Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Emerging and Widening Colorectal Carcinoma Disparities Between Blacks and Whites in the United States (1975-2002)

Background: Colorectal carcinoma (CRC) is the fourth most common cancer diagnosed and the second most common cause of cancer death in the U.S. Incidence and mortality rates have decreased since the mid-1980s, although more among Whites than Blacks. Methods: To determine if these racial differences were changing over time, we examined CRC rates in the National Cancer Institute's Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) program (1975-2002). Rates were stratified by gender, race, anatomic subsite, historic stage, and grade. Results: CRC rates were higher among men than women and higher among Blacks than Whites, with Black men having the highest rates during the latter years. Prior to the mid-1980s, male CRC rates were actually higher among Whites than Blacks; after which there was ethnic crossover with Black rates higher than White rates, and the gaps are widening. Proximal and transverse CRCs were more common and rectal cancers were less common among Blacks than Whites. Over time, rates for localized and regional stages increased among Blacks and decreased among Whites. Rates for distant stages declined for both racial groups, although less among Blacks. Black-to-White rate ratio for distant stage was ∼1.30. Notably, Blacks compared with Whites had lower grade tumors, despite higher stages and mortality rates. Conclusions: CRC racial disparities have emerged and widened for three decades. These temporal trends probably reflect complicated racial differences between screening practice patterns and etiologic factors. (Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2006;15(4):792–7)
Effective Marginal Tax Rates for Low- and Moderate-Income Workers

Effective marginal tax rates among low- and moderate-income workers are about 30 percent, on average, with about one-third of that rate stemming from the federal income tax, more than a third from federal payroll taxes, and the remainder from state income taxes and the phaseout of SNAP benefits (formerly known as food stamps).
Bathymetry of Mariana trench‐arc system and formation of the Challenger Deep as a consequence of weak plate coupling

The Challenger Deep in the southernmost Mariana Trench (western Pacific Ocean) is the deepest point on the Earth's surface (10,920 m below sea level). Its location within a subduction trench, where one plate bends and descends below another, is not surprising. However, why is it located in the southernmost Mariana Trench and not at its central part, where the rate of subduction is higher, where the lithosphere is the oldest (and densest) on the Earth, and where the subducted lithosphere pulling down is the longest in the Earth (∼1000 km or more according to seismic tomography)? We suggest that although subduction rate and slab age generally control trench depth, the width of the plate‐coupling zone is more important. Beneath the central Marianas the subducted slab is attached to the upper plate along a 150‐km‐wide surface that holds the shallow portion of the subducted plate nearly horizontal, in spite of its great load and, thus, counters trench deepening. In contrast, along the south Mariana Trench the subducted length of the lithosphere is much shorter, but its attachment to the upper plate is only along a relatively narrow, 50‐km‐wide, surface. In addition, a tear in the slab beneath this region helps it to sink rapidly through the mantle, and this combination of circumstances allows the slab to steepen and form the deepest trench on the Earth. In a wider perspective, the interrelations shown here between trench deepening, ridge shallowing, slab steepening, and forearc narrowing may shed light on other subduction zones located near edges of rapidly steepening slabs.
Group and home-based tai chi in elderly subjects with knee osteoarthritis: a randomized controlled trial

Objective: To evaluate the effects of tai chi consisting of group and home-based sessions in elderly subjects with knee osteoarthritis. Design: A randomized, controlled, single-blinded 12-week trial with stratification by age and sex, and six weeks of follow-up. Setting: General community. Participants: Forty-one adults (709 / 9.2 years) with knee osteoarthritis. Interventions: The tai chi programme featured six weeks of group tai chi sessions, 40 min/session, three times a week, followed by another six weeks (weeks 7 -12) of home-based tai chi training. Subjects were requested to discontinue tai chi training during a six-week follow-up detraining period (weeks 13-18). Subjects in the attention control group attended six weeks of health lectures following the same schedule as the group-based tai chi intervention (weeks 0 -6), followed by 12 weeks of no activity (weeks 7-18). Main outcome measures: Knee pain measured by visual analogue scale, knee range of motion and physical function measured by Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) were recorded at baseline and every three weeks throughout the 18-week study period. Data were analysed using a mixed model ANOVA. Results: The six weeks of group tai chi followed by another six weeks of home tai chi training showed significant improvements in mean overall knee pain (P = 0.0078), maximum knee pain (P = 0.0035) and the WOMAC subscales of physical function (P = 0.0075) and stiffness (P = 0.0206) compared to the baseline. No significant change of any outcome measure was noted in the attention control group throughout the study. The tai chi group reported lower overall pain and better WOMAC physical function than the attention control group at weeks 9 and 12. All improvements disappeared after detraining.
A Medium-Voltage Medium-Frequency Isolated DC–DC Converter Based on 15-kV SiC MOSFETs

In this paper, a novel isolated dc–dc converter topology for medium-voltage (MV) applications is proposed by combining the advantages of resonant converters and dual active bridge (DAB) converters. In normal load scenario, this converter operates in an open loop resonant mode with a fixed switching frequency equals to the resonant frequency of the series resonant tank. Thus, zero voltage turn on at primary side and zero current turn off at secondary side are secured from zero to full load. When overload happens, the resonant capacitors will be clamped to the output voltage by the additional paralleled diodes. The proposed converter automatically switches to resonant and DAB mixed operation mode; therefore, the resonant current is naturedly limited. With zero to full load range soft switching and fast overload protection, the proposed topology is especially suitable for MV medium frequency applications utilizing high-voltage SiC MOSFETs. The converter operation modes are analyzed using time-domain waveforms and graphical state trajectory to derive the quantitative relationship between duty cycle, output voltage, and the overload current. Based on these relationships, a predictive duty cycle control is proposed to further limit the overload current of the resonant tank by sensing the output voltage. Combing the proposed topology and the predictive control, cycle-by-cycle overload and short-circuit protections are achieved. To fully utilize the capability of the 15-kV SiC MOSFET, magnetizing inductance, dead time, MV transformer, and resonant components are optimized with the operating range of 6–12 kV and 20–100 kHz. An experimental prototype running at 6 kV and 40 kHz is successfully tested with peak efficiency exceeding 98%. Test waveforms at no load and 10-kW full load validate the zero to full load range soft switching capability. Short circuit protection test demonstrates a 25- $\mu \text{s}$ overload protection speed.
Beyond the Marginalization Thesis: An Examination of the Motivations of Informal Entrepreneurs in Sub-Saharan Africa

For years, informal entrepreneurs were largely classified as ‘marginalized’ and were perceived to be conducting marginalized ventures for survival. However, this perception gradually changed between the middle of the twentieth century and the start of the new millennium. In analysing the motivations of informal entrepreneurs from Ghana, based on face-to-face interviews with 150 respondents, the key findings were that the motivations of the entrepreneurs transcended the marginalization thesis and that informal entrepreneurs were often motivated not by necessity or opportunity, but rather by an amalgamation of the two. Although women constitute the majority of the necessity-driven informal entrepreneurs, in time some of them become opportunity-driven entrepreneurs. The implication is that there is a need for a shift from necessity–opportunity dualism to a unified approach, which depicts the motivations of informal entrepreneurs in more detail, and for broader research in other economic landscapes.
A Parallel DSL for Computing on Multi-Dimensional Tensor Fields

We describe ongoing work developing Diderot, a new parallel domain-specific language (DSL) for computing on continuous fields reconstructed from multi-dimensional images. Diderot uses a syntax similar to mathematical conventions for expressing convolution, differentiation, and tensor operations, making it easy to code computationally complex algorithms. In addition to being easy to code, programs written in Diderot will be compiled for several different parallel architectures, with many optimizations handled automatically by the compiler.
MicroRNAs/TP53 feedback circuitry in glioblastoma multiforme

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are increasingly implicated in regulating cancer initiation and progression. In this study, two miRNAs, miR-25 and -32, are identified as p53-repressed miRNAs by p53-dependent negative regulation of their transcriptional regulators, E2F1 and MYC. However, miR-25 and -32 result in p53 accumulation by directly targeting Mdm2 and TSC1, which are negative regulators of p53 and the mTOR (mammalian target of rapamycin) pathway, respectively, leading to inhibition of cellular proliferation through cell cycle arrest. Thus, there is a recurrent autoregulatory circuit involving expression of p53, E2F1, and MYC to regulate the expression of miR-25 and -32, which are miRNAs that, in turn, control p53 accumulation. Significantly, overexpression of transfected miR-25 and -32 in glioblastoma multiforme cells inhibited growth of the glioblastoma multiforme cells in mouse brain in vivo. The results define miR-25 and -32 as positive regulators of p53, underscoring their role in tumorigenesis in glioblastoma.
A Small and Lightweight Antenna for Handheld RFID Reader Applications

This letter presents a circularly polarized antenna suitable for handheld radio frequency identification (RFID) reader applications. The proposed antenna consists of four meandered monopole elements fed by a series feed network, each segment having an equal magnitude and a successive 90° phase difference. The monopole elements and the feed network are created on two separate printed circuit boards. Four coaxial lines are used to connect the feed network to the monopoles. Short-circuited tuning stubs are employed for impedance matching. A prototype antenna measuring 45 × 45 × 9 mm3 and weighing 13 g is designed, fabricated, and tested. Measurements show that the fabricated antenna has at 919 MHz a gain of 2.2 dBic, a 3-dB gain beamwidth of 150°, and a 3-dB axial-ratio beamwidth of 146°.
Salmonella penetration of fertile and infertile chicken eggs at progressive stages of incubation.

The shell and shell membrane systems of fertile chicken eggs undergo marked changes during incubation and embryonic development. Tyler and Simkiss (2) described these changes and confirmed that the membranes separate from the shell of fertile eggs (except for that portion over the air cell) by about the 15th or 16th day of incubation. The outer membrane does not come away cleanly from the shell but carries with it the ends of the mammillary knobs, including the mammillary cores. In earlier studies (4) of the penetration patterns of salmonella organisms through the outer structures of chicken eggs, the incubation periods used most frequently have been short periods up to 24 hrs at 990F, or eggs have been exposed to salmonella and stored for extended periods before examination. The work reported herein was undertaken as a systematic investigation of salmonella penetration into fertile hatching eggs at various stages of embryonic development, in comparison with penetration of infertile eggs maintained under identical conditions of incubation.
Evaluation of infections in the lung transplant patient

Purpose of review Infections in lung transplant recipients (LTRs) are a serious complication that is associated with high mortality. Early and accurate diagnosis is critical in the management of these infections in order to achieve improved outcomes. This review focuses on studies published in the last 2 years related to the evaluation and management of infections following lung transplantation. Recent findings Valganciclovir is well tolerated and effective for long-term cytomegalovirus prophylaxis. Recently published guidelines recommend that foscarnet be added to ganciclovir for patients with life-threatening or sight-threatening disease while waiting for genotypic assay results because of ganciclovir-resistant strains. Mycobacterium abscessus has emerged as a significant pathogen in LTRs and should be eradicated in potential recipients before transplantation is performed. Preoperative Aspergillus colonization appears to not increase the risk of death after transplant. Azithromycin is protective against the development of bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome (BOS) and reduces mortality in LTRs. Eradication of Staphylococcus aureus in patients colonized prior to surgery can decrease postoperative surgical site infections from it by 80%. RNA interference therapy improves the symptoms of BOS in LTRs but does not have a direct antiviral effect. Summary Although life-saving for most recipients, lung transplantation can be complicated by serious postoperative infections. Additional prospective studies are needed to better elucidate the role of molecular testing in the diagnosis of infections, to determine whether eradication of S. aureus colonization improves outcomes in LTRs, and to further evaluate the role of RNA interference therapy for infections in LTRs.
Manifestations of tuberculosis in HIV/AIDS patients and its relationship with CD4 count

Background: HIV/AIDS pandemic is responsible for the resurgence of TB worldwide, resulting in increased morbidity and mortality. HIV and Mycobacterium tuberculosis have a synergistic interaction; each propagates progression of the other. Coinfection with HIV infection leads to difficulties in both the diagnosis and treatment of tuberculosis, increase risk of death, treatment failure and relapse. Objective: The aim of the present study is to study the clinical, radiological profile of pulmonary and extrapulmonary tuberculosis (EPTB) in HIV-seropositive patients and their relationship to CD4 counts. Materials and Methods: It was a prospective study conducted over a period of 1 year in the department of medicine, Indira Gandhi Medical College, Shimla. We examined 87 HIV-infected patients with associated tuberculosis recruited from the department of medicine and antiretroviral center and were subjected to thorough clinical examination, X-ray chest, tuberculin testing and sputum examination for AFB and necessary relevant investigations for EPTB. Results: Most common affected age group was 31-40 years. EPTB is the commonest form of TB in our study detected in 65 patients. Commonest EPTB was CNS tuberculosis. Disseminated tuberculosis was only found in patient with CD4 count less than 200/cmm. Majority of lymph node TB was diagnosed by fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) examination. All patients with AFB-positive lymph node had CD4 count below 200/cum. Conclusions: The results of this study provide information regarding the various forms of TB and their presentation in HIV-infected persons. Early diagnosis of tuberculosis and prompt institution of antitubercular treatment (ATT) reduces mortality and morbidity significantly. In resource-poor areas, the diagnosis can be established with cytological/biochemical analysis of fluid, histopathological examination and ZN staining of tissue coupled with radiological features and response to ATT. Therefore, adequate knowledge of the manifestations of tuberculosis in HIV-infected patients is absolutely necessary for optimal management and to reduce mortality and morbidity.
Multicenter ALK Testing in Non–Small-Cell Lung Cancer: Results of a Round Robin Test

Background: The anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) inhibitor crizotinib has recently received approval for the treatment of patients with locally advanced or metastatic ALK-positive non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). As the therapeutic prescription postulates the detection of ALK rearrangements, reliable diagnostic approaches are of utmost importance. With this study, we present the data of the first German ALK-round robin test based on genomic DNA in situ hybridization (ISH). The application of immunohistochemistry (IHC) for ALK protein detection was optional and not required for certification. Methods: Two tissue microarrays, each consisting of the same 10 NSCLC but in different arrangement of the cases, were generated (five unequivocally ALK-positive and five unequivocally ALK-negative cases). ISH-based results and optional IHC data had to be submitted within 10 working days. A successful participation (certification) was reached if at least 19 of the 20 possible points were scored (2 points for a correct case classification). Results: Fifty-three of 59 participants (89.8%) provided their data for ISH-ALK detection within the submission period. Thirty-two of 53 participants (60.3%) received at least 19 points required for certification. Remarkably, the range of cells with aberrant ALK signal configuration was broad in ALK-negative (0–13%) and in ALK-positive cases (15–95%). Thirty-five participants supported the round robin test with optional ALK IHC results, which displayed a great heterogeneity in the ALK ISH-positive cases. Conclusion: In essence, our ALK ISH round robin test clearly demonstrates that there is accumulating need for improvement of ALK testing. Although ISH may be regarded as a well-established procedure, its broad application in a diagnostic setting is challenging and requires standardized methods and harmonized interpretation to achieve sound results for therapeutic decisions. The same is true for ALK IHC which, however if standardized, might improve the diagnostic approach.
Value, Probability and Economic Growth

This paper is about a novel evolutionary theory of macroeconomics. The fundamental premise is that value and scarceness are related to probability. Economic transactions between different classes of economic agents are considered to represent various statistical selection experiments. The probabilities of selection that follow from these experiments result in mutually related variables of stock value, input and output from which time-independent universal explicit expressions for the net growth rates of value and the employed labor force as well as for GDP, wages, consumption etcetera are being derived. The theory is anchored in probability theory. The methods employed are logically deductive. Consistency of premises and results as well as the eventual necessity of their fundamental symmetry has been deliberately pursued. The theory is universal, i.e. the relationships hold irrespective of the economy considered and the period of time that an economy is considered. Methods of tuning parameters to warrant an optimum fit between predicted and observed variables are deliberately rejected because these methods are not universal. The theory must of itself be considered to represent an alternative for mainstream economic theory. As such it is irreconcilable with the latter.
Relationship between polymorphisms in the CRP, LEP and LEPR genes and high sensitivity C-reactive protein levels in Spanish children

Abstract Background: We investigated the association of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the C-reactive protein (CRP), leptin (LEP) and leptin receptor (LEPR) genes with high sensitivity CRP (hs-CRP) levels in two independent cohorts of healthy Spanish children. Methods: We measured hs-CRP levels in 646 6–8-year-old and 707 12–16-year-old children using a high-sensitivity C-Reactive Protein ELISA kit. Four SNPs in the CRP gene (rs1205, rs1130864, rs2794521 and rs1800947), one SNP in the LEP gene (rs7799039) and two SNPs in the LEPR (rs1137100 and rs1137101) gene were determined by TaqMan® allelic discrimination assays. Results: The four CRP SNPs studied were significantly (p<0.05) associated with hs-CRP levels in both cohorts. Furthermore, two common CRP haplotypes (constructed using the SNPs in order: rs1205, rs1130864, rs1800947, rs2794521) ACGA and GCGG were associated with significantly lower CRP levels (p<0.05) at both ages. The LEPR SNPs rs1137100 (K109R) and rs1137101 (Q223R), and LEP SNP rs7799039 (G2548A) were also associated to hs-CRP levels (p<0.05) in both cohorts. Conclusions: hs-CRP levels in healthy Spanish children, besides being associated to common polymorphisms in the CRP gene, are associated to polymorphisms in the LEP and LEPR genes, which suggests that other loci, in addition the CRP gene, may have a role determining CRP levels in children.
Framework for quantitative performance evaluation of shape decomposition algorithms

Despite of intensive research on shape decomposition algorithms, their performance evaluation remains qualitative today. The intention of this work is to close this gap by proposing a general framework for quantitative performance evaluation of shape decomposition algorithms. The proposed framework is of supervised nature and based on a benchmark database from a large-scale psychological study with manually specified ground truth. We discuss various variants of dissimilarity functions for comparing two decompositions. A preliminary comparison study using five shape decomposition methods and an ensemble technique demonstrates the usefulness of our approach. In particular, the quantitative results well coincide with visual comparison of decompositions.
"This is just where I live": A Situational Analysis of Rural End-of-Life Caregiving

Keating, 2001; Kaden & MacDonald, 1990; MacLean, Cairn, & Sellick, 1998). Women caring for dying persons at the end-of-life have been identified in the literature as those most likely to experience negative physical and mental health outcomes such as declines in health status, depression and anxiety from caregiver burden (Cranwick, 1997). Family caregivers, who do not have access to palliative services including counselling and bereavement services, such as those in rural areas, are in need of more support than other populations (Wilson et al., 2006). Living in rural/remote areas presents challenges for dying persons and their families, such as reduced and difficult access to needed services (Kelley, Sellick & Linkewich, 2003; McConigley, Kristjanson & Nikolette, 2000; Wilson et al., 2009). Additional social and community services are often found only in distant larger communities (Wilson et al., 2006; World Health Organization, 2007). Researchers have noted the paucity of attention to place, particularly rural and 2011). This article contributes to the remedy of this gap; our research study aimed to better understand female provided end-of-life care-giving in rural and remote Ontario communities. In particular, we were interested in the extent to which geography intersects with gender; that is, to what extent (if any) does rural location impact end-of-life care-giving? Keywords: rural, palliative care, qualitative research