Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Virtually He@lthy: The Impact of Internet Use on Disease Experience and the Doctor-Patient Relationship

In the current study, the author explores the complex effects and contradictory roles of the Internet as a source of empowerment and control, and as a site of “risk management. ” Drawing on a study of the Internet usage of Australian men with prostate cancer, the author investigates how access to information and online support affects men’s experiences of disease and, in particular, the possible implications of Internet-informed patients for the doctor-patient relationship. The data reveal that accessing information and/or support online can have a profound effect on men’s experiences of prostate cancer, providing a method of taking some control over their disease and limiting inhibitions experienced in face-to-face encounters. However, it is also clear that some medical specialists view Internet-informed patients as a challenge to their power within medical encounters and, as a result, employ disciplinary strategies that reinforce traditional patient roles and alienate patients who use the Internet.
Reliability of Paramedic Ratings of Laryngoscopic Views during Endotracheal Intubation

Background.Prior studies have related prehospital endotracheal intubation (ETI) difficulty to paramedic visualization of the vocal cords using the Cormack-Lehane (C-L) scale. However, the reliability of paramedic C-L ratings has not been formally studied.Objective. To evaluate the reliability of C-L anda more recently described scale, percentage of glottic opening (POGO), when used by paramedics to rate laryngoscopic views during ETI.Methods. Twenty-five standard slide images of laryngoscopic views were obtained during ETI. The 25 images were duplicated to facilitate evaluation of intrarater agreement (total 50 slides). Seven paramedics rated the degree of vocal cord visualization in each image using C-L (I–IV, ordinal scale; I = full visualization of vocal cords, IV = only epiglottis seen) andPOGO (0–100 continuous scale; 0 = no vocal cords seen, 100 = full visualization of vocal cords). We assessed intra- andinterrater reliabilities using Cohen's multirater kappa for C-L andintraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) for POGO.Results. C-L showed variable intrarater reliability (kappa range = 0.37–0.90) andpoor interrater reliability (Cohen's multirater kappa = 0.22). POGO demonstrated good to excellent intrarater reliability (one-way random-effects ICC range = 0.57–0.87) andfair to good interrater reliability (two-way random-effects ICC = 0.59, 95% Confidence interval: 0.48–0.71). Conclusions.Paramedic C-L ratings exhibit poor intra- andinterrater reliabilities. Paramedic POGO ratings exhibit fair to good intra- andinterrater reliabilities. POGO may be more appropriate than C-L for prehospital clinical andscientific application. Reliability must be formally evaluated for any proposed laryngoscopic exposure classification system.
A Texture Complexity Based Fast Prediction Unit Size Selection Algorithm for HEVC Intra-coding

The latest High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) standard could achieve the highest coding efficiency compared with all existing video coding standards. However, the computational complexity is increased dramatically because all the possible combinations of the mode candidates are calculated in order to find the optimal rate distortion (RD) cost using Lagrange multiplier. In order to save the coding time of HEVC encoder, this paper proposes a texture complexity based fast prediction unit size selection algorithm for HEVC intra coding. The proposed algorithm could reduce around 38% encoding time in average with only 0.2% increase in BD-rate compared to the test model HM10.0 of HEVC.
Interactive Effects of Elevated [CO2] and Drought on the Maize Phytochemical Defense Response against Mycotoxigenic Fusarium verticillioides

Changes in climate due to rising atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration ([CO2]) are predicted to intensify episodes of drought, but our understanding of how these combined conditions will influence crop-pathogen interactions is limited. We recently demonstrated that elevated [CO2] alone enhances maize susceptibility to the mycotoxigenic pathogen, Fusarium verticillioides (Fv) but fumonisin levels remain unaffected. In this study we show that maize simultaneously exposed to elevated [CO2] and drought are even more susceptible to Fv proliferation and also prone to higher levels of fumonisin contamination. Despite the increase in fumonisin levels, the amount of fumonisin produced in relation to pathogen biomass remained lower than corresponding plants grown at ambient [CO2]. Therefore, the increase in fumonisin contamination was likely due to even greater pathogen biomass rather than an increase in host-derived stimulants. Drought did not negate the compromising effects of elevated [CO2] on the accumulation of maize phytohormones and metabolites. However, since elevated [CO2] does not influence the drought-induced accumulation of abscisic acid (ABA) or root terpenoid phytoalexins, the effects elevated [CO2] are negated belowground, but the stifled defense response aboveground may be a consequence of resource redirection to the roots.
Challenges in building trust in B2C e-Commerce and proposal to mitigate them: developing countries perspective

In this technology mediated world, e-Commerce is becoming more and more powerful medium for doing business, globally. Existing security technologies are proven to protect online transaction and fund transfer. However, while transacting with global e-merchants, trustworthiness of secure fund transfer and delivery of products/services are affected, and they could not leverage the potential benefit of e-Commerce. In this paper, the authors firstly overview the current state-of-threat by surveying was people's perception about trust in e-Commerce in developing countries like Bangladesh and argue that the security requirements of e-Commerce service generally go beyond the more traditional requirements of network security. The result analysis shows that, challenges in building trust for Business-to-Consumer (B2C) e-Commerce venture (local/international) is the major concern. The authors propose an e-Commerce enabled model for secure electronic fund transfer, and discuss ways to mitigate challenges in building trust in B2C.
Brands: The Logos of the Global Economy

1. Just Do What? The brand as new media object 2. Marketing as a Performative Discipline and the Emergence of the Brand 3. The Interface of the Brand: Complex objects, interactivity and partial solutions 4. Logos: From relations to relationships 5. The Brand as a Property Form of Relationality 6. Interactivity: Face-to-profile communication 7. The Objectivity of the Brand: Interactivity and the limits of rationality
The availability of conventional and of literal meaning during the comprehension of proverbs

The confusion between sentential figurativeness and conventionality found in many of the experiments on figurative language comprehension is here disentangled by factorially crossing the figurativeness of a proverb (determined by discourse context) with conventionality (determined by familiarity of use). Familiar proverbs are conventionally used in their figurative (and not literal) sense whereas for unfamiliar proverbs the literal meaning (and not the figurative sense) is more available. Multiple dependent measures were employed: the time taken to read the target (experiments 1, 2 and 3), incidental recognition tests of target (experiments 1 and 2), recognition errors (experiments 1 and 2), interpretation errors (experiment 2), and recall aided by context-appropriate or inappropriate cues (experiment 3). Reading time data indicated that unfamiliar proverbs used figuratively took longer to read than the same proverb used literally or literal paraphrase controls. Familiar proverbs were read equally fast, whether understood as a literal or figurative statement. The pattern of memory errors and cued-recall data indicate that conventional meaning and literal meaning are both available in context-appropriate and context-inappropriate conditions, whereas unconventional meaning is available only in context-appropriate conditions.
Design and Integration of Partial Brain Models Using Hierarchical Cooperative CoEvolution

The current work addresses the problem of designing and integrating brain-inspired artificial cognitive systems. Specifically, we introduce a new computational framework for modelling partial brain areas following a coevolutionary agent-based approach. Properly formulated neural agents are employed to represent brain areas. A cooperative coevolutionary method, with the inherent ability to co-adapt substructures, supports the design of the models, and additionally provides a consistent methodology to achieve their integration. The implemented models are successfully embedded in a simulated robotic platform which supports environmental interaction. The proposed approach is utilized to design two distinct models: one for primary motor cortex able to drive the robot in a purposeless wall avoidance mode, and one for hippocampus which supports selflocalization. These models are further integrated by adding at the same time prefrontal structures, in order to drive the robot in a purposeful mode, accomplishing a DMS task in a cross (+) maze.
Estimating quantitative genetic parameters in wild populations

The estimation of quantitative genetic parameters in wild populations is generally limited by the accuracy and completeness of the available pedigree information. Using relatedness at genomewide markers can potentially remove this limitation and lead to less biased and more precise estimates. We estimated heritability, maternal genetic effects and genetic correlations for body size traits in an unmanaged long-term study population of Soay sheep on St Kilda using three increasingly complete and accurate estimates of relatedness: (i) Pedigree 1, using observation-derived maternal links and microsatellite-derived paternal links; (ii) Pedigree 2, using SNP-derived assignment of both maternity and paternity; and (iii) whole-genome relatedness at 37 037 autosomal SNPs. In initial analyses, heritability estimates were strikingly similar for all three methods, while standard errors were systematically lower in analyses based on Pedigree 2 and genomic relatedness. Genetic correlations were generally strong, differed little between the three estimates of relatedness and the standard errors declined only very slightly with improved relatedness information. When partitioning maternal effects into separate genetic and environmental components, maternal genetic effects found in juvenile traits increased substantially across the three relatedness estimates. Heritability declined compared to parallel models where only a maternal environment effect was fitted, suggesting that maternal genetic effects are confounded with direct genetic effects and that more accurate estimates of relatedness were better able to separate maternal genetic effects from direct genetic effects. We found that the heritability captured by SNP markers asymptoted at about half the SNPs available, suggesting that denser marker panels are not necessarily required for precise and unbiased heritability estimates. Finally, we present guidelines for the use of genomic relatedness in future quantitative genetics studies in natural populations.
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN EXPOSURE AND NONSPECIFIC BINDING OF THIRTY-THREE CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM DRUGS IN MICE

Unbound fractions in mouse brain and plasma were determined for 31 structurally diverse central nervous system (CNS) drugs and two active metabolites. Three comparisons were made between in vitro binding and in vivo exposure data, namely: 1) mouse brain-to-plasma exposure versus unbound plasma-to-unbound brain fraction ratio (fuplasma/fubrain), 2) cerebrospinal fluid-to-brain exposure versus unbound brain fraction (fubrain), and 3) cerebrospinal fluid-to-plasma exposure versus unbound plasma fraction (fuplasma). Unbound fraction data were within 3-fold of in vivo exposure ratios for the majority of the drugs examined (i.e., 22 of 33), indicating a predominately free equilibrium across the blood-brain and blood-CSF barriers. Some degree of distributional impairment at either the blood-CSF or the blood-brain barrier was indicated for 8 of the 11 remaining drugs (i.e., carbamazepine, midazolam, phenytoin, sulpiride, thiopental, risperidone, 9-hydroxyrisperidone, and zolpidem). In several cases, the indicated distributional impairment is consistent with other independent literature reports for these drugs. Through the use of this approach, it appears that most CNS-active agents freely equilibrate across the blood-brain and blood-CSF barriers such that unbound drug concentrations in brain approximate those in the plasma. However, these results also support the intuitive concept that distributional impairment does not necessarily preclude CNS activity.
Juice Powder Concentrate and Systemic Blood Pressure, Progression of Coronary Artery Calcium and Antioxidant Status in Hypertensive Subjects: A Pilot Study

Because micronutrients from plants may have beneficial cardiovascular effects, the hypothesis that an encapsulated juice powder concentrate might affect several measures of vascular health was tested in free living adults at low cardiovascular risk. Blood pressure, vascular compliance, lipid and antioxidant markers, and serial electron beam tomography (to calculate a coronary artery calcium score as a measure of atherosclerosis burden), were monitored in 51 pre-hypertensive and hypertensive subjects over 2 years. By the end of follow-up, systolic and diastolic blood pressure decreased significantly (−2.4 ± 1.0 mmHg, P < 0.05 and −2.2 ± 0.6 mmHg, P < 0.001), and large artery compliance improved significantly (1.9 ± 0.6 ml mmHg−1 × 100, P < 0.01). The progression of coronary artery calcium score was smaller than expected compared with a historical database (P < 0.001). Laboratory testing showed a significant decrease in homocysteine (P = 0.05), HDL cholesterol (P = 0.025) and Apo A (P = 0.004), as well as a significant increase in β-carotene, folate, Co-Q10 and α-tocopherol (all P < 0.001). The phytonutrient concentrate we utilized induced several favorable modifications of markers of vascular health in the subjects. This study supports the notion that plant nutrients are important components of a heart healthy diet.
A Novel Technique for Two-Phase BLDC Motor to Avoid Demagnetization

Conventional permanent magnet (PM) motors operate in both magnetizing (pull) process and reversible demagnetizing (push) process on the recoil line of magnets. Therefore, thin-surface PMs may easily undergo a risk of demagnetization at the push process under certain fault conditions, which lead to deterioration of motor performance. Thus, thick magnets, whereas contributing the significantly high cost, are usually used to minimize this risk in the PM motors. In this paper, a novel operation technique, that involves only the pull process, has been proposed for a unique design of two-phase brushless DC motor to avoid the irreversible demagnetization of the magnets. The motor, operated only in the pull process, is kept away from the push process of the operation. Therefore, the motor sustains its initial magnetic operating point above the knee point during the normal operation as well as under the short circuit fault conditions. Finite-element analysis is performed to validate the concept of the proposed technique.
Molecular diagnosis of nontuberculous mycobacteria

Purpose of review Diagnosis of infection due to nontuberculous mycobacteria is not easy, as it must be distinguished from colonization or contamination by other nontuberculous mycobacteria. Molecular methods offer many advantages over conventional methods of identification. The results are obtained rapidly, are reliable and reproducible, and even mixed or contaminated cultures can be examined. This review highlights the recent advances in molecular techniques for identification of nontuberculous mycobacteria. Recent findings Nontuberculous mycobacteria are ubiquitous towards the environment and have the potential to colonize and cause serious infection. An increasing number of species and clinical presentations are being described, and progress has been made towards the understanding of the underlying predisposing factors. Disease caused by nontuberculous mycobacteria is often associated with various forms of immunosuppression, particularly HIV infection, whereas mild forms of immune defects have been observed in some patients who, apart from their nontuberculous mycobacterial disease, seem to be healthy on initial examination. Molecular techniques have shown their usefulness for the identification of most mycobacteria. Probes are widely used in clinical laboratories for the identification of the most common mycobacterial species. Because automated DNA sequencing and the programs for analysing sequence data have become technically simpler, polymerase chain reaction-based sequencing is now used in many mycobacterial reference laboratories as a routine method for species identification. Summary Significant advances have been made with molecular tools for diagnosis of mycobacteria. The DNA microarray technique holds great promise for the future because it is easy to perform, it can be readily automated, and it allows the identification of a large number of mycobacterial species in one reaction.
T Cells Phenotype That Preferentially Activates CD8 Monocyte-Derived Dendritic Cell-Like CpG-A Oligonucleotides Induce a

Human B cells and plasmacytoid dendritic cells recognize CpG motifs within microbial DNA via Toll-like receptor 9. Two functionally distinct types of CpG motif containing oligonucleotides (CpG ODN) have been described, CpG-A and CpG-B. In contrast to CpG-B, CpG-A induces high amounts of type I IFN (IFN- (cid:1) and IFN- (cid:2) ) in plasmacytoid dendritic cells. In the present study, we examined the effects of CpG-A on human primary monocytes. In PBMC stimulated with CpG-A and GM-CSF, monocytes showed excellent survival, increased in size and granularity, and within 3 days developed a dendritic cell-like phenotype that was characterized by down-regulation of CD14, partial up-regulation of CCR7, and an increased surface expression of costimulatory and Ag-presenting molecules. This effect could be inhibited by a combination of blocking Abs to type I IFN, and no such CpG-A-induced changes were observed in puriﬁed monocytes. Although IL-12 production by this dendritic cell-like phenotype required additional stimulation with CD40 ligand, this cell type spontaneously up-regulated IL-15 expression. Consistent with the known effect of IL-15 on effector and memory CD8 T cells, the frequency of CCR7 (cid:3) /CD45RA (cid:3) CD8 T cells was selectively increased in allogeneic T cell assays. Furthermore, this dendritic cell type was more potent to support both the generation and the IFN- (cid:4) production of autologous inﬂuenza matrix peptide-speciﬁc differentiation of monocytes a DC-like phenotype by CpG-A Our previous data by adding evidence that DC generated in the of this type of CpG ODN display a distinct activity regarding T cell differentiation. CpG-A DC were more potent than GM-CSF/IL-4 DC to expand peptide-speciﬁc memory T cells. Evidence for the functional activity of expanding CD8 T cells provided by the capacity of these expanding CD8 T cells to produce IFN- (cid:4) upon restimulation with the corresponding peptide Ag. Elevated levels of IL-15 mRNA in CpG-A DC, as demonstrated in our study, may contribute to the activity of CpG-A DC to support memory CD8 T cells. IL-15 to the (cid:2) -chain of the IL-2R, preferentially
Poverty, Parenting, and Children's Mental Health.

Poor children experience greater psychological distress than do nonpoor children. However, evidence for the relationship between poverty and children's distress is limited by the use of measures of poverty at a single point in time, by a failure to examine race or ethnic differences, and by a lack of concern with explanations for poverty's effects. Using data from the 1986 Children of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY) data set, we explored the relationships among current poverty, length of time spent in poverty, maternal parenting behaviors, and children's mental health. Persistent poverty significantly predicts children's internalizing symptoms above and beyond the effect of current poverty, whereas only current poverty predicts externalizing symptoms. Mother's weak emotional responsiveness and frequent use of physical punishment explain the effect of current poverty on mental health, but not the effect of persistent poverty. The relationships among poverty, parenting behaviors, and children's mental health do not vary by race/ethnicity. These findings support theoretical developments calling for greater emphasis on family processes in studies of children's poverty. They also argue for greater attention to trajectories of socioeconomic status in analyses of the effects of status on mental health.
Cholinergic modulation of frequency receptive fields in auditory cortex: II. Frequency‐specific effects of anticholinesterases provide evidence for a modulatory action of endogenous Ach

Exogenously applied muscarinic agonists—for example, acetylcholine (ACh) and acetyl‐beta‐methacholine (MCh)—modify frequency receptive fields in auditory cortex of unanesthetized animals in a frequency‐specific rather than global manner. The present study sought to relate these findings to endogenous actions of ACh by using the anticholinesterase agents eserine sulphate and soman (0‐1,2,2‐trimethylpropylmethylphosphonofluoridate) to facilitate the effects of endogenous ACh. Frequency receptive fields (FRF) were determined by presenting sequences of different isointensity tones before, during, and after application of ACh, MCh, eserine, or soman; also the cholinesterase blockers were applied between applications of ACh or MCh. The major effects produced by the inhibitors were similar to those of the agonists. Predominant effects were frequency‐specific changes in FRF. Further, eserine and soman, similar to ACh and MCh, produced shifts in the best frequency (BF) of FRF due mainly to coordinated depression of responses to the BF and increased responses to adjacent, non‐BF. The results indicate that exogenous and endogenous ACh, acting via muscarinic receptors, can significantly influence the physiological functioning of cortical neurons and consequently their processing of sensory information.