Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Prediction of hemorrhagic and thrombotic events in patients with mechanical heart valve prostheses treated with oral anticoagulants

Summary. Background: Variability in the intensity of anticoagulant therapy is considered a risk factor for complications, but it is unclear how best to quantify variability. Objective: We evaluated the association of three methods to measure variability with complications of oral anticoagulant therapy. Methods: We conducted a nested case–control study within a cohort of patients with prosthetic heart valves. 210 patients with a first hemorrhagic or thrombotic event during follow‐up were selected with two controls per case, matched on age and sex. We calculated the time spent at an International Normalized Ratio below, above, and between 2.5 and 4.0, and the variance growth rate according to three different methods (A, B1, B2); method A combines variability and time in range, and methods B1 and B2 purely look at variability. Results: Odds ratios of the variance growth rates for thrombotic events for patients in the second and third tertiles varied between 2 and 3, with the highest odds ratio for complications for the method that purely looked at variability. For hemorrhagic complications, the highest odds ratios were found for method A, which also incorporated time in range, with odds ratios of 2.6 (95% CI: 1.3–5.1) and 3.1 (95% CI: 1.6–6.0) for the second and third tertiles as compared to the first. The combination of time spent out of range with the highest tertile of variability increased the risk 2.6‐fold (95% CI: 1.6–4.2) as compared to subjects with stable anticoagulation within the target range. Conclusion: Unstable anticoagulation was associated with hemorrhagic and thrombotic complications. Method A was best associated with complications, but methods B1 and B2, in combination with time spent in range, were equally well associated. As we prefer to disentangle variability and intensity of anticoagulation, we propose to use methods B1 or B2 to reflect pure variability of oral anticoagulant therapy.
In-flight modal analysis - a comparison between sweep and turbulence excitation

end of the development cycle, a new aircraft is certified by means of in-flight flutter tests. These tests consist of flying the aircraft at different airspeeds and measuring the accelerations at a limited number of locations on the aircraft structure. The scope is to open the flight domain by verifying that the aircraft does not suffer from aero-elastic instabilities such as flutter. In this paper, some modern frequency-domain modal parameter estimation methods are applied to in-flight data of a large aircraft. Traditional sine sweep excitation was applied at the control surfaces. However, during the test the aircraft passed through a turbulent zone. The sweep excitation was immediately stopped, but the on-board data acquisition system continued to record the aircraft vibration response. After quitting the turbulent zone, the sweep test was reinitiated. The present data thus allows for a comparison between artificial and natural excitation. More specifically, aspects such as data pre-processing, easiness of the parameter extraction process and the accuracy of the results are investigated.
Methyl (E)-3-(2-formylphenoxy)acrylate

In the title compound, C11H10O4, the methyl acrylate substituent adopts an extended E conformation with all torsion angles close to 180°. The conformation of the keto group with respect to the olefinic double bond is typically S-trans. In the crystal, molecules are linked via pairs of C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds, forming inversion dimers with an R 2 2(8) graph-set motif. The dimers are further linked via C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds, forming chains along [001], which enclose R 3 2(16) graph-set ring motifs. The keto group O atomaccepts two C—H⋯O interactions.
Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Medical and Dental Health, Access to Care, and Use of Services in US Children

BACKGROUND. Not enough is known about the national prevalence of racial/ethnic disparities in children's medical and dental care. OBJECTIVE. The purpose of this work was to examine racial/ethnic disparities in medical and oral health, access to care, and use of services in a national sample. METHODS. The National Survey of Children's Health was a telephone survey in 2003–2004 of a national random sample of parents and guardians of 102353 children 0 to 17 years old. Disparities in selected medical and oral health and health care measures were examined for white, African American, Latino, Asian/Pacific Islander, Native American, and multiracial children. Multivariate analyses were performed to adjust for primary language at home, age, insurance coverage, income, parental education and employment, and number of children and adults in the household. Forty measures of medical and oral health status, access to care, and use of services were analyzed. RESULTS. Many significant disparities were noted; for example, uninsurance rates were 6% for whites, 21% for Latinos, 15% for Native Americans, 7% for African Americans, and 4% for Asians or Pacific Islanders, and the proportions with a usual source of care were as follows: whites, 90%; Native Americans, 61%; Latinos, 68%; African Americans, 77%; and Asians or Pacific Islanders, 87%. Many disparities persisted for ≥1 minority group in multivariate analyses, including increased odds of suboptimal health status, overweight, asthma, activity limitations, behavioral and speech problems, emotional difficulties, uninsurance, suboptimal dental health, no usual source of care, unmet medical and dental needs, transportation barriers to care, problems getting specialty care, no medical or dental visit in the past year, emergency department visits, not receiving mental health care, and not receiving prescription medications. Certain disparities were particularly marked for specific racial/ethnic groups: for Latinos, suboptimal health status and teeth condition, uninsurance, and problems getting specialty care; for African Americans, asthma, behavior problems, skin allergies, speech problems, and unmet prescription needs; for Native Americans, hearing or vision problems, no usual source of care, emergency department visits, and unmet medical and dental needs; and for Asians or Pacific Islanders, problems getting specialty care and not seeing a doctor in the past year. Multiracial children also experienced many disparities. CONCLUSIONS. Minority children experience multiple disparities in medical and oral health, access to care, and use of services. Certain disparities are particularly marked for specific racial/ethnic groups, and multiracial children experience many disparities.
Ropinirole in Treatment-Resistant Depression: A 16-Week Pilot Study

Objective: The study aimed to assess the antidepressant efficacy and tolerability of adjunctive ropinirole in outpatients with treatment-resistant depression (TRD). Method: The study sample consisted of patients with a major depressive episode (diagnosed according to DSM-IV criteria) and TRD. Ropinirole 0.25 to 1.5 mg daily was added to tricyclic antidepressants or selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. We conducted assessments at baseline and at weeks 2, 4, 8, 12, and 16. We defined response as a 50% or greater reduction of the Montgomery–Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) total score plus a score of 1 (“very much improved”) or 2 (“much improved”) on the Clinical Global Impression of Improvement scale at endpoint. Tolerability was monitored with the Dosage Record Treatment Emergent Symptom Scale. Results: Seven patients had major depressive disorder, and 3 had bipolar II disorder. The mean maximum dose of ropinirole was 1.33 mg daily. Mean (SD) scores on the MADRS decreased from 29.6 (7.6) at baseline to 16.9 (12.1) at endpoint (P < 0.02). At endpoint, 4 of 10 (40%) patients were responders. Two patients discontinued ropinirole because of dizziness. Conclusions: These pilot data suggest that, in selected cases of TRD, ropinirole augmentation of antidepressants is effective and relatively well tolerated.
A low communication overhead parallel implementation of the back-propagation algorithm

The back-propagation algorithm is one of the most widely used training algorithms for neural networks. The training phase of a multilayer perceptron by using this algorithm can take very long time making neural networks difficult to accept. One approach to solve this problem consists in the parallelization of the training algorithm. There exists many different approaches, however most of them are well adapted to specialized hardware. The idea to use a network of workstations as a general purpose parallel computer is widely accepted. However, the communication overhead imposes restrictions in the design of parallel algorithms. In this work, we propose a parallel implementation of the back-propagation algorithm that is suitable to be applied to a network of workstations. The objective is twofold. The first goal is to increment the performance of the training phase of the algorithm with low communication overhead. The second goal is to provide a dynamic assignment of tasks to processors in order to make the best use of the computational resources.
Performance, carcass, gastrointestinal tract and meat quality traits, and selected blood parameters of broilers fed diets supplemented with humic substances.

BACKGROUND The effects of humic substances (HS) on quality traits (colour, water-holding capacity, and pH) of breast and thigh meats and on blood minerals (calcium and phosphorus) and on metabolites (glucose, total protein, triglyceride and cholesterols) as well as on the performance, carcass, and gastrointestinal tract (gut) traits of broilers were studied. In total, 480 male chicks (ROSS 308) were allocated to four treatments, each with five replicates containing 24 birds. While control birds were fed a diet (mash form) with no additives (0 HS), other treatment birds were fed with diets containing HS at 0.5 (0.5 HS), 1.0 (1 HS) or 1.5 (1.5 HS) g kg(-1) from 1 to 42 days of age. RESULTS The body and carcass weights and feed efficiency increased (P < 0.05) by 1.5 HS, and blood cholesterol decreased (P < 0.05) by 1 HS and 1.5 HS compared to 0 HS. The 0.5 HS decreased (P < 0.10) low-density lipoprotein compared to 0 HS. The 0.5 HS resulted in thigh meat and breast meat that were lighter and darker than those found in the other groups and 1.5 HS respectively (P < 0.01). CONCLUSION Feeding with a diet containing HS caused a measurable variation in the meat quality and blood cholesterol as well as the performance, carcass, and gut traits of broilers.
Information needs and Information seeking behaviors of Social Science Graduate Students in Malaysian Public Universities

Information seeking is a grand challenge and it is one of a considerable issue for Information Science. The focused of the study was the graduates of Social Sciences by research to pursue Master and Doctor of Philosophy (Phd) degrees in Public Malaysian Universities. The graduates of Social Sciences by research were in need for large volumes of current and relevant information sources to fulfill their research requirements. The advancement of the technology like computerization has changed Social Science graduates’ information need and seeking behaviors. Hence, the study is to gain a clearer picture of how graduate students seek information. This study is also to determine if there exist any correlation between information needs and information seeking of these graduates. An extensive review of related and relevant literature of previous and present studies is also included. The sample of the study was drawn from the Social Science graduate students of four Local Universities: UiTM, UM, UKM and USM. Quantitative data was collected using closed-ended questionnaires and the statistical package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 12 was used to analyze the data.
MAC layer fairness in IEEE 802.11 DCF based Wireless Mesh Networks

Fairness provisioning in IEEE 802.11 DCF based Wireless Mesh Networks is a very challenging task due to unfair nature of 802.11 DCF based MAC protocol. In this paper, notion of proportional fairness is used in WMN where each node gets channel share proportional to their load. A load estimation strategy is proposed at each WMN node, which in turn estimates required channel share for every node. A probabilistic approach is used to tune the contention window based on the difference between actual channel share and required channel share. Simulation result shows that the proposed scheme works better than the standard IEEE 802.11 based DCF MAC in terms of fairness and throughput.
ErbB‐2, the preferred heterodimerization partner of all ErbB receptors, is a mediator of lateral signaling

We have analyzed ErbB receptor interplay induced by the epidermal growth factor (EGF)‐related peptides in cell lines naturally expressing the four ErbB receptors. Down‐regulation of cell surface ErbB‐1 or ErbB‐2 by intracellular expression of specific antibodies has allowed us to delineate the role of these receptors during signaling elicited by: EGF and heparin binding EGF (HB‐EGF), ligands of ErbB‐1; betacellulin (BTC), a ligand of ErbB‐1 and ErbB‐4; and neu differentiation factor (NDF), a ligand of ErbB‐3 and ErbB‐4. Ligand‐induced ErbB receptor heterodimerization follows a strict hierarchy and ErbB‐2 is the preferred heterodimerization partner of all ErbB proteins. NDF‐activated ErbB‐3 or ErbB‐4 heterodimerize with ErbB‐1 only when no ErbB‐2 is available. If all ErbB receptors are present, NDF receptors preferentially dimerize with ErbB‐2. Furthermore, EGF‐ and BTC‐induced activation of ErbB‐3 is impaired in the absence of ErbB‐2, suggesting that ErbB‐2 has a role in the lateral transmission of signals between other ErbB receptors. Finally, ErbB‐1 activated by all EGF‐related peptides (EGF, HB‐EGF, BTC and NDF) couples to SHC, whereas only ErbB‐1 activated by its own ligands associates with and phosphorylates Cbl. These results provide the first biochemical evidence that a given ErbB receptor has distinct signaling properties depending on its dimerization.
AODV routing in VANET for message authentication using ECDSA

A Vehicular Ad Hoc Network (VANET) is a part of MANETs that is formed by wireless connections between cars. In VANETs, routing protocols and other routing related techniques must be adaptable to vehicular-specific capabilities and requirements. Along with the routing in VANET, message security is also one of the major concern. Messages are critical and important like a warning message, so that the message must be authenticated which guarantee's the message integrity. The authentication of these messages is done with the help of an algorithm called Elliptic Curve Digital Signature Algorithm (ECDSA), which provides an efficient message authentication scheme. A combination of AODV, ECDSA and VANET can make the scenario more efficient and perform better in terms of routing and time delay in message delivery.
The polychromatic Helitron landscape of the maize genome

Maize Helitron transposons are intriguing because of their notable ability to capture gene fragments and move them around the genome. To document more extensively their variability and their contribution to the remarkable genome structure variation of present-day maize, we have analyzed their composition, copy number, timing of insertion, and chromosomal distribution. First, we searched 2.4 Gb of sequences generated by the Maize Genome Sequencing Project with our HelitronFinder program. We identified 2,791 putative nonautonomous Helitrons and manually curated a subset of 272. The predicted Helitrons measure 11.9 kb on average and carry from zero to nine gene fragments, captured from 376 different genes. Although the diversity of Helitron gene fragments in maize is greater than in other species, more than one-third of annotated Helitrons carry fragments derived from just one of two genes. Most members in these two subfamilies inserted in the genome less than one million years ago. Second, we conducted a BLASTN search of the maize sequence database with queries from two previously described agenic Helitrons not detected by HelitronFinder. Two large subfamilies of Helitrons or Helitron-related transposons were identified. One subfamily, termed Cornucopious, consists of thousands of copies of an ≈1.0-kb agenic Helitron that may be the most abundant transposon in maize. The second subfamily consists of >150 copies of a transposon-like sequence, termed Heltir, that has terminal inverted repeats resembling Helitron 3′ termini. Nonautonomous Helitrons make up at least 2% of the maize genome and most of those tested show +/− polymorphisms among modern inbred lines.
Healing of canine articular cartilage defects treated with microfracture, a type‐II collagen matrix, or cultured autologous chondrocytes

The effects of three different treatments on the healing of articular cartilage defects were compared with use of a previously developed canine model. In the articular surface of the trochlear grooves of 12 adult mongrel dogs, two 4‐mm‐diameter defects were made to the depth of the tidemark. Four dogs were assigned to each treatment group: (a) microfracture treatment, (b) microfracture with a type‐II collagen matrix placed in the defect, and (c) type‐II matrix seeded with cultured autologous chondrocytes. After 15 weeks, the defects were studied histologically. Data quantified on histological cross sections included areal or linear percentages of specific tissue types filling the defect, integration of reparative tissue with the calcified and the adjacent cartilage, and integrity of the subchondral plate. Total defect filling (i.e., the percentage of the cross‐sectional area of the original defect filled with any type of reparative tissue) averaged 56–86%, with the greatest amount found in the dogs in the microfracture group implanted with a type‐II collagen matrix. The profiles of tissue types for the dogs in each treatment group were similar: the tissue filling the defect was predominantly fibrocartilage, with the balance being fibrous tissue. There were no significant differences in the percentages of the various tissue types among dogs in the three groups.
Effects of the addition of sodium chloride to a tetrameric protein in water solution during exposure to high frequency electromagnetic field

Background: Previous studies have shown that exposure to high frequency electromagnetic fields induces alterations in simple organic systems such as proteins in bidistilled water solution. Objective: The aim of this study was to test the shielding action of sodium chloride in bidistilled water solution against exposure to a high frequency electromagnetic field, in order to evaluate if the addition of NaCl in proteins aqueous solution can be considered a valuable bioprotector against electromagnetic fields. Method: Samples of 250 μl of different hemoglobin aqueous solutions, in the absence or presence of sodium-chloride, were exposed for 3 hours to an electromagnetic field at 1750 MHz at a power density around 1 W/m 2 emitted by an operational mobile phone. Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy was used to study the effects of exposure on the secondary structure of hemoglobin also in the presence of sodium-chloride. Results: Spectral analysis evidenced that significant increase in intensity of the Amide I and II vibration bands in hemoglobin bidistilled water solution occurred after exposure to the electromagnetic field. This result can be due to the increase of dipole moment of the protein due to the alignment of α-helix towards the direction of the field. In contrast, no appreciable change was observed in hemoglobin in sodium-chloride water solution after exposure. This protective effect of sodium-chloride can be explained by the orientation of water molecules due to the strong electric field around each ion that reduces the possibility of rotation of the protein in response to an applied electromagnetic field.
Improving Language Recognition with Multilingual Phone Recognition and Speaker Adaptation Transforms

We investigate a variety of methods for improving language recognition accuracy based on techniques in speech recognition, and in some cases borrowed from speaker recognition. First, we look at the question of language-dependent versus language-independent phone recognition for phonotactic (PRLM) language recognizers, and find that language-independent recognizers give superior performance in both PRLM and PPRLM systems. We then investigate ways to use speaker adaptation (MLLR) transforms as a complementary feature for language characterization. Borrowing from speech recognition, we find that both PRLM and MLLR systems can be improved with the inclusion of discriminatively trained multilayer perceptrons as front ends. Finally, we compare language models to support vector machines as a modeling approach for phonotactic language recognition, and find them to be potentially superior, and surprisingly complementary.
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CONFIDENCE AND ACCURANCY: CURRENT THOUGHTS OF THE LIT- ERATURE AND A NEW AREA OF RE- SEARCH

Many believe the levels of confidence eyewitness’ express when identifying criminal suspects in lineups or testifying in trials make good predictors of their memory accuracy. Traditionally known as the confidence-accuracy (CA) relationship, the assumption is that as one’s confidence increases so does thier level of accuracy. The research literature has addressed the CA relationship along three main lines: examining rates of confidence and accuracy in memory for general knowledge (factual information), determining if the CA relationship can be divided into subsections in which performance levels are consistent, and developing measures to raise the value of the CA relationship. The literature outlining the role of the CA relationship in criminal suspect identification is indeed extensive, but there is little mention of a new field of interest in which the CA relationship is applied to eyewitness memory for product brand names.
Dyslexia and the Phonological Deficit Hypothesis Developing Phonological Awareness in Young English Language Learners

The present essay aims at investigating the relationship between dyslexia, phonologi- cal awareness, and the development of reading skills, both in a first language (L1) and in a foreign language (FL) - and especially in the English language. The first paragraph offers a theoretical overview of the notions of dyslexia and phonological awareness. The essay moves on to examine the relationship between early phonological awareness skills in preschool children and the later development of their literacy skills. The authors then describe an intervention program to foster phonological awareness skills in English-speaking preschoolers, and propose to employ this prac- tice - in an adapted manner - in Italian preschools. What follows is a focus on the role of phono- logical awareness in primary school children. After reviewing the main approaches in the field of language teaching methodology, and their degree of 'dyslexic-friendliness', the authors present a phonics teaching proposal to strengthen not only phonological awareness skills in primary school children, but also to approach children to literacy in the form of regular correspondences between sounds and letters in English, through the educational tool of storytelling. Contents 1. Phonological Awareness and Reading Abilities. — 1.1. The Phonological Deficit Hypothesis: a Barrier to Reading Acquisition. — 1.2. The Phonological Deficit Hypothesis and De- velopmental Dyslexia Profiles. — 1.3. Phonological Awareness: Implicit and Explicit Phonological Abilities. — 1.4. The Developmental Stages of Phonological Awareness. — 1.5. Levels of Phonolo-