Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Kinect system in home-based cardiovascular rehabilitation

Cardiovascular diseases lead to a high consumption of financial resources. An important part of the recovery process is the cardiovascular rehabilitation. This study aimed to present a new cardiovascular rehabilitation system to 11 outpatients with coronary artery disease from a Hospital in Porto, Portugal, later collecting their opinions. This system is based on a virtual reality game system, using the Kinect sensor while performing an exercise protocol which is integrated in a home-based cardiovascular rehabilitation programme, with a duration of 6 months and at the maintenance phase. The participants responded to a questionnaire asking for their opinion about the system. The results demonstrated that 91% of the participants (n = 10) enjoyed the artwork, while 100% (n = 11) agreed on the importance and usefulness of the automatic counting of the number of repetitions, moreover 64% (n = 7) reported motivation to continue performing the programme after the end of the study, and 100% (n = 11) recognized Kinect as an instrument with potential to be an asset in cardiovascular rehabilitation. Criticisms included limitations in motion capture and gesture recognition, 91% (n = 10), and the lack of home space, 27% (n = 3). According to the participants’ opinions, the Kinect has the potential to be used in cardiovascular rehabilitation; however, several technical details require improvement, particularly regarding the motion capture and gesture recognition.
Simple Analytics of the Dynamic Laffer Curve Under Alternative Financing Schemes

In this study, we investigate self-financing tax cuts, which are also known as dynamic Laffer effects. By proposing alternative definitions for dynamic Laffer effects, a policy option that features a tax cut should be chosen primarily on the basis of the relative magnitude of government transfers. The simple analytical condition under an alternative financing scheme that leaves current deficits unchanged reduces to a simple comparison between tax revenues and government transfers. Empirical examination of those conditions indicates that whereas countries in Northern and Western Europe, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Korea, and Mexico show the most potential for experiencing dynamic Laffer effects, countries in Eastern Europe, France, the Netherlands and Portugal were not very susceptible.
Immigration and trust in politics in the UK

Since the end of World War Two, the UK has grappled with the potentially conflicting aims of using cheap immigrant labour and maintaining social cohesion. Recent decades have witnessed persistent public concern about immigration, despite government attempts to assuage public opinion by trying to restrict new immigration and introducing citizenship tests designed to increase immigrant assimilation and ultimately social cohesion. My research indicates that public concern about this issue may be having detrimental effects on the functioning of the British political system. Here, I summarise these findings and discuss whether an independent Scottish government should also be worried about the potential effects of public concern about immigration.
Three‐dimensional ultrasound: accuracy of distance and volume measurements

The aim of this study was to evaluate the accuracy of three‐dimensional ultrasound distance and volume measurements using a commercially available three‐dimensional ultrasound scanner. Sixty‐two distance measurements were performed twice on an ultrasound tissue‐mimicking phantom located in a water bath. Three‐dimensional ultrasound distance measurements were compared to the actual distance. Volume measurements were made in a water bath with 21 balloons of various shapes ranging in volume from 20 ml to 490 ml. Three‐dimensional ultrasound volume measurements were compared to actual balloon volumes and to conventional two‐dimensional ultrasound volume calculations.
Comparison of modulation strategies driving a three-phase PWM delta-switch rectifier in wind energy conversion systems applications

Energy generation through wind energy conversion systems (WECS) is expected to supply a considerable amount of electricity in the world's generation matrix. In this context, variable-speed wind turbines equipped with full-scale power electronic converters allow a WECS to be operated close to its maximum power point at each time instant. Furthermore, modern power converter guarantee high power quality, high conversion efficiency levels, reliability and flexibility. This work reviews and compares two types of modulation schemes to two novel ones that are able to drive a Δ-switch rectifier. The presented theoretical analysis is based on a WECS application. Circuit simulation and experimental results verify the operation with the considered strategies. It is shown that one of the novel sub-optimal modulation patterns presents very high performance without the need of a precise sector identification scheme.
[Analysis of clinical manifestations of subheath status in a medical college of Guangdong Province].

OBJECTIVE To explore the clinical manifestation of subhealth status in teachers and medical staff. METHODS An on-the-spot investigation was conducted in 891 personnel of a medical college using a self-designed subhealth questionnaire. The diagnostic criteria for subhealth status were formulated on the basis of literature review and expert counseling. The results were analyzed by frequency analysis and multiple-factor logistic analyses. RESULTS The total subhealth incidence was 57.2 %, and the clinical manifestations included many symptoms of the body, psychology and society. Multiple-factor logistic analysis revealed the most common clinical manifestations of subhealth status including ademonia, weariness, insomnia, waist and back pain, frequent sighs, eye dryness, inattention, irritability, foot and hand coldness, vulnerability to common cold etc. CONCLUSION The clinical manifestations of sub-health status complex.
Probabilistic nod generation model based on speech and estimated utterance categories

ABSTRACT We proposed and evaluated a probabilistic model that generates nod motions based on utterance categories estimated from the speech input. The model comprises two main blocks. In the first block, dialog act-related categories are estimated from the input speech. Considering the correlations between dialog acts and head motions, the utterances are classified into three categories having distinct nod distributions. Linguistic information extracted from the input speech is fed to a cluster of classifiers which are combined to estimate the utterance categories. In the second block, nod motion parameters are generated based on the categories estimated by the classifiers. The nod motion parameters are represented as probability distribution functions (PDFs) inferred from human motion data. By using speech energy features, the parameters are sampled from the PDFs belonging to the estimated categories. The effectiveness of the proposed model was evaluated using an android robot, through subjective experiments. Experiment results indicated that the motions generated by our proposed approach are considered more natural than those of a previous model using fixed nod shapes and hand-labeled utterance categories. GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT
Systematic review of evidence for the benefits of telemedicine

summary A systematic review of telemedicine assessments based on searches of electronic databases between 1966 and December 2000 identified 66 scientifically credible studies that included comparison with a non-telemedicine alternative and that reported administrative changes, patient outcomes, or results of economic assessment. Thirty-seven of the studies (56%) suggested that telemedicine had advantages over the alternative approach, 24 (36%) also drew attention to some negative aspects or were unclear whether telemedicine had advantages and five (8%) found that the alternative approach had advantages over telemedicine. The most convincing evidence on the efficacy and effectiveness of telemedicine was given by some of the studies on teleradiology (especially neurosurgical applications), telemental health, transmission of echo-cardiographic images, teledermatology, home telecare and on some medical consultations. However, even in these applications, most of the available literature referred only to pilot projects and to short-term outcomes. Few papers considered the long-term or routine use of telemedicine. For several applications, including teleradiology, savings and sometimes clinical benefit were obtained through avoidance of travel and associated delays. Studies of home care and monitoring applications showed convincing evidence of benefit, while those on teledermatology indicated that there were cost disadvantages to health-care providers, although not to patients. Forty-four of the studies (67%) appeared to have potential to influence future decisions on the telemedicine application under consideration. However, a number of these had methodological limitations. Although useful clinical and economic outcomes data have been obtained for some tele-medicine applications, good-quality studies arestill scarce and thegeneralizability of most assessment findings isratherlimited.
Selectivity of hydrogen peroxide decomposition towards hydroxyl radicals in catalytic wet peroxide oxidation (CWPO) over Fe/AC catalysts.

Two Fe/AC catalysts prepared with different iron precursors (iron nitrate and iron pentacarbonyl) and the same AC support have been tested in H(2)O(2) decomposition in presence and absence of methanol, a known strong scavenger of hydroxyl radicals, to investigate the selectivity towards . OH formation in this reaction and their behavior in the CWPO of phenol. The catalyst prepared with iron nitrate, with the most oxidized surface and the highest Fe surface content, seems to favor a higher selectivity towards . OH formation in CWPO allowing for complete phenol conversion and a significant TOC removal, with the highest mineralization degree at 50 degrees C and atmospheric pressure. Fe/AC catalysts were more efficient in the CWPO of phenol than in methanol presence due to a better use of the oxidant since adsorbed phenol on catalyst surface minimizes inefficient H(2)O(2) decomposition to H(2)O and O(2)(g). The influence of the initial H(2)O(2) concentration on phenol oxidation with this catalyst was also studied. A theoretical stoichiometric amount of H(2)O(2) for complete oxidation of phenol was chosen as the best starting concentration since auto-scavenging reactions can be minimized and it is sufficient for oxidizing phenol and the aromatic intermediates.
Multi-Objective Optimization of an Outer-Rotor V-Shaped Permanent Magnet Flux Switching Motor Based on Multi-Level Design Method

This paper proposes an outer-rotor V-shaped permanent magnet flux switching (V-PMFS) motor for potential applications in in-wheel direct drive system. However, the cogging torque and torque ripple of the outer-rotor V-PMFS motor are relatively high, which may lead to mechanical vibration and acoustic noise, especially in low speed operation. To improve the overall performances of the outer-rotor V-PMFS motor, a multi-objective optimization method based on multi-level design method is proposed. According to the effect of the design variables on the optimization objectives, sensitivity analysis method is used to divide the design variables into two levels. Then, the two levels of design variables are optimized with two different optimization methods. After optimization, electromagnetic performances between initial and optimal motors are compared. Finally, a prototype motor is manufactured and tested. Both electromagnetic performance analyses and experimental results verify the validity of the proposed optimization method.
A 0.83-$\mu {\rm W}$ QRS Detection Processor Using Quadratic Spline Wavelet Transform for Wireless ECG Acquisition in 0.35- $\mu{\rm m}$ CMOS

Healthcare electronics count on the effectiveness of the on-patient signal preprocessing unit to moderate the wireless data transfer for better power efficiency. In order to reduce the system power in long-time ECG acquisition, this work describes an on-patient QRS detection processor for arrhythmia monitoring. It extracts the concerned ECG part, i.e., the RR-interval between the QRS complex for evaluating the heart rate variability. The processor is structured by a scale-3 quadratic spline wavelet transform followed by a maxima modulus recognition stage. The former is implemented via a symmetric FIR filter, whereas the latter includes a number of feature extraction steps: zero-crossing detection, peak (zero-derivative) detection, threshold adjustment and two finite state machines for executing the decision rules. Fabricated in 0.35-μm CMOS the 300-Hz processor draws only 0.83 μW, which is favorably comparable with the prior arts. In the system tests, the input data is placed via an on-chip 10-bit SAR analog-to-digital converter, while the output data is emitted via an off-the-shelf wireless transmitter (TI CC2500) that is configurable by the processor for different data transmission modes: 1) QRS detection result, 2) raw ECG data or 3) both. Validated with all recordings from the MIT-BIH arrhythmia database, 99.31% sensitivity and 99.70% predictivity are achieved. Mode 1 with solely the result of QRS detection exhibits 6× reduction of system power over modes 2 and 3.
Association between serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D level and upper respiratory tract infection in the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.

BACKGROUND Recent studies suggest a role for vitamin D in innate immunity, including the prevention of respiratory tract infections (RTIs). We hypothesize that serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25[OH]D) levels are inversely associated with self-reported recent upper RTI (URTI). METHODS We performed a secondary analysis of the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, a probability survey of the US population conducted between 1988 and 1994. We examined the association between 25(OH)D level and recent URTI in 18 883 participants 12 years and older. The analysis adjusted for demographics and clinical factors (season, body mass index, smoking history, asthma, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease). RESULTS The median serum 25(OH)D level was 29 ng/mL (to convert to nanomoles per liter, multiply by 2.496) (interquartile range, 21-37 ng/mL), and 19% (95% confidence interval [CI], 18%-20%) of participants reported a recent URTI. Recent URTI was reported by 24% of participants with 25(OH)D levels less than 10 ng/mL, by 20% with levels of 10 to less than 30 ng/mL, and by 17% with levels of 30 ng/mL or more (P < .001). Even after adjusting for demographic and clinical characteristics, lower 25(OH)D levels were independently associated with recent URTI (compared with 25[OH]D levels of > or =30 ng/mL: odds ratio [OR], 1.36; 95% CI, 1.01-1.84 for <10 ng/mL and 1.24; 1.07-1.43 for 10 to <30 ng/mL). The association between 25(OH)D level and URTI seemed to be stronger in individuals with asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (OR, 5.67 and 2.26, respectively). CONCLUSIONS Serum 25(OH)D levels are inversely associated with recent URTI. This association may be stronger in those with respiratory tract diseases. Randomized controlled trials are warranted to explore the effects of vitamin D supplementation on RTI.
Findings of the International Subarachnoid Aneurysm Trial and the National Study of Subarachnoid Haemorrhage in context

Concern has been expressed about the applicability of the findings of the International Subarachnoid Aneurysm Trial (ISAT) with respect to the relative effects on outcome of coiling and clipping. It has been suggested that the findings of the National Study of Subarachnoid Haemorrhage may have greater relevance for neurosurgical practice. The objective of this paper was to interpret the findings of these two studies in the context of differences in their study populations, design, execution and analysis. Because of differences in design and analysis, the findings of the two studies are not directly comparable. The ISAT analysed all randomized patients by intention-to-treat, including some who did not undergo a repair, and obtained the primary outcome for 99% of participants. The National Study only analysed participants who underwent clipping or coiling, according to the method of repair, and obtained the primary outcome for 91% of participants. Time to repair was also considered differently in the two studies. The comparison between coiling and clipping was susceptible to confounding in the National Study, but not in the ISAT. The two study populations differed to some extent, but inspection of these differences does not support the view that coiling was applied inappropriately in the National Study. Therefore, there are many reasons why the two studies estimated different sizes of effect. The possibility that there were real, systematic differences in practice between the ISAT and the National Study cannot be ruled out, but such explanations must be seen in the context of other explanations relating to chance, differences in design or analysis, or confounding.
3D printed microplatform for fiber-coupled optical microsystems

In this paper, a 3D printed microplatform for realization of fiber-coupling between a light source and an optical microsystems is proposed. The micro-platform is designed in a CAD software and printed using additive manufacturing fusing technology. The performance of the proposed microplatform is tested successfully by coupling an integrated CMOS photodiode with an area of 500×500μm2 to a pig tail laser that is attached to a 62. 5μm/125 μm multimode fiber optic cable. Experiment results show that the proposed microplatform presents a cost-effective alternative to the silicon-processed microplatforms.
Immunogenicity and Protective Efficacy of the WI-1 Adhesin of Blastomyces dermatitidis

ABSTRACT People infected with Blastomyces dermatitidis develop strong immunity to the yeast surface adhesin WI-1, including antibody responses to the adhesive domain, a 25-amino-acid repeat, and cellular responses to the N terminus. We studied the immunogenicity of WI-1 and the ability of anti-WI-1 immune responses to protect against lethal pulmonary infection in mice. WI-1 immunization, given in Freund’s adjuvant subcutaneously in two doses 2 weeks apart, evoked delayed hypersensitivity responses in a concentration-dependent manner. Immunized mice also had anti-WI-1 antibody responses, with titers reaching an endpoint dilution of approximately 1:800,000. Anti-WI-1 immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibody subclasses were IgG1 > IgG2b > IgG2a > IgG3, indicating a mixed T helper 1 and T helper 2 immune response. In protection experiments, WI-1 immunization significantly prolonged the survival of C57BL/6 and BALB/c mice compared to controls following intranasal administration of a lethal dose of B. dermatitidis yeasts (Kaplan-Meier survival curveP values of 0.027 to 0.0002) and also protected a proportion of the animals from death due to progressive pulmonary blastomycosis. Taken together, our results suggest that administration of WI-1 raises antibody and cell-mediated immune responses, which enhance resistance against pulmonary infection with B. dermatitidis. Mechanisms of vaccine-induced resistance require further investigation.
Thin film resonator technology

Advances in wireless systems have placed increased demands on high performance frequency control devices for operation into the microwave range. With spectrum crowding, high bandwidth requirements, miniaturization, and low cost requirements as a background, the thin film resonator technology has evolved into the mainstream of applications. This technology has been under development for over 40 years in one form or another, but it required significant advances in integrated circuit processing to reach microwave frequencies and practical manufacturing for high-volume applications. This paper will survey the development of the thin film resonator technology and describe the core elements that give rise to resonators and filters for today's high performance wireless applications.
Socio-Economic Analysis of the Migrant Laborers in District Chitral, Pakistan

The present titled Socio-economic analysis of the migrant laborers (with reference to District Chitral, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan). A sample size of 500 out of a population size of 5000 (250 migrants in Peshawar and 250 respondents of their dependent families back in district Chitral) was selected through simple random sampling procedure. Interview schedule was used as a tool for data collection. Chi-square test was used to measure the association between dependent and independent variables. The results disclosed that the relationship between the nature of job of the respondents and monthly income was found non-significant (0.994). Also, a non-significant relationship was disclosed between migrant’s satisfaction with their jobs and monthly income. As the migrants were doing low status jobs and had low income, so majority of them were not satisfied from their income. Furthermore, a non-significant association was observed between the comparison of the respondent’s previous and present job and monthly income. However, a highly significant (P=0.000) relationship was disclosed between present monthly expenditure of the migrants and monthly income. Furthermore, a highly significant (P=0.000) relationship was disclosed between monthly savings of the respondents and monthly income. Likewise, a highly significant (P=0.001) association was disclosed between sending money to village and monthly income. The study concluded despite low wages, monthly income had made them capable saving and sending it back to native areas for native family boast up and welfare activities. Making migration consistent with same well-defined characteristics enshrined with a central theme was suggested as recommendation of the study.
Statistical Benefits of Value-At-Risk with Long Memory

Are there substantial improvements associated with the use of long memory models in the computation of value-at-risk (VAR)? The performance of the GARCH and the ARFIMA models, the latter estimated using daily variance obtained from high-frequency data, are compared on various criteria. The results show that the long memory model provides a superior performance in terms of multi-step point forecasting. Allowing for time-varying variance of the realized variance process in the context of an ARFIMA-FIGARCH model also substantially improves VAR forecasting.