is to create a platform where firms are able to facilitate knowledge transfer. This paper focuses on the contribution of OIS, implemented by regional government, in formulating companies’ strategic management and to overcome barriers to innovation for high-tech companies in the South Moravian region of the Czech Republic. The methodology adopted for this paper includes monitoring and analysing the activities of this programme over seven years, followed by a quantitative study using both primary and secondary data. The primary data for the research were gathered through questionnaires, where the respondents were general managers of companies that had at least some experience of an innovation process. Secondary data were taken from the Czech Statistical Office. This paper has found that the association between an aspiration for innovation leadership and expenditure for research and development is high, further that participation in OIS led to a shift in the perception of the objectives, needs and conditions of the business and finally the major barriers to the innovation process are a lack of highly motivated people with the necessary technical and business experience.