Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Comparison of Two Debriefing Methods on Clinical Reasoning Outcomes, Learner Satisfaction with Debriefing and Reflection, Clinical Learning and Clinical Reasoning, and Psychological Safety of Nurse Orientees in Simulation-Based Education

Simulation-based education is a teaching method used successfully in military, aviation, and medical education; however, the evidence rarely indicates how debriefing affects the learners’ experiences. Debriefing is an essential component of simulation-based education that fosters conceptual learning, critical thinking, and clinical reasoning. The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of two different debriefing methods on nurses’ perceptions of psychological safety, satisfaction with development of clinical reasoning skills, and satisfaction with learning. In this quasi-experimental, posttest study the researcher explored the effect of each debriefing method. Using the 18-item Satisfaction with Simulation Experience Scale developed by Levett-Jones et al. (2011), the researcher measured learners’ satisfaction with the simulation learning experience. The researcher developed a visual analog scale to measure the learner’s perceived psychological safety. During the simulation learning experience part of an orientation, the researcher used two debriefing methods using the 3D Model of Debriefing: (1) Defusing, Discovering and Deepening (3D-DDD) and (2) the DEBRIEF method. The literature clearly articulates how these models are distinct in how debriefing is executed in the simulation experience. The “debriefers” received appropriate training on the models and were then verified by the investigator for treatment fidelity. After each debrief method, the researcher measured the participants’ experiences including psychological safety and satisfaction, as well as clinical reasoning skills. The researcher divided study participants into two groups and administered one of the two debriefing models. By alternating debrief methods, the researcher ensured that all groups in each month were debriefed using the same method. Both methods resulted in psychological safety and satisfaction. There were no statistically significant differences in either debrief method for the SSES, VAS, and case study scores. The analysis did not identify any meaningful relationships between a learner’s characteristics and satisfaction in debriefing and reflection, self-reported clinical reasoning, and clinical learning. The literature recognizes debriefing as a vital teaching strategy, but there remains minimal research on how to debrief, which methods are effective at achieving learning outcomes, and which are best at fulfilling an individual’s psychological safety. DEDICATION “Be strong and courageous; do not be terrified or afraid of them. For the LORD your God is the one who will go with you; he will not leave you or abandon you”. Deuteronomy 31:6 This study is lovingly dedicated to my faith and family, both of these forces held me up and carried my thorough the journey. Your love and support is what carried me through.
Development of algorithm for voice operated switch for digital audio control systems

VOS (voice Operated Switch) is a switch that operates when sound over a certain threshold is detected. It is usually used to turn on a transmitter or recorder when someone speaks and turn it off when they stop speaking. It is used instead of a push-to-talk button on transmitters or to save storage space on recording devices. Unlike push-to-talk (PTT) operation, VOS is automatic. The user can keep his hands free while talking. But VOS also has some significant disadvantages that explain why PTT is still common. The Present VOS technology works based on the comparison of the energy estimate in speech band and the noise band. The bandwidth of speech band is from 300Hz to 3.3 KHz and for noise band it is from 3.3 KHz to 6.6 KHz. The major disadvantage with this technique is false operation of VOS due to noise interference or heavy breathing or a side conversation. Hence, a DSP based algorithm is proposed to be developed for DACS (Digital Audio Control System) to improve the performance and the noise suppression.
Islet neogenesis from the constitutively nestin expressing human umbilical cord matrix derived mesenchymal stem cells

The scarcity of islets for transplantation calls for an alternative sources of islets. The human umbilical cord has been shown to be a reservoir of multipotent stem cells with capacity to differentiate into ectodermal, mesodermal and endodermal lineages. The present investigation deals with isolation and characterization of mesenchymal stem sells (MSC) derived from human umbilical cord and their differentiation into functional islets. Since these MSCs were found to constitutively express nestin we hypothesized that these would be ideal candidates for islet neogenesis without any further manipulation. Human umbilical cord matrix stem cells (hUCMSCs) were found to express CD29, CD44, CD73, CD90, CD105, smooth muscle actin, nestin, vimentin, proliferation marker Ki67 and embryonic markers Oct4, SSEA4. These were found to be negative for CD33, CD34, CD45 and HLA DR. Human UCMSCs exhibited high proliferating capacity for extended period indicating potential for scaling up. When subjected to a cocktail of specific differentiating factors, these cells differentiated into fat, cartilage, bone, neurons and islet like clusters (ILCs). These ILCs stained positive for diphenylthiocarbazone (DTZ) and expressed human C-peptide, insulin and glucagon. Real time qPCR analysis of newly generated islets further demonstrated abundance of Pdx-1, Ngn3, insulin, glucagon and somatostatin transcripts. On transplantation in experimental diabetic mice these ILCs restored normoglycemia, body weight and exhibited normal glucose tolerance test indicating their functional status. Thus, the present study demonstrates potential of constitutively expressing nestin positive progenitor from umbilical cord as a novel source for islet neogenesis and their usage in cell replacement therapy for diabetes.
Severity of Nonbullous Staphylococcus aureus Impetigo in Children Is Associated with Strains Harboring Genetic Markers for Exfoliative Toxin B, Panton-Valentine Leukocidin, and the Multidrug Resistance Plasmid pSK41

ABSTRACT Nonbullous impetigo is a common skin infection in children and is frequently caused by Staphylococcus aureus. Staphylococcal toxins and especially exfoliative toxin A are known mediators of bullous impetigo in children. It is not known whether this is also true for nonbullous impetigo. We set out to analyze clonality among clinical isolates of S. aureus from children with nonbullous impetigo living in a restricted geographical area in The Netherlands. We investigated whether staphylococcal nasal carriage and the nature of the staphylococcal strains were associated with the severity and course of impetigo. Bacterial isolates were obtained from the noses and wounds of children suffering from impetigo. Strains were genetically characterized by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis-mediated typing and binary typing, which was also used to assess toxin gene content. In addition, a detailed clinical questionnaire was filled in by each of the participating patients. Staphylococcal nasal carriage seems to predispose the patients to the development of impetigo, and 34% of infections diagnosed in the Rotterdam area are caused by one clonal type of S. aureus. The S. aureus strains harbor the exfoliative toxin B (ETB) gene as a specific virulence factor. In particular, the numbers (P = 0.002) and sizes (P < 0.001) of the lesions were increased in patients infected with an ETB-positive strain. Additional predictors of disease severity and development could be identified. The presence of a staphylococcal plasmid encoding multiple antibiotic resistance traits, as detected by binary typing, was associated with a reduction in the cure rate. Our results recognize that a combination of staphylococcal virulence and resistance genes rather than a single gene determines the development and course of nonbullous impetigo. The identification of these microbial genetic markers, which are predictive of the severity and the course of the disease, will facilitate guided individualized antimicrobial therapy in the future.
An Efficient Incremental Algorithm for Frequent Itemsets Mining in Distorted Databases with Granular Computing

In order to preserve individual privacy, original data is distorted with the perturbation technique, and with the support reconstruction method, frequent itemsets can be mined from the distorted database. Due to this, mining process can be apart from being error-prone, expensively, in the dynamic update environment, more expensive in terms of time as compared to the original database. Some methods proposed try to solve this problem, but still not efficient. To improve so, this paper makes use of a method based on granular computing (GrC) in incremental mining, which is efficient and accuracy in support computation. The experiment results show the efficiency of our algorithm
Phenotypic analysis of mice completely lacking netrin 1

Netrin 1 (Ntn1) is a multifunctional guidance cue expressed in the ventricular zone and floor plate of the embryonic neural tube. Although Ntn1 is best known for acting as an axon guidance cue through Dcc and neogenin receptors, it is also thought to regulate neuronal survival and blood vessel development through Unc5 family receptors. However, the Ntn1 gene trap mutant mouse does not display all the phenotypes predicted from in vitro assays or analyses of mice lacking predicted receptors. Since the gene trap strain still produces wild-type Ntn1 protein, it is unclear whether the absence of phenotypes reflects the activity of alternative cues or of residual Ntn1. To resolve the full contribution of Ntn1 to development, we generated a null allele of Ntn1 and re-examined tissues exhibiting phenotypic discrepancies between receptor mutants and Ntn1 hypomorphs. We found that in Ntn1 null animals commissural axons rarely cross the midline, resulting in a strongly enhanced phenotype relative to Ntn1 hypomorphs, which retain many axons with normal trajectories. Thus, low levels of Ntn1 can account for persistent attraction to the midline in hypomorphs. By contrast, Ntn1 null mice do not show all of the phenotypes reported for Unc5 receptor mutants, indicating that Ntn1 is not necessarily the dominant ligand for Unc5 family members in vivo and ruling out primary roles in survival or angiogenesis. Summary: Complete deletion of the axon guidance cue netrin 1 leads to severe defects in midline crossing of spinal cord axons. However, the mutants did not fully phenocopy loss of the netrin 1 receptor Unc5.
Total Coumarins from Hydrangea paniculata Protect against Cisplatin-Induced Acute Kidney Damage in Mice by Suppressing Renal Inflammation and Apoptosis

Aim. Hydrangea paniculata (HP) Sieb. is a medical herb which is widely distributed in southern China, and current study is to evaluate renal protective effect of aqueous extract of HP by cisplatin-induced acute kidney injury (AKI) in animal model and its underlying mechanisms. Materials and Methods. HP extract was prepared and the major ingredients were coumarin glycosides. AKI mouse models were established by single i.p. injection of 20 mg/kg cisplatin, and HP was orally administrated for total five times. The renal biochemical functions, pathological staining, kidney oxidative stress, and inflammatory status were measured. Apoptosis of tubular cells and infiltration of macrophages and neutrophils were also tested. Results. HP administration could improve the renal function by decreasing concentration of blood urea nitrogen (BUN) and creatinine and attenuates renal oxidative stress and tubular pathological injury and apoptosis; further research demonstrated that HP could inhibit the overproduction of proinflammatory cytokines and regulate caspase and BCL-2 family proteins. HP also reduced renal infiltration of macrophages and neutrophils, and its effect might be by downregulating phosphorylation of ERK1/2 and stat3 signaling pathway. Conclusions. This present study suggests that HP could ameliorate cisplatin induced kidney damage by antioxidation and suppressing renal inflammation and tubular cell apoptosis.
Global Reprogramming of Transcription in Chinese Fir (Cunninghamia lanceolata) during Progressive Drought Stress and after Rewatering

Chinese fir (Cunninghamia lanceolata), an evergreen conifer, is the most commonly grown afforestation species in southeast China due to its rapid growth and good wood qualities. To gain a better understanding of the drought-signalling pathway and the molecular metabolic reactions involved in the drought response, we performed a genome-wide transcription analysis using RNA sequence data. In this study, Chinese fir plantlets were subjected to progressively prolonged drought stress, up to 15 d, followed by rewatering under controlled environmental conditions. Based on observed morphological changes, plantlets experienced mild, moderate, or severe water stress before rehydration. Transcriptome analysis of plantlets, representing control and mild, moderate, and severe drought-stress treatments, and the rewatered plantlets, identified several thousand genes whose expression was altered in response to drought stress. Many genes whose expression was tightly coupled to the levels of drought stress were identified, suggesting involvement in Chinese fir drought adaptation responses. These genes were associated with transcription factors, signal transport, stress kinases, phytohormone signalling, and defence/stress response. The present study provides the most comprehensive transcriptome resource and the first dynamic transcriptome profiles of Chinese fir under drought stress. The drought-responsive genes identified in this study could provide further information for understanding the mechanisms of drought tolerance in Chinese fir.
Sliding-mode tracking control of the Stewart platform

This paper presents a sliding mode control approach for the motion control of a Stewart platform. The control scheme is proposed given that the overall system parameters are subject to uncertainties while only the positions and velocities of links are measurable. To achieve high performance tracking control of a 6 DOF Stewart platform normally requires the full knowledge of the system dynamics. In this paper, some important properties of the dynamics of the Stewart platform have been derived and exploited to develop a sliding-mode controller which can drive the motion tracking error to zero asymptotically. Stability analysis based on Lyapunov theory is performed to guarantee that the controller design is stable. Finally, the experimental results confirm the effectiveness of our control design.
Bayesian estimation of one-parameter qubit gates

We address estimation of one-parameter unitary gates for qubit systems and seek optimal probes and measurements. Single- and two-qubit probes are analysed in detail focusing on precision and stability of the estimation procedure. Bayesian inference is employed and compared with the ultimate quantum limits to precision, taking into account the biased nature of the Bayes estimator in the non-asymptotic regime. In addition, through the evaluation of the asymptotic a posteriori distribution for the gate parameter and a comparison with the results of Monte Carlo simulated experiments, we show that asymptotic optimality of the Bayes estimator is actually achieved after a limited number of runs. The robustness of the estimation procedure against fluctuations of the measurement settings is investigated and the use of entanglement to improve the overall stability of the estimation scheme is also analysed in some detail.
Therapeutic Efficacy of an Fc-Enhanced TCR-like Antibody to the Intracellular WT1 Oncoprotein

Purpose: RMFPNAPYL (RMF), a Wilms' tumor gene 1 (WT1)–derived CD8 T-cell epitope presented by HLA-A*02:01, is a validated target for T-cell–based immunotherapy. We previously reported ESK1, a high avidity (Kd < 0.2 nmol/L), fully-human monoclonal antibody (mAb) specific for the WT1 RMF peptide/HLA-A*02:01 complex, which selectively bound and killed WT1+ and HLA-A*02:01+ leukemia and solid tumor cell lines. Experimental Design: We engineered a second-generation mAb, ESKM, to have enhanced antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity (ADCC) function due to altered Fc glycosylation. ESKM was compared with native ESK1 in binding assays, in vitro ADCC assays, and mesothelioma and leukemia therapeutic models and pharmacokinetic studies in mice. ESKM toxicity was assessed in HLA-A*02:01+ transgenic mice. Results: ESK antibodies mediated ADCC against hematopoietic and solid tumor cells at concentrations below 1 μg/mL, but ESKM was about 5- to 10-fold more potent in vitro against multiple cancer cell lines. ESKM was more potent in vivo against JMN mesothelioma, and effective against SET2 AML and fresh ALL xenografts. ESKM had a shortened half-life (4.9 days vs. 6.5 days), but an identical biodistribution pattern in C57BL/6J mice. At therapeutic doses of ESKM, there was no difference in half-life or biodistribution in HLA-A*02:01+ transgenic mice compared with the parent strain. Importantly, therapeutic doses of ESKM in these mice caused no depletion of total WBCs or hematopoetic stem cells, or pathologic tissue damage. Conclusions: The data provide proof of concept that an Fc-enhanced mAb can improve efficacy against a low-density, tumor-specific, peptide/MHC target, and support further development of this mAb against an important intracellular oncogenic protein. Clin Cancer Res; 20(15); 4036–46. ©2014 AACR.
A NEW IMPROVED MCML LOGIC FOR DPA

Security of electronic data remains the major concern. The art of encryption to secure the data can be achieved in various levels of abstraction. The choice of the logic style in implementing the security algorithms has greater significance, and it can enhance the ability of providing better resistance to side channel attacks. The static CMOS logic style is proved to be prone to side channel power attacks. The exploration of CMOS current mode logic style for resistance against these side channel attacks is discussed in this paper. Various characteristics of the current mode logic styles, which make it suitable for making DPA resistant circuits are explored. A new methodology of biasing the sleep transistors of (MOS current mode logic) MCML families is proposed. It uses pass gate transistors for power-gating the circuits. The power variations of the proposed circuits are compared against the standard CMOS counterparts. Logic gates such as XOR, NAND and AND gate structures of MCML families and static CMOS are designed and compared for the ability of side channel resistance. A distributed arrangement of sleep transistors for reducing the static power dissipation in the logic gates is also proposed, designed and analyzed. All the logic gates in MCML and CMOS were implemented using standard 180 nm CMOS technology employing Cadence® EDA tools.
Labor Income and Predictable Stock Returns

We propose and test a novel economic mechanism that generates stock return predictability on both the time series and the cross section. In our model, investors' income has two sources, wages and dividends, that grow stochastically over time. As a consequence, the fraction of total income produced by wages changes over time de-pending on economic conditions. We show that as this fraction fluctuates, the risk premium that investors require to hold stocks varies as well. We test the main implications of the model and find substantial support for it. A regression of stock returns on lagged values of the labor income to consumption ratio produces statistically significant coefficients and adjusted R2 's that are larger than those generated when using the dividend price ratio. Tests of the cross sectional implication find considerable improvements on the performance of both the conditional CAPM and CCAPM when compared to their unconditional counterparts.
A Petri Net-based Model for Investigating Disposable Addresses in Bitcoin System

The most Bitcoin users are very careful about keeping their anonymity. In this work we investigate the use of disposable addresses, a very common method adopted by users to protect their identity and propose a method to recognize these addresses, We applied it on the ﬁrst 180,000 blocks of the Bitcoin Blockchain. Results highlighted that a large part of Bitcoin transactions involves disposable addresses. Further, they showed that many of these transactions form chains whose length is characterized by a power-law distribution.
A Low Power Fault Tolerant Reversible Decoder Using MOS Transistors

This paper demonstrates the reversible logic synthesis for the n-to-2n decoder, where n is the number of data bits. The circuits are designed using only reversible fault tolerant Fredkin and Feynman double gates. Thus, the entire scheme inherently becomes fault tolerant. Algorithm for designing the generalized decoder has been presented. In addition, several lower bounds on the number of constant inputs, garbage outputs and quantum cost of the reversible fault tolerant decoder have been proposed. Transistor simulations of the proposed decoder are shown using standard p-MOS 901 and n-MOS 902 model with delay of 0.030 ns and 0.12 m channel length, which proved the functional correctness of the proposed circuits. The comparative results show that the proposed design is much better in terms of quantum cost, delay, hardware complexity and has significantly better scalability than the existing approach.
Effects of metformin on endothelial function in type 2 diabetes

The aim of the present study was to examine the effect of metformin on endothelial function in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). In total, 93 patients with T2DM and dissatisfactory glycemic control were randomly assigned to the metformin and pioglitazone groups and changes in vascular endothelial function were subsequently observed. Blood sugar levels and the insulin resistance (IR) index of the patients prior to treatment were lower than those following 12 months of treatment. In addition, fasting and postprandial insulin levels and the insulin function index were higher compared with those obtained following 12 months of treatment (P<0.05). Following 12 months of treatment, the body mass index (BMI) in the metformin group was lower than that in the pioglitazone group (P<0.05). Vascular endothelial function had improved in the groups following 12 months of treatment, when compared with the levels prior to treatment (P<0.05). Following 12 months of treatment, endothelial function in the metformin group had improved markedly compared with that in the pioglitazone group (P<0.05). Therefore, the administration of metformin and pioglitazone in patients with T2DM may improve insulin function, reduce the role of IR and improve endothelial function. Metformin is more successful than pioglitazone in reducing BMI and improving endothelial function.