Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Kinesiology Analysis of Athletics at the Ancient Olympics and of Performance Differences Between Male and Female Olympic Champions at the Modern Games in Running, Swimming and Rowing

Kinesiology and physics were employed to better understand the performance of male and female athletes in the Ancient and in the Modern Olympic Games. In what we now call the Ancient Olympics (actually the Pan-Hellenic Games at Olympia), then open only to men, athletes competing in the long jump (part of the pentathlon) carried 1.5-3 kg weights called halteres. By training today’s athletes, we have learned that by coordinating the backward and forward thrusting of those weights, about 5% in distance can be gained. In the javelin (also part of the pentathlon) a cord wound around the javelin unwrapped as the javelin was thrown, providing spin stabilization. Performance enhancing drugs were legal at the Ancient Olympics. When women competed in the Heraea Games at Olympia, they ran 5/6 (83%) as far as men, which was the female/male performance ratio of 1928 Olympic champions when women resumed athletics competition. Regarding the Modern Olympics, for running, swimming and rowing, using physics and kinesiology, equations for the velocity ratios of female/male elite athletes were derived and then populated with parameters from studies of over 2000 athletes. Assuming equal training and efficiency, the female/male ratio for running velocity simplifies to the relative female/male lean-toweight ratio; while for swimming and rowing, the velocity ratio becomes the 8/9th power of the relative lean-to-weight ratio, a remarkable similarity. For the average of Olympic champions in two time frames from 1980 until the present, the actual velocity ratios of about 90% are within tenths of a percent of the expected values, except for running where women have a 1% inefficiency due to longer-than men stride length (relative to height) induced by hip-height geometry. That extra 1% of wear strongly suggests that female athletes should strengthen knee joints to reduce the tendency of females to have six times the likelihood of ACL ligament tears as men.
Childhood stunting: a global perspective

Abstract Childhood stunting is the best overall indicator of children's well‐being and an accurate reflection of social inequalities. Stunting is the most prevalent form of child malnutrition with an estimated 161 million children worldwide in 2013 falling below −2 SD from the length‐for‐age/height‐for‐age World Health Organization Child Growth Standards median. Many more millions suffer from some degree of growth faltering as the entire length‐for‐age/height‐for‐age z‐score distribution is shifted to the left indicating that all children, and not only those falling below a specific cutoff, are affected. Despite global consensus on how to define and measure it, stunting often goes unrecognized in communities where short stature is the norm as linear growth is not routinely assessed in primary health care settings and it is difficult to visually recognize it. Growth faltering often begins in utero and continues for at least the first 2 years of post‐natal life. Linear growth failure serves as a marker of multiple pathological disorders associated with increased morbidity and mortality, loss of physical growth potential, reduced neurodevelopmental and cognitive function and an elevated risk of chronic disease in adulthood. The severe irreversible physical and neurocognitive damage that accompanies stunted growth poses a major threat to human development. Increased awareness of stunting's magnitude and devastating consequences has resulted in its being identified as a major global health priority and the focus of international attention at the highest levels with global targets set for 2025 and beyond. The challenge is to prevent linear growth failure while keeping child overweight and obesity at bay.
Subcortical effects of transcranial direct current stimulation in the rat

• Previously demonstrated facilitation of activation of subcortical neurons by transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) in acute experiments on deeply anaesthetized animals was fairly weak. It resulted in only small increases in the amplitude and in a slight shortening of latencies of subcortically initiated descending volleys. • Here we show that despite weak effects on descending volleys, EMG responses evoked in neck muscles by reticulospinal and rubrospinal neurons in deeply anaesthetized non‐paralysed rats are potently facilitated by tDCS and that the facilitation outlasts tDCS. • We further show that the facilitatory subcortical effects of tDCS in the rat are evoked by cathodal rather than anodal polarization, i.e. by a polarity that is the reverse of that most often found to be effective in humans and in the cat. Anodal polarization depressed activation of the same rat subcortical neurons. • These findings should assist further studies of mechanisms of tDCS in vivo in rodents.
Intussusception among recipients of rotavirus vaccine: reports to the vaccine adverse event reporting system.

BACKGROUND Rotavirus vaccine was licensed on August 31, 1998, and subsequently recommended for routine use among infants. To assess rare adverse events, postlicensure surveillance was conducted. OBJECTIVE To describe the cases of intussusception among rotavirus vaccine recipients reported to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System from October 1998 through December 1999. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS Infants vaccinated with rotavirus vaccine in the United States. OUTCOME MEASURES Intussusception confirmed by radiology, surgery, or autopsy report with medical record documentation or confirmed by a primary health care provider. RESULTS There were 98 confirmed cases of intussusception after vaccination with rotavirus vaccine reported to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System; 60 of these developed intussusception within 1 week after vaccination. Based on calculations using vaccine distribution data and intussusception incidence rates from 2 separate databases, an estimated 7 to 16 cases would have been expected to occur in the week after vaccination by chance alone. CONCLUSION Using a passive surveillance system for vaccine adverse events, we observed at least a fourfold increase over the expected number of intussusception cases occurring within 1 week of receipt of rotavirus vaccine. Other studies were initiated to further define the relationship between rotavirus vaccine and intussusception. In light of these and other data, the rotavirus vaccine manufacturer voluntarily removed its product from the market, and the recommendation for routine use of rotavirus vaccine among US infants has been withdrawn.
Hardness amplification in proof complexity

We present a general method for converting any family of unsatisfiable CNF formulas that is hard for one of the simplest proof systems -- tree resolution -- into formulas that require large rank in very strong proof systems, including any proof system that manipulates polynomials of degree at most k (known as Th(k) proofs). These include high degree versions of Lovasz-Schrijver and Cutting Planes proofs. We introduce two very general families of these proof systems, denoted Tcc(k) and Rcc(k). The proof lines of Tcc(k) are arbitrary Boolean functions, each of which can be evaluated by an efficient k-party randomized communication protocol. Tcc(k) proofs include Th(k-1) proofs as a special case. Rcc(k) proofs generalize Tcc(k) proofs and require only that each inference be checkable by a short k-party protocol. For all k in O(loglog n), our main results are as follows: First, any unsatisfiable CNF formula of high resolution rank can be efficiently transformed into another CNF formula requiring high rank in all Rcc(k) systems, and exponential tree size in all Tcc(k) systems. Secondly, there are strict rank hierarchies for all Rcc(k) systems, and strict tree-size hierarchies for all Tcc(k) systems. Finally, we apply our general method to give optimal integrality gaps for low rank Rcc(2) proofs for MAX-2t-SAT, which imply optimal integrality gaps for low rank Cutting Planes and Th(1) proofs.
FLOC : A Fast Local Clustering Service for Wireless Sensor Networks

We present a fast local clustering service, FLOC, that produces nonoverlapping and approximately equal-sized clusters. The clustering is such that all nodes within unit distance of a clusterhead belongs to its cluster, and no node m units away from the clusterhead may belong to its cluster. By asserting m ≥ 2 FLOC achieves locality: effects of cluster formation and faults/changes at any part of the network are contained within at most 2 units. By taking unit distance to be the reliable communication radius and m to be the maximum communication radius, FLOC exploits the double-band nature of wireless radio-model and achieves clustering in constant time regardless of the network size.
NARROW FOCUSING : WHY THE RELATIVE POSITION OF A PRODUCT WITHIN ITS CATEGORY MATTERS MORE THAN IT SHOULD ? France

This research examines whether a low-ranking member in a high-status category (e.g., a low-end model of a high-end brand) or a high-ranking member in a low-status category (e.g., a high-end model of a low-end brand) is favored, holding the objective qualities of the items constant. Brand equity research suggests that the quality of a brand is more important than the ranking of a product within a brand. Our research documents a robust ranking effect – whereby a high-ranking product in a low-status category is favored over a low-ranking product in a high-status category even when information on competing categories is made available. We explain this effect in terms of narrow focusing and evaluability, and we identify boundary conditions of the effect.
Performance analysis of amplify-and-forward cognitive relay networks under transmit power constraint and interference power constraint

Cooperative relaying technology has been proved to be one of the most promising techniques to improve the throughput of CR networks. In this paper, cognitive relay networks with amplify-and-forward (AF) protocol in a spectrumsharing scenario have been considered. Compared with previous studies, we further consider the transmit power constraint on secondary source node (SS). Namely, we impose both transmit power constraint and interference power constraint on SS and secondary relay node (SR). As well we obtain the exact outage probability which works as the performance measurement of CR networks. To analyze the influential factors for system performance, the closed form expression of outage probability needs to be derived. However, it is mathematical intractable. Hence, an approximate approach is adopted as a solution. Finally, Monte-Carlo simulations are conducted to verify the accuracy of our approximation, the error sources of our analytical results are discussed as well.
Prediction Tools for Unfavourable Outcomes in Clostridium difficile Infection: A Systematic Review

Context Identifying patients at risk for adverse outcomes of Clostridium difficile infection (CDI), including recurrence and death, will become increasingly important as novel therapies emerge, which are more effective than traditional approaches but very expensive. Clinical prediction rules (CPRs) can improve the accuracy of medical decision-making. Several CPRs have been developed for CDI, but none has gained a widespread acceptance. Methods We systematically reviewed studies describing the derivation or validation of CPRs for unfavourable outcomes of CDI, in medical databases (Medline, Embase, PubMed, Web of Science and Cochrane) and abstracts of conferences. Results Of 2945 titles and abstracts screened, 13 studies on the derivation of a CPR were identified: two on recurrences, five on complications (including mortality), five on mortality alone and one on response to treatment. Two studies on the validation of different severity indices were also retrieved. Most CPRs were developed as secondary analyses using cohorts assembled for other purposes. CPRs presented several methodological limitations that could explain their limited use in clinical practice. Except for leukocytosis, albumin and age, there was much heterogeneity in the variables used, and most studies were limited by small sample sizes. Eight models used a retrospective design. Only four studies reported the incidence of the outcome of interest, even if this is essential to evaluate the potential usefulness of a model in other populations. Only five studies performed multivariate analyses to adjust for confounders. Conclusions The lack of weighing variables, of validation, calibration and measures of reproducibility, the weak validities and performances when assessed, and the absence of sensitivity analyses, all led to suboptimal quality and debatable utility of those CPRs. Evidence-based tools developed through appropriate prospective cohorts would be more valuable for clinicians than empirically-developed CPRs.
The Design and Implementation of Seeded Trees: An Efficient Method for Spatial Joins

Existing methods for spatial joins require pre-existing spatial indices or other precomputation, but such approaches are inefficient and limited in generality. Operand data sets of spatial joins may not all have precomputed indices, particularly when they are dynamically generated by other selection or join operations. Also, existing spatial indices are mostly designed for spatial selections, and are not always efficient for joins. This paper explores the design and implementation of seeded trees, which are effective for spatial joins and efficient to construct at join time. Seeded trees are R-tree-like structures, but divided into seed levels and grown levels. This structure facilitates using information regarding the join to accelerate the join process, and allows efficient buffer management. In addition to the basic structure and behavior of seeded trees we present techniques for efficient seeded tree construction, a new buffer management strategy to lower I/O costs, and theoretical analysis for choosing algorithmic parameters. We also present methods for reducing space requirements and improving the stability of seeded tree performance with no additional I/O costs. Our performance studies show that the seeded tree method outperforms other tree-based methods by far both in terms of the number disk pages accessed and weighted I/O costs. Further, its performance gain is stable across different input data, and its incurred CPU penalties are also lower.
THE SLOAN DIGITAL SKY SURVEY DISCOVERY OF A STRONGLY LENSED POST-STARBURST GALAXY AT z = 0.766

We present the first result of a survey for strong galaxy–galaxy lenses in Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) images. SDSS J082728.70+223256.4 was selected as a lensing candidate using selection criteria based on the color and positions of objects in the SDSS photometric catalog. Follow-up imaging and spectroscopy showed this object to be a lensing system. The lensing galaxy is elliptical at z = 0.349 in a galaxy cluster. The lensed galaxy has the spectrum of a post-starburst galaxy at z = 0.766. The lensing galaxy has an estimated mass of ∼1.2 × 1012M☉, and the corresponding mass-to-light ratio in the B-band is ∼26M☉/L☉ inside 1.1 effective radii of the lensing galaxy. Our study shows how catalogs drawn from multi-band surveys can be used to find strong galaxy–galaxy lenses having multiple lens images. Our strong lensing candidate selection based on photometry-only catalogs will be useful in future multi-band imaging surveys such as SNAP and LSST.
Setting a Research Agenda for Perioperative Systems Design

Perioperative care may be considered as a system amenable to industrial design approaches. The current care model is disjointed, prone to breakdown by failure of one component, and hostile to personnel. Moving a patient as a person and data set through the flow of perioperative care is not only possible, but it is essential for efficiency and safety. Perioperative systems design integrates the research agenda in technology, safety, informatics, and even telemedicine by putting all the pieces that constitute patient care into a cogent, flexible, and well-managed model.
An Automatic Approach for Pixel-wise Correspondence between 3D Faces

The crucial assumption of most of the model-based face analysis techniques is that any face can be generated by linear combinations of few faces. However, linear operations-Csuch as a simple pixelby- pixel addition of raw faces, are meaningless until pixel-wise correspondence of the 3D faces have been established. To overcome limitation of conventional mesh re-sampling algorithm, in this paper, we presented a fully automatic resolution, which can decrease the number of vertices and triangles while establishing correspondence between 3D faces. Based on facial features, a 3D face is segmented into 36 patches automatically at first. Each patch is then resampled to obtain a standardized patch, the same number of vertices with the template. At last, triangularly grid meshes are reconstructed for each patch individually and finally a standardized face is created by concatenating all the re-sampled patches. The experiment results show that without the complex iteration, our system is able to run quickly (resampling procedure costs less than one second) and obtain standardized 3D faces of different resolutions.
Scalable Social Coordination with Group Constraints using Enmeshed Queries

While specific forms of social coordination appear in tools such as Meetup and in game platforms such as XBox LIVE, we introduce a more general model using what we call enmeshed queries. An enmeshed query allows users to declaratively specify an intent to coordinate with other users (who they may not know a priori) by specifying constraints on who/what/when as well as on the composition of the group, such as the desired group size. The database returns a group of users who have registered queries with matching intents. Enmeshed queries are continuous, but new queries (and not data) answer older queries; the group constraints and the ability to coordinate with unknown partners make enmeshed queries differ from entangled queries, publish-subscribe systems, dating services and nested transactions. While even offline group coordination using enmeshed queries is NPhard, we introduce efficient heuristic algorithms that can scale to millions of queries, and find 86% of the matches found by an optimal algorithm using 40 microseconds per query on a 2.5 GHz server machine. We conclude by describing potential generalizations that add prices, recommendations, and data mining to basic enmeshed queries.
Sodium channel b 1-subunit expression is increased in reactive astrocytes in a rat model for mesial temporal lobe epilepsy

As several epilepsy syndromes are associated with changes in sodium channel subunits we investigated the expression of b1 sodium channel protein in a rat epilepsy model. In this model a chronic epileptic syndrome develops after electrically induced status epilepticus (SE). Many neuropathological characteristics of mesial temporal lobe epilepsy can be reproduced (cell loss, gliosis and synaptic reorganization). In control hippocampus b1 subunit protein was moderately expressed in neurons and weakly expressed in resting astrocytes. b1 sodium channel immunoreactivity increased markedly within 1 week after SE mainly in astrocytes that were colocalized with vimentin (marker for reactive astrocytes). This up-regulation was still present in reactive astrocytes of chronic epileptic rats (> 3 months after SE). Considering the fact that the b1 subunits may function as cell adhesion molecules interacting with extracellular matrix, the observed increase in reactive astrocytes might subserve a function in cellular and synaptic reorganization during epileptogenesis.
Prognostic Significance of High-Sensitivity Cardiac Troponin T Concentrations between the Limit of Blank and Limit of Detection in Community-Dwelling Adults: A Metaanalysis.

BACKGROUND There is controversy regarding whether to report concentrations of high-sensitivity cardiac troponin T (hs-cTnT) to the limit of blank (LOB) (3 ng/L) or the limit of detection (LOD) (5 ng/L) of the assay in community-based cohorts. We hypothesized that hs-cTnT concentrations between the LOB and LOD would be associated with poorer cardiovascular outcomes compared to concentrations below the LOB. METHODS hs-cTnT was analyzed in a total of 10 723 participants from the Cardiovascular Health Study (CHS), Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) study, and Dallas Heart Study (DHS). Participants were divided into 2 groups, those with hs-cTnT concentrations below the limit of blank (LOB) (<3 ng/L) and those with hs-cTnT between the LOB and limit of detection (LOD) (3-4.99 ng/L). Cross-sectional associations with traditional cardiovascular risk factors and cardiac structural measurements, and longitudinal associations with long-term cardiovascular outcomes of incident heart failure and cardiovascular death, were determined. RESULTS Participants with hs-cTnT between the LOB and LOD for all 3 cohorts were older, more likely to be male, and have a higher burden of cardiovascular risk factors and structural pathology. A metaanalysis of the 3 cohorts showed participants with hs-cTnT between the LOB and LOD were at increased risk of new-onset heart failure (hazard ratio, 1.18; 95% CI, 1.02-1.38) and cardiovascular mortality (hazard ratio, 1.29; 95% CI, 1.06-1.57). CONCLUSIONS hs-cTnT concentrations between the LOB and LOD (3-4.99 ng/L) are associated with a higher prevalence of traditional risk factors, more cardiac pathology, and worse outcomes than concentrations below the LOB (<3 ng/L).
Modeling ocean waves and interaction between objects and ocean water for cartoon animation

We present a scheme for the animation of ocean waves in a recognizable drawn animation cartoon style. This consists principally of two parts: the first part is the ocean surface generated by a procedural model which governs the dynamics of the ocean surface and rendered with stylized whitewater forms over the ocean wave crests; the second part is water effects caused by interactions between the ocean water and obstacle objects, such as waves crashing against obstacles‐like rocks or boats and forms surrounding objects, and those effects are simulated with different hierarchical models. The ocean surface can be used either alone or in conjunction with effects caused by the interactions according to the scene. With minimum user intervention, i.e., specification of a few parameters, our model is able to generate cartoon ocean wave animations using these procedural methods, as shown by examples given in the paper. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.