Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Glucose Control and Walking in a Multiethnic Sample of Older Adults

Background: Although walking is the most commonly reported physical activity by older adults, there is a paucity of data determining the relationship between objectively determined walking behavior and glucose dynamics in older adults. Objective: This study was designed to investigate the relationship between objectively determined walking behavior and glucose control in a multiethnic sample of older adults. Methods: Data were collected on 142 older adults (age 72.1 ± 9.2 years; body mass index (BMI) 29.4 ± 6.3; 37 males, 105 females). Anthropometric measures, fasting plasma glucose (FG), and glycosylated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) were assessed; race/ethnicity was self-reported. The study participants wore a pedometer for 7 consecutive days. Results: The average number of steps/day reported by the entire group was 3,939 ± 232. White participants (n = 48) were older (p = 0.019), taller (p = 0.002), had lower waist circumference (WC) (p = 0.021), HbA1c (p = 0.001) and FG (p = 0.007), and did not differ in average steps/day (p = 0.162) or BMI (p = 0.280) as compared with nonwhite participants (n = 94). Individuals with HbA1c values <7% and those with FG <100 mg/dl walked about 1,343 more steps/day than those with unfavorable HbA1c and/or FG values. Age, race/ethnicity, WC, BMI, log base 10 of steps/days, and type 1 and 2 diabetes medications accounted for 37.5% of the variance in inverse HbA1c (p < 0.001), with significant or near significant individual model contributions consisting of WC (beta = –0.316, B = –0.001, SE = 0.000, p = 0.047), BMI (beta = 0.310, B = 0.001, SE = 0.001, p = 0.050), diabetic medication (beta = –0.473, B = –0.035, SE = 0.006, p < 0.001), and log base 10 of steps/day (beta = 0.198, B = 0.019, SE = 0.010, p = 0.056). Interpretations of transformed data illustrate that greater WC and being on diabetic medications are associated with higher HbA1c levels. Further, there is a trend to suggest that fewer accumulated steps/day and lower BMI are associated with higher HbA1c concentrations. Conclusions: This study demonstrated that objectively determined walking behavior and indicators of obesity were modest predictors of chronic glucose control, after accounting for glucose-altering medications, in this multicultural sample of older adults. Further, when comparing individuals with good glucose control to those with less favorable glucose control, walking an additional 0.5–0.75 miles was associated with better glucose control.
Is feedback a performance equalizer of classic and modern codes?

It is well known that in general, feedback cannot increase the capacity of a discrete memoryless channel. However, it can help simplify the complexity of encoding and decoding. Schalkwijk and Kailath (1966) developed a class of block codes for Gaussian channels with ideal feedback. They showed that the probability of decoding error decreases as a second-order exponent in block length for rates below capacity. This paper proposes a coding scheme with ideal feedback and is applied to punctured convolutional codes and punctured Turbo codes. Our results seem to indicate that feedback largely equalizes the performance of classic (convolutional) codes and modern (turbo, LDPC) codes.
Subspecies-Related Phenotypes Identification of Genetic Markers for Lactococcus lactis Strains Enables Length Polymorphism Typing of High-Resolution Amplified Fragment

Published Ahead of Print 10 June 2011. 10.1128/AEM.00518-11. 2011, 77(15):5192. DOI: Appl. Environ. Microbiol. Hylckama Vlieg, Eddy J. Smid and Michiel Kleerebezem Rademaker, Corné H. W. Klaassen, Johan E. T. van Oylum Erkus Kütahya, Marjo J. C. Starrenburg, Jan L. W. Subspecies-Related Phenotypes Identification of Genetic Markers for Lactococcus lactis Strains Enables Length Polymorphism Typing of High-Resolution Amplified Fragment
Chapter 5 Intelligence and Decision Making 5.2 Decision Making and Decision Making Behaviour

Autonomous social communities can make intelligent decisions just as can people individually, but the notion of community intelligence is slightly different from that of the individual in that the latter has an empirical psyche while former has a collective psyche. This leads to consideration of the differences between theories of the individual and of the collective. Intelligence is closely connected to knowledge, and a relatively new theory of knowledge based decision processes will be explored, that distances itself from a model of linear sequential decision-making thinking processes. Decision-making in complex situations can be assisted through structured processes of inquiry, and a generic approach for this will be considered. In order to address the notions of intelligence as depicted by inquirers like Piaget and in particular Bourdieu, it has also been necessary to return to some of the ideas of Freud, and represent his conceptualisations of the conscious, subconscious and unconscious as a metaphor for organisations. In this chapter we shall explore aspects of actor decision-making and its connection with organisational intelligence. Intelligence and decision making come together where intelligent decisions are needed, thereby enhancing the possibility of a social communities behaving effectively and viably. Actors can behave intelligently whether they are unitary of plural. Much work has been done in psychology to model processes of unitary actor intelligence, but very little has been done in social psychology to model plural actor intelligence, though some work here has emerged from management cybernetics. An attempt will be made to formulate the basis of a theory of plural actor intelligence through the a metaphor developed from unitary actor conceptualisations, moderated by Schwaninger's notions of organisational intelligence, and additional conceptualisations that come from Artificial Intelligence. As we shall explain in due course, the nature of unitary actor intelligence is that it is associated with a structured empirical psyche made up of personal experience (primary tacit knowledge), and secondary knowledge. The former is a personal acquisition and the latter is socially constructed, connected to the collective psyche that is connected to cultural structure. A plural actor operates as a whole through secondary knowledge, with primary knowledge belonging to the interactive unitary actors that compose it. The relationship between these types of knowledge will be explored in later chapters. Knowledge is important to intelligent decision-making, and we shall explore a relatively new way of seeing knowledge through the work of Marshall, moderated by the work of …
On secure broadcasting

We study the security of communication between a single transmitter and multiple receivers in a broadcast channel in the presence of an eavesdropper. We consider several special classes of channels. As the first model, we consider the degraded multi-receiver wiretap channel where the legitimate receivers exhibit a degradedness order while the eavesdropper is more noisy with respect to all legitimate receivers. We establish the secrecy capacity region of this channel model. Secondly, we consider the parallel multi-receiver wiretap channel with a less noisiness order in each sub-channel, where this order is not necessarily the same for all sub-channels. We establish the common message secrecy capacity and sum secrecy capacity of this channel. Thirdly, we study a special class of degraded parallel multi-receiver wiretap channels and provide a stronger result. In particular, we study the case with two sub-channels two users and one eavesdropper, where there is a degradedness order in each sub-channel such that in the first (resp. second) sub-channel the second (resp. first) receiver is degraded with respect to the first (resp. second) receiver, while the eavesdropper is degraded with respect to both legitimate receivers in both sub-channels. We determine the secrecy capacity region of this channel.
Shared target antigens on cancer cells and tissue stem cells: go or no-go for CAR T cells?

ABSTRACT Introduction: Adoptive therapy with chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells redirected towards CD19 produces remissions of B cell malignancies, however, it also eradicates healthy B cells sharing the target antigen. Such ‘on-target off-tumor’ toxicity raises serious safety concerns when the target antigen is also expressed by tissue stem cells, with the risk of lasting tissue destruction. Areas covered: We discuss CAR T cell targeting of activation antigens versus lineage associated antigens on the basis of recent experimental and animal data and the literature in the field. Expert commentary: Targeting an activation associated antigen which is transiently expressed by stem cells seems to be safe, like CAR T cells targeting CD30 spare CD30+ hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells while eliminating CD30+ lymphoma cells, whereas targeting lineage associated antigens which increase in expression during cell maturation, like folate receptor-β and CD123, is of risk to destruct tissue stem cells.
An Analytical Framework for Performance Evaluation of IPv6-Based mobility Management Protocols

Mobility management with provision of seamless handover is crucial for an efficient support of global roaming of mobile nodes (MNs) in next-generation wireless networks (NGWN). Mobile IPv6 (MIPv6) and its extensions were proposed by IETF for IP layer mobility management. However, performance of IPv6-based mobility management schemes is highly dependent on traffic characteristics and user mobility models. Consequently, it is important to assess this performance in-depth through those two factors. The performance of IPv6-based mobility management schemes is usually evaluated through simulations. This paper proposes an analytical framework to evaluate the performance of IPv6-based mobility management protocols. This proposal does not aim to advocate which is better but rather to study the effects of various network parameters on the performance of these protocols to enlighten decision-making. The effect of system parameters, such as subnet residence time, packet arrival rate and wireless link delay, is investigated for performance evaluation with respect to various metrics like signaling overhead cost, handoff latency and packet loss. Numerical results show that there is a trade-off between performance metrics and network parameters.
Marginal adaptation of newer root canal sealers to dentin: A SEM study

Aim : This in vitro study evaluated and compared the marginal adaptation of three newer root canal sealers to root dentin. Materials and Methods : Thirty freshly extracted human single-rooted teeth with completely formed apices were taken. Teeth were decoronated, and root canals were instrumented. The specimens were randomly divided into three groups (n = 10) based upon the sealer used. Group 1 - teeth were obturated with epoxy resin sealer (MM-Seal). Group 2 - teeth were obturated with mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) based sealer (MTA Fillapex), Group 3 - teeth were obturated with bioceramic sealer (EndoSequence BC sealer). Later samples were vertically sectioned using hard tissue microtome and marginal adaptation of sealers to root dentin was evaluated under coronal and apical halves using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and marginal gap values were recorded. Results : The data were statistically analyzed by two-way ANOVA and Tukey's multiple post hoc test. The highest marginal gap was seen in Group 2 (apical-16680.00 nm, coronal-10796 nm) and the lowest marginal gap was observed in Group 1 (apical-599.42 nm, coronal-522.72 nm). Coronal halves showed superior adaptation compared to apical halves in all the groups under SEM. Conclusion : Within the limitations of this study epoxy resin-based MM-Seal showed good marginal adaptation than other materials tested.
An Australian Perspective

An accurate picture of mortality informs a society as to its social progress within each community, as mortality is a key indicator of effective public health policies and programs. Data on the causes of sudden infant and childhood mortality also reflect a broader set of social, economic, and political issues (1). As an example, sudden infant and child mortality is a key indicator of an important public health issue, given that some of the causes of infant and childhood mortality are potentially preventable. Effective prevention strategies and relevant health policy require a comprehensive and accurate profile of mortality, which, in turn, requires a better understanding of the epidemiology and mechanisms involved. This profile should include not only the patterns and trends of mortality over time, but also measurements of the indicators that have the potential to contribute to premature mortality among infants and children. These factors should include perinatal, maternal, and infant indicators; the specific causes of death; and the role of the geographical location as an indicator of excess sudden infant and child mortality (2). This chapter will outline the Australian perspective associated with sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) and sudden infant and early childhood death. It will comment on the patterns and trends of sudden infant and early childhood mortality reported for all Australians and then focus on the First Peoples of Australia, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population, within the limitations of the availability of an accurate ascertainment of the Indigenous population. With respect to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, in this chapter the authors follow the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) principal that “[t]o acknowledge the separate Indigenous peoples of Australia, the term ‘Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people’ is preferred . [H]owever, the term ‘Indigenous’ is used interchangeably when referring to Indigenous status or when assists readability” (3). The chapter will conclude with a case study that describes a health promotion project that was introduced in Western Australia (WA) in 2005: Reducing the Risks of SIDS in Aboriginal Communities (RROSIAC). This project addresses the high rates of sudden unexpected death in infants (SUDI) in WA Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in rural and remote communities, which have continued despite decreasing rates among non-Indigenous communities following the Red Nose SUDI risk reduction campaigns. It also provides an example of the use of linked population data to more accurately ascertain the impact of public health interventions among minority populations.
Dynamic Radiative–Convective Equilibria Using GCM Column Physics

Abstract The behavior of a GCM column physics package in a nonrotating, doubly periodic, homogeneous setting with prescribed SSTs is examined. This radiative–convective framework is proposed as a useful tool for studying some of the interactions between convection and larger-scale dynamics and the effects of differing modeling assumptions on convective organization and cloud feedbacks. For the column physics utilized here, from the Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory (GFDL) AM2 model, many of the properties of the homogeneous, nonrotating model are closely tied to the fraction of precipitation that is large-scale, rather than convective. Significant large-scale precipitation appears above a critical temperature and then increases with further increases in temperature. The amount of large-scale precipitation is a function of horizontal resolution and can also be controlled by modifying the convection scheme, as is illustrated here by modifying assumptions concerning entrainment into convective plumes. Si.
The effect of sintering temperature on the porosity and compressive strength of corundum

Abstract Porous corundum ceramic samples were sintered at various temperatures in the range of 1350–1550°C. The effect of the sintering temperature on the porosity rate and compressive strength of corundum samples were investigated. The porosity rates were of the order of 3.3–38% and the high-density sample was obtained at a relatively high temperature. However, an increase of compressive strength by more than 6 times was observed with the sintering temperature rise. The Young’s modulus increased remarkably from 40.49 to 302.15 GPa, which is related to the corresponding decrease of porosity rate.
The sequential therapy regimen for Helicobacter pylori eradication: a pooled-data analysis

Background:: Standard triple therapies are the most used treatment in clinical practice. However, a critical fall in the H pylori eradication rate following these therapies has been observed in the last few years. The sequential regimen is a novel, promising therapeutic approach. Objectives:: To evaluate the available data on the sequential therapy regimen. Methods:: A pooled-data analysis of all studies on the sequential regimen was performed. The eradication rate was calculated according to gastroduodenal pathology, proton pump inhibitor used, antibiotic resistance, as well as setting (paediatric or geriatric patients). Compliance, side effects, and cost implications were also evaluated. Results:: Overall, more than 1800 patients have been treated with the sequential regimen. Such a therapy was superior to 7–10 days triple therapies in paediatric, adult and elderly patients, achieving an eradication rate constantly higher than 90% at ITT analysis. Although primary clarithromycin resistance reduced the efficacy of such a therapy, a success rate significantly higher than that observed with the standard 7–10 days triple therapies was found. Conclusion:: The 10-day sequential treatment regimen achieves higher eradication rates than standard triple therapies.
Elevated body mass index as a causal risk factor for symptomatic gallstone disease: A Mendelian randomization study

Elevated body mass index (BMI) is associated with an increased risk of gallstone disease. Whether this reflects a causal association is unknown. Using a Mendelian randomization approach, we studied 77,679 individuals from the general population. Of these, 4,106 developed symptomatic gallstone disease during up to 34 years of follow‐up. Subjects were genotyped for three common variants known to associate with BMI: FTO(rs9939609); MC4R(rs17782313); and TMEM18(rs6548238). The number of BMI‐increasing alleles was calculated for each participant. In observational analyses, mean baseline BMI was 55% (11.6 kg/m2) increased in individuals in the fifth quintile versus the first quintile, similar in women and men. The corresponding multifactorially adjusted hazard ratio (HR) for symptomatic gallstone disease was 2.84 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.32‐3.46) overall, 3.36 (95% CI: 2.62‐4.31) in women, and 1.51 (95% CI: 1.09‐2.11) in men (P trend: 0.001 to <0.001; P interaction: BMI*sex on risk = 0.01). In genetic analyses, carrying 6 versus 0‐1 BMI‐increasing alleles was associated with a 5.2% (1.3 kg/m2) increase in BMI overall and with increases of 4.3% in women and 6.1% in men (all P trend: <0.001). Corresponding HRs for symptomatic gallstone disease were 1.43 (95% CI: 0.99‐2.05) overall, 1.54 (95% CI: 1.00‐2.35) in women, and 1.19 (95% CI: 0.60‐2.38) in men (P trend = 0.007, 0.02, and 0.26, respectively; P interaction allele score*sex on risk = 0.49). The estimated causal odds ratio (OR) for symptomatic gallstone disease, by instrumental variable analysis for a 1 kg/m2 increase in genetically determined BMI, was 1.17 (95% CI: 0.99‐1.37) overall and 1.20 (95% CI: 1.00‐1.44) and 1.02 (95% CI: 0.90‐1.16) in women and men, respectively. Corresponding observational HRs were 1.07 (95% CI: 1.06‐1.08), 1.08 (95% CI: 1.07‐1.10), and 1.04 (95% CI: 1.02‐1.07), respectively. Conclusion: These results are compatible with a causal association between elevated BMI and increased risk of symptomatic gallstone disease, which is most pronounced in women. (Hepatology 2013; 58:2133–2141)
MINING APPROXIMATE FUNCTIONAL DEPENDENCIES AS CONDENSED REPRESENTATIONS OF ASSOCIATION RULES

Approximate Functional Dependencies (AFD) mined from database relations represent potentially interesting patterns and have proven to be useful for various tasks like feature selection for classification, query optimization and query rewriting. Though the discovery of Functional Dependencies (FDs) from a relational database is a well studied problem, the discovery of AFDs still remains under explored, posing a special set of challenges. Such challenges include defining right interestingness measures for AFDs, employing effective pruning strategies and performing an efficient traversal in the search space of the attribute lattice. This thesis presents a novel perspective for AFDs as condensed representations of association rules; for example, an AFD (Model determines Make) is a condensation of various association rules like, (Model:Accord determines Make:Honda), (Model:Camry determines Make:Toyota). In this regard, this thesis describes two metrics, namely Confidence and Specificity analogous to the standard metrics confidence and support used in association rules respectively. This thesis presents an algorithm called AFDMiner for efficiently mining high quality AFDs by employing effective pruning strategies. AFDMiner performs a bottom-up search in the attribute lattice to find all AFDs and FDs that fall within the given Confidence and Specificity thresholds. Experiments on real data sets show the effectiveness of the approach both in terms of performance as well as the quality of AFDs generated.
Hormone Receptor Expression in Invasive Breast Cancer Among Korean Women and Comparison of 3 Antiestrogen Receptor Antibodies: A Multi-institutional Retrospective Study Using Tissue Microarrays

Estrogen receptor (ER) and progesterone receptor (PR) are prognostic markers of breast cancer and predictive markers of response to endocrine therapy. To determine rates of ER and PR expression in invasive breast carcinoma among Korean women, the Breast Pathology Study Group of the Korean Society of Pathologists collected 1198 specimens of invasive breast carcinoma from 6 university hospitals. Immunohistochemical analysis was carried out using 1 antibody against PR and 3 antibodies against ER (1D5, 6F11, and SP1). Specimens were evaluated using the semiquantitative Allred score (scores >2 were considered positive). A total of 1077 cases were interpretable for all 3 anti-ER antibodies. ER expression was positive in 68.5% of cases using SP1, in 59.6% using 1D5, and in 58.9% using 6F11. Of 1073 interpretable cases, PR expression was positive in 51.7% of cases. The frequency distribution of Allred scores revealed a bimodal pattern (complete absence of staining or staining in most cells) for both ER and PR. Patients with discordant results for 2 different ER antibodies showed a median overall survival (between that of double-positive cancer and that of double-negative cancer). Our results showed that the rate of hormone receptor expression in breast carcinomas among Korean patients did not differ from that of western patients. In addition, SP1 was the most sensitive antibody for identifying ER expression in tumors. However, further evaluation is needed to determine which antibody is the best for selecting patients with discordant results who are likely to respond to endocrine therapy.