Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Perceived Exertion Relationships and Prediction of Peak Oxygen Uptake in Able-bodied and Paraplegic Individuals

2 Abstract Rating of Perceived Exertion (RPE) relates to how ‘hard’ or ‘easy’ an exercise feels. The Borg 6-20 RPE scale is the most widely used scale to estimate the overall, peripheral and central perception of effort. To date, there are a limited number of studies on the use and efficacy of perceived exertion in persons with spinal cord injury and/or disease. The findings from these studies are also equivocal. Therefore, the aims of this thesis were to assess: i) the relationship between the RPE and physical and physiological markers of exercise intensity during arm cranking exercise in ablebodied and individuals with spinal cord disease, ii) the efficacy of sub-maximal RPE values to predict peak oxygen uptake during arm cranking exercise in able-bodied and paraplegic individuals using different exercise protocols, iii) the scalar property of the RPE during arm cranking exercise in able-bodied and paraplegic individuals. To achieve these goals, the thesis has been broken down to a series of seven studies. In each of these studies, except study 6, a group of able-bodied and a group of paraplegic participants were recruited to asses these hypotheses. Paraplegic individuals had spinal cord injury with neurological levels at or below the sixth thoracic vertebra (T6) or flaccid paralysis as a result of poliomyelitis infection. These individuals were physically active and participated in sports like wheelchair basketball, weightlifting, wheelchair racing and table tennis at both professional and recreational levels. Able-bodied participants were healthy and free from pre-existing injuries and physically active but not arm-trained. There were strong relationships between the RPE and each of the physiological and physical indices of exercise intensity during arm cranking exercise regardless of group or gender. Peak oxygen uptake can be predicted with reasonable accuracy from sub-maximal oxygen uptake values elicited during a sub-maximal perceptually-guided, graded exercise test for paraplegic individuals but not for able-bodied participants. It has also been shown that peak oxygen uptake can be predicted from power output using the equation prescribed by the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM, 2006). Furthermore, for able-bodied participants using estimation procedures, a
Suppression of Carrageenan- and Collagen II-Induced Inflammation in Mice by Geranium Oil

To obtain experimental evidence on the therapeutic efficacy of essential oils in aromatherapy for inflammatory diseases, we examined the effects of geranium oil on carrageenan-induced and collagen II-induced inflammation in mice, to assess acute and chronic anti-inflammatory activities of the oil. Single intraperitoneal injection of 5 μL of geranium oil clearly suppressed the carrageenan-induced footpaw edema and increase in tissue myeloperoxidase activity, and repeated administration of the oil suppressed collagen-induced arthritis. These results revealed that geranium oil suppressed both acute and chronic inflammatory responses in mice.
Improving the quality of discrete-choice experiments in health: how can we assess validity and reliability?

ABSTRACT Introduction: The recent endorsement of discrete-choice experiments (DCEs) and other stated-preference methods by regulatory and health technology assessment (HTA) agencies has placed a greater focus on demonstrating the validity and reliability of preference results. Areas covered: We present a practical overview of tests of validity and reliability that have been applied in the health DCE literature and explore other study qualities of DCEs. From the published literature, we identify a variety of methods to assess the validity and reliability of DCEs. We conceptualize these methods to create a conceptual model with four domains: measurement validity, measurement reliability, choice validity, and choice reliability. Each domain consists of three categories that can be assessed using one to four procedures (for a total of 24 tests). We present how these tests have been applied in the literature and direct readers to applications of these tests in the health DCE literature. Based on a stakeholder engagement exercise, we consider the importance of study characteristics beyond traditional concepts of validity and reliability. Expert commentary: We discuss study design considerations to assess the validity and reliability of a DCE, consider limitations to the current application of tests, and discuss future work to consider the quality of DCEs in healthcare.
The Role of l-arginine in Inclusion Complexes of Omeprazole with Cyclodextrins

In this study, we investigate how the effect of l-arginine (ARG) and cyclodextrins upon omeprazole (OME) stability and solubility. The effect of the presence of ARG on the apparent stability constants (K1:1) of the inclusion complexes formed between OME and each cyclodextrin, β-cyclodextrin (βCD), and methyl-β-cyclodextrin (MβCD) is studied by phase solubility diagrams and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. The interaction of OME with those cyclodextrins, in the presence of ARG, is characterized using NMR spectroscopy and molecular dynamics simulations. ARG significantly increases the drug solubility and complex stability, in comparison to inclusion complexes formed in its absence. The effect is more pronounced for the OME:βCD complex. ARG also contributes to a larger stability of OME when free in aqueous solution. The combination of ARG with cyclodextrins can represent an important tool to develop stable drug formulations.
Established Role of Magnesium Sulfate as Prophylactic Anticonvulsive Agent in Preeclampsia/Eclampsia

In Europe around 2% of all pregnancies are complicated by the preeclamptic syndrome (blood pressure 140/90 or more and proteinuria 20.3 g/L). The incidence of severe cases with symptoms and signs of involvement of several organ systems is even less. Thus, a descriptive study of every case of eclampsia in the United Kingdom in 1992 revealed an incidence of eclampsia of 4.9/10,000 pregnancies (1). This was somewhat higher than that of 2.7/10,000 reported from Sweden in 1980 (2). In the developing countries the incidence is probably higher, estimates varying from 6/10,000 to 100/10,000 (3). The severity of preeclampsia is within a wide range, and most women with preeclampsia do well. However, in a small proportion the disease deteriorates and serious complications like the HELLP syndrome, eclampsia, and intracerebral catastrophies may ensue. Maternal mortality in connection with eclampsia is nearly 2% and 35% will experience at least one major complication. The neonatal mortality (stillbirths and neonatal deaths) is nearly 6% (1). Since eclampsia definitely is associated with the risk of a poor outcome for both mother and infant
Commensurate dimensionality reduction for extended local ternary patterns

We present a systematic approach to reduce the dimensionality of the feature vector for local binary/ternary patterns. The proposed framework examines the distribution of uniform patterns in different image sets to formulate a procedure to assign dimensionality to uniform and non-uniform patterns. Unlike previous methods where all the information from non-uniform patterns is discarded or merged into a single dimension, the proposed commensurate dimensionality reduction (CDR) technique attempts to retain valuable information from all contributory factors. Experiments and comparative analysis have validated the efficacy of the newly defined CDR-ELTP descriptor in terms of noise resistance and texture classification.
Implementation of PI2 queuing discipline for classic TCP traffic in ns-3

This paper presents the implementation and validation of PI2 Active Queue Management (AQM) algorithm in ns-3. PI2 provides an alternate design and implementation to Proportional Integral controller Enhanced (PIE) algorithm without affecting the performance benefits it provides in tackling the problem of bufferbloat. Bufferbloat is a situation arising due to the presence of large unmanaged buffers in the network. It results in increased latency and therefore, degrades the performance of delay-sensitive traffic. PIE algorithm tries to minimize the queuing delay by auto-tuning its control parameters. However, with PI2, this auto-tuning is replaced by just squaring the packet drop probability. In this paper, we implement a model for PI2 in ns-3 and verify its correctness by comparing the results obtained from it to those obtained from the PIE model in ns-3. The results indicate that PI2 offers a simple design and achieves similar or at times better responsiveness and stability than PIE.
Prior infection with cytomegalovirus is not a major risk factor for angiographically demonstrated coronary artery atherosclerosis.

To determine if cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection is a risk factor for primary coronary artery disease (CAD), the association between CMV infection and CAD (>50% blockage in any coronary artery) was investigated in nearly 900 successive nontransplant patients undergoing coronary angiography. By use of logistic regression, older age (P <.001), white race (P <.001), gender (P <.001), hypercholesterolemia (P = .04), and other established cardiovascular risk factors (P = .003) were identified as significantly associated with CAD, but CMV seropositivity (P = .462), the level of IgG antibodies to CMV whole cell antigen (P = .98), or the levels of IgG antibodies to CMV glycoprotein B (P = .67) were not. These data suggest that CMV infection is not a major risk factor for the development of primary CAD in adults.
Diagnostic Value of Provocative Test by Insulin Combined with Clonidine for Growth Hormone Deficiency in Children

Objective To evaluate the diagnostic value of provocative test by insulin combined with clonidine for growth hormone deficiency (GHD) during childhood. Methods Eighty children underwent a provocative test with insulin(0.075U/Kg, intravenous) combined with clonidine (4μg/kg, orally). Among them, 40 children underwent clonidine provocative test, 40 children underwent insulin tolerance test (ITT) in another day. Findings The specificity of ITT+clonidine test (74%, 88%) was remarkably higher than that of ITT (48%) or clonidine test (65%). ITT+clonidine test had a better accuracy (75%, 85%) than that of ITT (63%) or clonidine test (73%). Conclusion We conclude that the combined clonidine+insulin test is a feasible, reliable, convenient, time saving, and safe tool for evaluation of the growth hormone (GH) axes than the clonidine test or ITT.
Beginning Qualitative Research: A Philosophical and Practical Guide

Part 1 Philosophic underpinnings: Philosophic underpinnings: an overview Before beginning research: a philosophic perspective the qualitative posture: indwelling. Part 2 Designing qualitative research: an overview generating ideas building a sample data collection in the natural setting: studying people, studying setting. Part 3 Data analysis: qualitative data analysis: an overview qualitative data analysis using the constant comparative method communicating the outcomes of qualitative research.
HIF‐1 and p53: communication of transcription factors under hypoxia

Oxygen sensing and reactivity to changes in the concentration of oxygen is a fundamental property of cell physiology. The lack of O2 (hypoxia) is transmitted into many adaptive responses, a process that is largely controlled by a transcription factor known as hypoxia inducible factor‐1 (HIF‐1). More recent reports suggest that besides its traditional regulation via proteasomal degradation other signaling pathways contribute to stability regulation of the HIF‐1α subunit and/or HIF‐1 transactivation. These regulatory circuits allow for the integration of HIF‐1 into scenarios of cell‐survival vs. cell‐death with the rule of the thumb that short‐term mild hypoxia maintains cell viability while prolonged and severe hypoxia provokes cell demise. Cell death pathways are associated with stabilization of the tumor suppressor p53, a response also seen under hypoxic conditions. Here we summarize recent information on accumulation of HIF‐1α and p53 under hypoxia and provide a model to explain the communication between HIF‐1 and p53 under (patho)physiological conditions.
Plasma fibrinogen levels, other cardiovascular risk factors, and age-related maculopathy: the Blue Mountains Eye Study.

OBJECTIVE To assess the relationship between stages of age-related maculopathy (ARM) and cardiovascular disease and cardiovascular disease risk factors, including serum lipid and plasma fibrinogen levels, smoking, cardiovascular events, systemic hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and obesity. DESIGN A cross-sectional study of 3654 subjects from a defined geographic area identified subjects with late age-related macular degeneration (ARMD) and early ARM from the masked grading of retinal photographs. The history, physical examination findings, and fasting blood samples provided data on possible risk factors. Logistic regression, adjusting for age, sex, and possible confounders, and 2-way analysis of variance were used to assess associations. RESULTS The only factors significantly associated with ARM included the 2 established risk factors, smoking and family history of ARMD (odds ratios, 4.1 and 4.2, for late ARMD, respectively), and the 2 variables, body mass index (odds ratio, 1.78 for obese compared with normal body mass index for early ARM) and plasma fibrinogen level (odds ratio, 6.7 for a fibrinogen level of >4.5 g/L [highest quartile] compared with a fibrinogen level of <3.4 g/L [lowest quartile] for late ARMD). CONCLUSIONS These findings support the concepts that associations exist between plasma fibrinogen levels and late ARMD, a body mass index outside the normal range, and early ARM, and between the family history and smoking and any ARM. We found no other significant associations with any history of cardiovascular disease or other risk factors for cardiovascular disease.
Maximizing Early Childhood Practices by Incorporating Constructivist Principles in an Elementary School

In most public schools, children begin school in kindergarten. Recently, many school systems have begun to implement programs for preschoolers, ages three and four. Georgia introduced the first statewide universal pre-K program in 1995 which offers all 4 year old children free preschool. New York, Oklahoma and Florida have followed (Barnett & Hustedt, 2003). Tennessee recently passed a bill to use $25 million of lottery money to fund preschool for children considered "at risk" ("Latest Pre-Kindergarten News," n.d.). The substantial amount of research involving brain development has stressed the importance of quality experiences in the early years of life (birth-8 years). Why not house these programs along with childcare in a public school? And, better yet, why not design a program and building for children six weeks through II years of age (traditional grade five age) which is based upon early childhood practices and incorporates constructivist principles? That is exactly what educators in a small, diversified school district in Northeast Tennessee did when the system committed to creating a "21st Century" elementary school.
Interface of Psychoanalysis and Psychology

Over 100 years ago, the disciplines of psychoanalysis and psychology began. They have since proceeded mainly along independent lines. This text reflects efforts to build conceptual bridges between psychoanalysis and relevant areas of psychological research, to identify historic and contemporary points of divergence, and to suggest directions for future research which might enrich both disciplines. Researchers in various fields of psychology - development, motivation, cognition, information processing, and perception - will find this book helpful in generating hypotheses about the impact of unconscious processes on the phenomena under investigation.
Analysis of the Behavior of Self-Similar Traffic in a QoS-Aware Architecture for Integrating WiMAX and GEPON

The access network has remained the bottleneck in efforts to deliver bandwidth-intensive new-generation applications and services to subscribers. In the wired access network, the gigabit Ethernet passive optical network (GEPON) is a promising technology for relieving this bottleneck, while its counterpart in the wireless access network is worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX). A converged quadruplet-service-enabled (video, voice, data, and mobility) network, which takes full advantage of the strengths and weaknesses of each of these promising technologies, has been proposed. Besides, research and Internet measurements have revealed that actual Ethernet and wireless data traffic are self-similar and long-range dependent. Therefore, we review the quality of service (QoS) architecture for integrating WiMAX and GEPON access networks that we proposed in previous work. Then, we present an analysis of the queuing behavior of the QoS architecture under self-similar and long-range-dependent data traffic conditions and derive closed-form expressions of the expected waiting time in queue (queuing delay) and the packet loss rate per QoS traffic class. This work brings novelty in terms of presenting performance analysis of the proposed QoS-aware integrated architecture under realistic load conditions and facilitates the provisioning of tightly bound QoS parameters to end users of the converged access network.
A Novel Simple Semi-Empirical Model for the Effective Earth Radius Factor

This paper presents a dual cumulative probability distribution model for predicting the cumulative distribution of the probability that a particular value of the propagation k-factor will be exceeded. The distributions relate to so-called "dry" and "wet" (or "climatic") components. The model is based on meteorological radiosonde data observed over a period of some 11 years and published by other workers. The model is extended by a simple height regression analysis in order to predict the cumulative behavior of the k-factor at different ground level heights in the summer rainfall area of South Africa during different months. Comparisons are made between predicted and observed data. The model may have potential applications in other parts of the world where data on k-factor behavior are scarce
Echinocandins: Are They All The Same?

Abstract The discovery of echinocandins, and their development and approval, was hailed as a significant addition to our antifungal armamentarium, previously predominated by polyenes and azoles. To date, three echinocandins (anidulafungin, caspofungin, and mica- fungin) have been approved by the U. S. Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of fungal infections. Since all three echinocandins target the fungal cell wall and share a similar structural chemical backbone, theyare perceived to be identical. However, a scientific literature review shows distinct differences among the echinocandins in terms of in vitro activity, fungicidal activity, post-antifungal effect, paradoxical effect, and activity on biofilms. More investigation is warranted to determine if the observed differences among the echinocandins can translate to clinical advantages.
{An Integration Architecture for User-Centric Document Creation, Retrieval, and Analysis}

The different stages in the life-cycle of content—creation, storage, retrieval, and analysis—are usually regarded as distinct and isolated steps. In this paper we examine the synergies resulting from their integration within a single architecture. Our goal is to employ such an architecture to improve user support for knowledge-intensive tasks. We present a case study from the area of building architecture, which is currently ongoing.
Practical considerations for higher degree research students undertaking mixed methods projects

Abstract As is the trend in nursing and health services research, mixed methods research is becoming increasingly popular in higher degree research programs. The aim of this paper is to identify and discuss the practical considerations that need to be contemplated by both the research student and the research supervisors before embarking on a mixed methods project, during the candidature and following completion of the project. Such considerations include the timing of the various data collections, the resource and skill development implications of using mixed methods, the need to create a supervisory panel with a combination of skills to support the project, strategies for managing the often extensive datasets, planning for integration or mixing within the study and reporting study findings. Adequate consideration of these issues has the potential to significantly reduce problems encountered during the candidature and enhance the quality of the work.
Structure-Based Web Pages Clustering

Recognizing similarities among the documents of a set is one of the objectives of retrieving information. The information related to the similarities of web pages can be used to present similar documents to users in order to retrieve considered information. In the present study, a new algorithm has been proposed to cluster web pages based on their structure. The proposed algorithm is based on hierarchical clustering designed based on SCAN algorithm. Cross-page link and in-page link structures have been tested to create a new similarity function and clustering algorithm based on volume criteria has been created for web pages in order to determine hierarchical relations. As the research findings reveal, the proposed method is effective to be used in uncovered structures of web pages in
The heat shock protein gp96 induces maturation of dendritic cells and down‐regulation of its receptor

Peptides associated with the heat shock protein gp96 induce a specific T cell response against cells from which gp96 is isolated. Recently, we have shown that gp96 binds to a yet unknown receptor present on dendritic cells (DC) and that receptor‐mediated uptake is required for cross‐presentation of gp96‐associated peptides by DC. We now describe that gp96 mediates maturation of DC as determined by up‐regulation of MHC class II and CD86 molecules, secretion of the cytokines IL‐12 and TNF‐α and enhanced T cell stimulatory capacity. Heat‐denatured gp96 is not able to induce DC maturation and cytokine secretion. Furthermore, we show that mature DC are no longer able to bind gp96 molecules. Hence, the gp96 receptor is down‐regulated on mature DC, suggesting that this receptor behaves similar to other receptors involved in antigen uptake like the scavenger receptor CD36, the mannose receptor or the integrins αvβ3 and αvβ5. Together, our findings provide an additional explanation for the remarkable immunogenicity of gp96 as a cross‐priming antigen carrier and direct activator of DC.
Content-based music filtering system with editable user profile

Information filtering systems, which recommend appropriate information to users from enormous amount of information, are becoming popular. One method of information filtering is content-based filtering that compares a user profile with a content model. Many systems using content-based filtering deal with text data, and few systems deal with music data. We propose a content-based filtering system for music data by using a decision tree. Compared with other filtering methods, a decision tree can eliminate noise features, which are not related to the user's preference, and can allow the user to edit the learned user profile. We conduct an experiment by using real music data and users to validate the effectiveness of our system compared with other filtering methods.