Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Framing Innovation: Negotiating Shared Frames During Early Design Phases

Members of newly formed design teams have different frames - implicit values, goals and assumptions - each of them hold about what problems are important and how they are best addressed. In the early, informal phases of design projects, these frames, and the degree to which they are shared within the team, have substantial consequences. However, little is known about the interactions and activities that reveal frames and support frame sharing in teams. Our study follows 22 newly-formed multi-disciplinary teams through the early phases of the design process in a New Product Development course. We used a mixed method, interdisciplinary approach to understand the dynamic process through which design frames are socially negotiated and shared. We identified core framing activities of design teams and propose a framing cycle of pseudo-frame setting, making individuals' frames explicit, making frame conflicts salient, and building a common frame.
Cost Effectiveness of Different Treatment Strategies in the Treatment of Patients with Moderate to Severe Rheumatoid Arthritis in China

Background To analyse the cost-effectiveness of traditional disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (tDMARDs) compared to biological therapies from the perspective of Chinese society. Methodology/Principal Findings A mathematical model was developed by incorporating the clinical trial data and Chinese unit costs and treatment sequences from a lifetime perspective. Hypothetical cohorts with moderate to severe RA were simulated. The primary outcome measure–quality-adjusted life years (QALYs)–was derived from disease severity (HAQ scores). Primary analysis included drug costs, monitoring costs, and other costs. Probabilistic and one-way sensitivity analyses were performed. Treatment sequences that included TNF antagonists and rituximab produced a greater number of QALYs than tDMARDs alone or TNF antagonists plus DMARDs. In comparison with tDMARDs, the incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs) for etanercept, infliximab, and adalimumab without rituximab were $77,357.7, $26,562.4 and $57,838.4 per QALY and $66,422.9, $28,780.6 and $50,937.6 per QALY, for etanercept, infliximab, and adalimumab with rituximab. No biotherapy was cost-effective under the willingness to pay threshold when the threshold was 3 times the per capita GDP of China. When 3 times the per capita GDP of Shanghai used as the threshold, infliximab and rituximab could yield nearly 90% cost-effective simulations in probabilistic sensitivity analysis. Conclusions/Significance tDMARD was the most cost-effective option in the Chinese healthcare setting. In some relatively developed regions in China, infliximab and rituximab may be a favorable cost-effective alternative for moderate to severe RA.
Antihyperglycaemic therapy in elderly patients with type 2 diabetes: potential role of incretin mimetics and DPP‐4 inhibitors

Management of elderly patients with type II diabetes is complicated by age‐related changes in physiology, comorbidities, polypharmacy and heterogeneity of functional status. A minimum goal in antidiabetic treatment in this population is to achieve a level of glycaemic control that avoids acute complications of diabetes, adverse effects and reduction in quality of life. Hypoglycaemia is a particular problem in elderly patients, and many antidiabetic agents pose increased risk for hypoglycaemia. In addition, many standard agents pose risks for older patients because of reduced renal function and common comorbidities. Newer agents based on enhancing incretin activity, including the glucagon‐like peptide‐1 mimetics exenatide and liraglutide and the oral dipeptidyl peptidase‐4 inhibitors sitagliptin and vildagliptin, may offer particular advantages in elderly patients with diabetes.
Modeling the effect of neighboring grains on twin growth in HCP polycrystals

In this paper, we study the dependence of neighboring grain orientation on the local stress state around a deformation twin in a hexagonal close packed (HCP) crystal and its effects on the resistance against twin thickening. We use a recently developed, full-field elasto-visco-plastic formulation based on fast Fourier transforms that account for the twinning shear transformation imposed by the twin lamella. The study is applied to Mg, Zr and Ti, since these HCP metals tend to deform by activation of different types of slip modes. The analysis shows that the local stress along the twin boundary are strongly controlled by the relative orientation of the easiest deformation modes in the neighboring grain with respect to the twin lamella in the parent grain. A geometric expression that captures this parent-neighbor relationship is proposed and incorporated into a larger scale, mean-field visco-plastic self-consistent model to simulate the role of neighboring grain orientation on twin thickening. We demonstrate that the approach improves the prediction of twin area fraction distribution when compared with experimental observations.
Clinical experience with insulin detemir, biphasic insulin aspart and insulin aspart in people with type 2 diabetes: Results from the Rajasthan cohort of the A1chieve study

Background: The A1chieve, a multicentric (28 countries), 24-week, non-interventional study evaluated the safety and effectiveness of insulin detemir, biphasic insulin aspart and insulin aspart in people with T2DM (n = 66,726) in routine clinical care across four continents. Materials and Methods: Data was collected at baseline, at 12 weeks and at 24 weeks. This short communication presents the results for patients enrolled from Rajasthan, India. Results: A total of 477 patients were enrolled in the study. Four different insulin analogue regimens were used in the study. Patients had started on or were switched to biphasic insulin aspart (n = 340), insulin detemir (n = 90), insulin aspart (n = 37), basal insulin plus insulin aspart (n = 7) and other insulin combinations (n = 2). At baseline glycaemic control was poor for both insulin naïve (mean HbA1c: 8.3%) and insulin user (mean HbA1c: 8.4%) groups. After 24 weeks of treatment, both the groups showed improvement in HbA1c (insulin naïve: −0.9%, insulin users: −1.2%). Major hypoglycaemic events decreased from 0.5 events/patient-year to 0.0 events/patient-year in insulin naïve group while no change from baseline (1.3 events/patients-year) was observed for insulin users. SADRs were not reported in any of the study patients. Conclusion: Starting or switching to insulin analogues was associated with improvement in glycaemic control with a low rate of hypoglycaemia.
Genome-wide mapping of human DNA-replication origins: Levels of transcription at ORC1 sites regulate origin selection and replication timing

We report the genome-wide mapping of ORC1 binding sites in mammals, by chromatin immunoprecipitation and parallel sequencing (ChIP-seq). ORC1 binding sites in HeLa cells were validated as active DNA replication origins (ORIs) using Repli-seq, a method that allows identification of ORI-containing regions by parallel sequencing of temporally ordered replicating DNA. ORC1 sites were universally associated with transcription start sites (TSSs) of coding or noncoding RNAs (ncRNAs). Transcription levels at the ORC1 sites directly correlated with replication timing, suggesting the existence of two classes of ORIs: those associated with moderate/high transcription levels (≥1 RNA copy/cell), firing in early S and mapping to the TSSs of coding RNAs; and those associated with low transcription levels (<1 RNA copy/cell), firing throughout the entire S and mapping to TSSs of ncRNAs. These findings are compatible with a scenario whereby TSS expression levels influence the efficiency of ORC1 recruitment at G1 and the probability of firing during S.
The function of dendritic spines: devices subserving biochemical rather than electrical compartmentalization

Dendritic spines are tiny, specialized protoplasmic protuberances that cover the surface of many neurons. First described by Ramon y Cajal ( 1991) in light microscopic studies of Golgistained tissue, they are among the most striking subcellular features of many neurons. Spines serve as the major target for excitatory synaptic input onto principal neurons in the hippocampus, the neocortex, and other brain regions. Their intimate association with synaptic traffic suggests some critical role in synaptic transmission and plasticity. We here review experimental data and theoretical models with respect to the putative role of dendritic spines in the induction and retention of synaptic plasticity. The ubiquity of spines demands explanation, yet their small size- near the limit of resolution of light microscopy- impedes an experimental frontal assault. Until recently, most theoretical studies focused on the role of the spine neck geometry in regulating the amplitude of the EPSP received at the soma. However, recent experimental evidence suggests that the spine shape may not be able to modulate the "synaptic weight" effectively. Consequently, both theoretical models and calcium-imaging experiments are now focusing on the role of spines in amplifying and isolating calcium signals, particularly those involved in the induction of a calcium-dependent form of long-term synaptic plasticity. Until recently, physiological hypotheses about the function of the dendritic spines could only be explored indirectly, through analytical and computational studies based on morphological data. Recent technical advances in the direct visualization of calcium dynamics in dendritic structures are now permitting direct tests of some of these theoretical inferences. Three principal hypotheses have been advanced to explain the function of spines: ( 1) spines connect axons with dendrites, (2) spines shape the membrane potential in response to synaptic input, and (3) spines determine the dynamics of intracellular second messengers such as calcium. In this article we review the current status of each of these proposals with particular emphasis on the putative role of spines in the induction of a cellular model of synaptic plasticity in cortical structures, longterm potentiation (L TP). It may well be possible that dendritic spines serve some crucial role in normal synaptic transmission (D. Purves, personal communication). However, in this article we focus on their possible role in synaptic plasticity. Furthermore, we will not discuss the electrical behavior of that minority of spines in neocortex that carry both an excitatory and an inhibitory synapse (see Koch and Poggio, l983a; Qian and Sejnowski, 1989, 1990; Dehay et al., 1991 ), nor will we consider the role of dendrodendritic synapses, such as those found on the spines of olfactory granule cells (Rail and Shepherd, 1968; Shepherd and Greer, 1989).
Optimal Prize Allocation in Contests with Sabotage

Contest is a powerful mechanism to induce the right incentives from the agents. In a contest with multiple participants particular prize distribution can allow a principal to maximize the expected effort he gets. In the paper of [Moldovanu and Sela(2001)] it is shown that if principal allocates positive prizes it is optimal to give all the sum to the leader. However, this result does not hold if there is a possibility for a sabotages as such a prize structure creates very high incentives to use it. I show that in that case optimal prize structure may also assume positive reward for contestants that are behind. This result is always true in the case of two contestants. However, with higher number of contestants sabotage becomes a public good and therefore is a less concern for a designer. In that case when sabotage is expensive he can achieve the first best by giving the whole sum to the winner. In continuous case the solution crucially depends on the cost of sabotage. When sabotage is expensive, principal wants to give all prize to the winner, while when it is cheap it does not want to make a contest at all, and distributes all prizes equally. JEL: C72, D44, M52 ∗irina.kirysheva@eui.eu 1
Recent developments and results of ASC-Inclusion: An Integrated Internet-Based Environment for Social Inclusion of Children with Autism Spectrum Conditions

Individuals with Autism Spectrum Conditions (ASC) often have marked difficulties using verbal and non-verbal communication for social interaction. The ASC-Inclusion project helps children with ASC by allowing them to learn how emotions can be expressed and recognised via playing games in a virtual world. The platform assists children with ASC to understand and express emotions through facial expressions, toneof-voice and body gestures. In fact, the platform combines several state-of-the art technologies in one comprehensive virtual world, including analysis of users’ gestures, facial, and vocal expressions using standard microphone and web-cam, training through games, text communication with peers and smart agents, animation, video and audio clips. We present the recent findings and evaluations of such a serious game platform and provide results for the different modalities.
Iron Supplementation Affects Hematologic Biomarker Concentrations and Pregnancy Outcomes among Iron-Deficient Tanzanian Women.

BACKGROUND Iron deficiency is a highly prevalent micronutrient abnormality and the most common cause of anemia globally, worsening the burden of adverse pregnancy and child outcomes. OBJECTIVE We sought to evaluate the response of hematologic biomarkers to iron supplementation and to examine the predictors of the response to iron supplementation among iron-deficient pregnant women. METHODS We identified 600 iron-deficient (serum ferritin ≤12 μg/L) pregnant women, aged 18-45 y, presenting to 2 antenatal clinics in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania using rapid ferritin screening tests, and prospectively followed them through delivery and postpartum. All women received 60 mg Fe and 0.25 mg folate daily from enrollment until delivery. Proportions meeting the thresholds representing deficient hematologic status including hemoglobin <110 g/L, ferritin ≤12 μg/L, serum soluble transferrin receptor (sTfR) >4.4 mg/L, zinc protoporphyrin (ZPP) >70 mmol/L, or hepcidin ≤13.3 μg/L at baseline and delivery were assessed. The prospective change in biomarker concentration and the influence of baseline hematologic status on the change in biomarker concentrations were assessed. Regression models were estimated to assess the relation of change in biomarker concentrations and pregnancy outcomes. RESULTS There was significant improvement in maternal biomarker concentrations between baseline and delivery, with increases in the concentrations of hemoglobin (mean difference: 15.2 g/L; 95% CI: 13.2, 17.2 g/L), serum ferritin (51.6 μg/L; 95% CI: 49.5, 58.8 μg/L), and serum hepcidin (14.0 μg/L; 95% CI: 12.4, 15.6 μg/L) and decreases in sTfR (-1.7 mg/L; 95% CI: -2.0, -1.3 mg/L) and ZPP (-17.8 mmol/L; 95% CI: -32.1, 3.5 mmol/L). The proportions of participants with low hemoglobin, ferritin, and hepcidin were 73%, 93%, and 99%, respectively, at baseline and 34%, 12%, and 46%, respectively, at delivery. The improvements in biomarker concentrations were significantly greater among participants with poor hematologic status at baseline - up to 12.1 g/L and 14.5 μg/L for hemoglobin and ferritin concentrations, respectively. For every 10-g/L increase in hemoglobin concentration, there was a 24% reduced risk of perinatal mortality (RR = 0.76; 95% CI: 0.59, 0.99) and a 23% reduced risk of early infant mortality (RR = 0.77; 95% CI: 0.60, 0.99). The risk of anemia at delivery despite supplementation was predicted by baseline anemia (RR = 2.11; 95% CI: 1.39, 3.18) and improvements in ferritin concentration were more likely to be observed in participants who took iron supplements for up to 90 d (RR = 1.41; 95% CI: 1.13, 1.76). CONCLUSION Iron supplementation decreases the risk of maternal anemia and increases the likelihood of infant survival among iron-deficient Tanzanian pregnant women. Interventions to promote increased duration and adherence to iron supplements may also provide greater health benefits.
Coincident ruddy turnstone migration and horseshoe crab spawning creates an ecological ‘hot spot’ for influenza viruses

Since 1985, avian influenza virus surveillance has been conducted annually from mid-May to early June in charadriiform species from the families Scolopacidae and Laridae (shorebirds and gulls) at Delaware Bay in the northeast United States. The mass migrations of shorebirds, gulls and horseshoe crabs (Limulus polyphemus) coincide at that time, and large numbers of migrating birds pause at Delaware Bay to feed on horseshoe crab eggs deposited at the high-tide line. Influenza viruses are consistently isolated from charadriiform birds at Delaware Bay, at an overall rate approximately 17 times the combined rate of isolation at all other surveillance sites worldwide (490 isolates/9474 samples, 5.2% versus 49 isolates per 15 848 samples, 0.3%, respectively; Proportion test, p < 0.0001). The likelihood of isolating influenza viruses at Delaware Bay is dependent on the presence of ruddy turnstone (Arenaria interpres) at the sampling site (G-test of independence, p < 0.001). The convergence of host factors and environmental factors results in a unique ecological ‘hot spot’ for influenza viruses in Charadriiformes.
The Efficacy and Safety of Antiinterleukin 13, a Monoclonal Antibody, in Adult Patients With Asthma

AbstractEffects of antiinterleukin 13 therapies in patients with asthma remain inconsistent. Therefore, we aimed to further clarify the efficacy and safety of antiinterleukin 13 therapies in adult asthmatics by a systematic review and meta-analysis.Randomized controlled trials which reported pulmonary functions, fraction of exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO), Asthma Control Questionnaire (ACQ), rescue use of short-acting-&bgr;-agonist (SABA), and rate of asthmatic exacerbation and adverse events were identified in Pubmed, Embase, Medline, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), American College of Physician (ACP) Journal Club, and ISI Web of Science, reference lists and by manual searches. Randomized-effect models were used in meta-analysis to calculate pooled mean difference and relative risks (RR). Eight studies with 957 patients were enrolled. Systematic review showed that treatment with antiinterleukin 13 antibodies could significantly improve peak expiratory flow (PEF), decrease FeNO and asthmatic exacerbation, but could not decrease blood and sputum eosinophil levels, improve FEV1, inhibit methacholine PC20, or reduce ACQ scores. Two studies reported opposite results in reducing rescue use of SABA. Meta-analysis showed that antiinterleukin 13 monoclonal therapies could significantly decrease asthmatic exacerbation (RR 0.55, 95% CI: 0.31–0.96, z = 2.10, P = 0.04), but did not significantly improve the FEV1 (95% CI: −1.03 to 2.22, z = 0.72, P = 0.47) or increasing adverse events (RR 1.00, 95% CI: 0.91–1.10, z = 0.00, P = 1.00). Antiinterleukin 13 monoclonal therapies could be safely used to improve PEF, decrease FeNO and asthmatic exacerbation, and probably reduce rescue use of SABA, but could not decrease blood and sputum eosinophil levels, improve FEV1, inhibit methacholine PC20, or reduce ACQ scores.
A Context based Gesture Interpretation System

Gesture interpretation can be seen as a way for computers to begin to understand human body language, thus building a richer bridge between machines and humans than primitive text user interfaces or even GUIs, which still limit the majority of input to keyboard and mouse. It has also become increasingly evident that the difficulties encountered in the analysis and interpretation of individual sensing modalities may be overcome by integrating them into a multimodal human–computer interface.The different computational approaches that may be applied at the different levels of modality integration. Thus this system is needed for interpreting and fusing multiple sensing modalities in the context of human computer interface. This research can benefit from many disparate fields of study that increase our understanding of the different human communication modalities and their potential role in Human Computer Interface which can be used for handicapped persons to control their wheel-chair, expert to have computer assisted surgery, mining etc.
Spatial variability of the Caribbean mid‐summer drought and relation to north Atlantic high circulation

Annual rainfall in the Caribbean exhibits a bimodal structure with two rainfall maxima (May–June and September–October) separated by what has been termed a mid‐summer drought (MSD) (July–August). Despite general acceptance of the intensification and expansion of the North Atlantic High Pressure (NAHP) as the cause of the Caribbean MSD, it has been noted in several studies that the influence of the NAHP may not be consistent across the region. The purpose of this research is to better understand the Caribbean MSD by mapping the spatial co‐variability of the Caribbean MSD and then determining the association between these spatial patterns and NAHP circulation. The spatial variability of the Caribbean MSD is identified through mapping of Principal Component Analysis (PCA) loadings of Caribbean MSD season rainfall time series. A correlation analysis was completed between monthly MSD region rainfall time series and measures of the NAHP to assess the degree of association between the spatial variability in the Caribbean MSD and NAHP circulation. The PCA identified six MSD regions, the northwestern Caribbean, the interior Caribbean, the eastern rim Caribbean, Coro Venezuela, Grantley Barbados, and a transition zone. The spatial pattern of the MSD regions suggests that the NAHP impacts the eastern Caribbean first and then progresses westward as the summer develops. In regard to the association between NAHP circulation and MSD region precipitation time series, correlation analysis indicates that overall, a modified Bermuda High Index (BHI) is a more effective tool in evaluating the association between the NAHP and Caribbean MSD as compared to the traditional indices, NAO EOF and BHI. Lagged correlations support previous findings that the winter preceding a particularly dry summer in the Caribbean is characterized by a strong pressure gradient on the southeastern flank of the NAHP; implying stronger Trade Winds, cooler sea surface temperatures, and reduced convective rainfall. Copyright © 2007 Royal Meteorological Society
Always-on motion detection with application-level error control on a near-threshold approximate computing platform

Pushing supply voltages in the near-threshold region is today one of the main avenues to minimize power consumption in digital integrated circuits. This works well with logic units, but memory operations on standard six-transistor static RAM (6T-SRAM) cells become unreliable at low voltages. Standard cell memory (SCM) works fully reliably at near-threshold voltages, but has much lower area density than 6T-SRAM and thus it is too costly. Hybrid memory designs based on a combination of 6T-SRAM and SCM have the potential to combine the best from both worlds, provided that appropriate software techniques for their management are used. Several embedded applications exhibit inherent tolerance to data approximation: this feature can be exploited by mapping error-tolerant data onto unreliable 6T-SRAM while keeping critical information error-free in SCM. However, one key issue is bounding error when it is input-data dependent. In this work we consider the motion detection stage of a computer vision pipeline, which is a major power bottleneck in always-on computer vision systems. We introduce an application-level metric for defining suitable tolerance thresholds and an associated runtime mechanism for their control. At each accuracy checkpoint the error on the computation is checked. If the runtime detects that an error threshold has been exceeded, the voltage settings are adjusted. Using this methodology, we achieve a significant reduction of the total energy consumption (up to 33% in the best case) while maintaining a tight control on quality of results.