Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Can therapy dogs evoke awareness of one's past and present life in persons with Alzheimer's disease?

BACKGROUND Persons with Alzheimer's disease (AD) sometimes express themselves through behaviours that are difficult to manage for themselves and their caregivers, and to minimise these symptoms alternative methods are recommended. For some time now, animals have been introduced in different ways into the environment of persons with dementia. Animal-Assisted Therapy (AAT) includes prescribed therapy dogs visiting the person with dementia for a specific purpose. AIM This study aims to illuminate the meaning of the lived experience of encounters with a therapy dog for persons with Alzheimer's disease. METHOD Video recorded sessions were conducted for each visit of the dog and its handler to a person with AD (10 times/person). The observations have a life-world approach and were transcribed and analysed using a phenomenological hermeneutical approach. RESULTS The result shows a main theme 'Being aware of one's past and present existence', meaning to connect with one's senses and memories and to reflect upon these with the dog. The time spent with the dog shows the person recounting memories and feelings, and enables an opportunity to reach the person on a cognitive level. CONCLUSIONS The present study may contribute to health care research and provide knowledge about the use of trained therapy dogs in the care of older persons with AD in a way that might increase quality of life and well-being in persons with dementia. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE The study might be useful for caregivers and dog handlers in the care of older persons with dementia.
Jupiter's zonal winds: are they bands of homogenized potential vorticity organized as a monotonic staircase?

The east–west striped pattern of clouds in Jupiter’s weather layer is accompanied by a zonal flow containing 12 eastward-going jet streams alternating in latitude with westward-going jet streams. Based on theory, simulation and observations of the Earth’s oceans and atmosphere, it is conjectured that Jupiter’s weather layer is made of bands of constant potential vorticity (PV), where the interfaces between bands are at the latitudes of the maxima of the eastward-going jet streams. It is speculated that the mixing of PV on Jupiter is analogous to the mixing of salt in the ocean by the Phillips effect, which causes the salt density to form a monotonic ‘staircase’. It is hypothesized that the PV in Jupiter’s weather layer is also a staircase, decreasing from north to south. PV is a function of vorticity, as well as parameters with unknown values, e.g. the vertical stratification and the zonal flow beneath the observable weather layer. Therefore, these hypotheses cannot be tested directly. Using an atmospheric model that contains these unknown parameters, we solved the inverse problem and found values of the unknown parameters (and their uncertainties) that best fit Jovian observations. The unknown parameters influence how the zonal flow interacts with large vortices, e.g. the Great Red Spot (GRS; the largest and longest-lived Jovian vortex, centred at 23°S) and the Oval BA (the second largest vortex, centred at 33°S). Although we found that the PV distribution is approximately piecewise-constant and that the peaks of the eastward-going jet streams are at the latitudes of PV interfaces, there is also a PV interface at 20°S, where there is a westward-going jet stream. We find that the zonal PV is not a monotonic staircase due to the ‘backwards’ interface at 20°S. We show that this backwards interface is necessary to make the GRS nearly round, and that without that interface, the Red Spot would be highly elongated in the east–west direction and probably unstable.
The Wired Generation: Academic and Social Outcomes of Electronic Media Use Among University Students

Little is known about the influence of electronic media use on the academic and social lives of university students. Using time-diary and survey data, we explore the use of various types of electronic media among first-year students. Time-diary results suggest that the majority of students use electronic media to multitask. Robust regression results indicate a negative relationship between the use of various types of electronic media and first-semester grades. In addition, we find a positive association between social-networking-site use, cellular-phone communication, and face-to-face social interaction.
Particle filter and smoother for indoor localization

We present a real-time particle filter for 2D and 3D hybrid indoor positioning. It uses wireless local area network (WLAN) based position measurements, step and turn detection from a hand-held inertial sensor unit, floor plan restrictions, altitude change measurements from barometer and possibly other measurements such as occasional GNSS fixes. We also present a particle smoother, which uses future measurements to improve the position estimate for non-real-time applications. A light-weight fallback filter is run in the background for initialization, divergence monitoring and possibly re-initialization. In real-data tests the particle filter is more accurate and consistent than the methods that do not use floor plans. An example is shown on how smoothing helps to improve the filter estimate. Moreover, a floor change case is presented, in which the filter is capable of detecting the floor change and improving the 2D accuracy using the floor change information.
Kidney Function and Cerebral Small Vessel Disease in the General Population

Background Anatomic and hemodynamic similarities between renal and cerebral vessels suggest a tight link between kidney disease and brain disease. Although several distinct markers are used to identify subclinical kidney and brain disease, a comprehensive assessment of how these markers link damage at both end organs is lacking. Aim To investigate whether measures of kidney function were associated with cerebral small vessel disease on MRI. Methods In 2526 participants of the population-based Rotterdam Study, we measured urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio, and estimated glomerular filtration rate based on serum creatinine and cystatin C. All participants underwent brain magnetic resonance imaging. We assessed presence of cerebral small vessel disease by calculating white matter lesion volumes and rating the presence of lacunes and cerebral microbleeds. We used multivariable linear and logistic regression to investigate the association between kidney function and cerebral small vessel disease. Results Worse kidney function was consistently associated with a larger white matter lesion volume (mean difference per standard deviation increase in albumin-to-creatinine ratio: 0·09, 95% confidence interval 0·05; 0·12; per standard deviation decrease in creatinine-based estimated glomerular filtration rate: −0·04, 95% confidence interval −0·08;−0·01, and per standard deviation decrease in cystatin C-based estimated glomerular filtration rate: −0·09, 95% confidence interval −0·13;−0·05). Persons with higher albumin-to-creatinine ratio or lower cystatin C-based estimated glomerular filtration rate levels had a higher prevalence of lacunes (odds ratio per standard deviation increase in albumin-to-creatinine ratio: 1·24, 95% confidence interval 1·07; 1·43). Only participants in the highest quartile of albumin-to-creatinine ratio had a higher frequency of microbleeds compared to the lowest quartile. Conclusions Worse kidney function is associated with cerebral small vessel disease. Of all measures of kidney function, in particular albumin-to-creatinine ratio is related to cerebral small vessel disease.
Characteristics of Cognitive Impairment in Patients With Post-stroke Aphasia

Objective To analyze cognitive functions of post-stroke aphasia patients compared to patients having right hemispheric stroke and left hemispheric lesions without aphasia, and to look for a relationship between cognitive deficits and aphasia severity. Methods Thirty-six patients with right hemispheric stroke (group 1), 32 with left hemispheric lesion without aphasia (group 2), and 26 left hemispheric stroke patients with aphasia (group 3) completed a set of tests in the computerized neurocognitive function batteries for attention, executive function and intelligence and Korean version of Western Aphasia Battery. Data analyses explored cognitive characteristics among the three groups and the correlation between cognitive deficits and aphasia severity. Results Right hemispheric and left hemispheric stroke patients without aphasia showed similar findings except for digit span forward test. Cognitive tests for working memory and sustained attention were significantly impaired in the aphasic patients, but intelligence was shown to be similar in the three groups. Significant correlation between cognitive deficit and aphasia severity was only shown in some attention tests. Conclusion Cognitive deficits may be accompanied with post-stroke aphasia and there are possible associations between language and cognitive measures. Therefore, detection and treatment towards coexisting cognitive impairment may be necessary for efficient aphasia treatment.
The periodontal pathogen Porphyromonas gingivalis cleaves apoB‐100 and increases the expression of apoM in LDL in whole blood leading to cell proliferation

Objective. Several studies support an association between periodontal disease and atherosclerosis with a crucial role for the pathogen Porphyromonas gingivalis. This study aims at investigating the proteolytic and oxidative activity of P. gingivalis on LDL in a whole blood system using a proteomic approach and analysing the effects of P. gingivalis‐modified LDL on cell proliferation.
Adaptive Grid Use in Air Quality Modeling

The predictions from air quality models are subject to many sources of uncertainty; among them, grid resolution has been viewed as one that is limited by the availability of computational resources. A large grid size can lead to unacceptable errors for many pollutants formed via nonlinear chemical reactions. Further, insufficient grid resolution limits the ability to perform accurate exposure assessments. To address this issue in parallel to increasing computational power, modeling techniques that apply finer grids to areas of interest and coarser grids elsewhere have been developed. Techniques using multiple grid sizes are called nested grid or multiscale modeling techniques. These approaches are limited by uncertainty in the placement of finer grids since pertinent locations may not be known a priori, loss in solution accuracy due to grid boundary interface problems, and inability to adjust to changes in grid resolution requirements. A different approach to achieve local resolution involves using dynamic adaptive grids. Various adaptive mesh refinement techniques using structured grids as well as mesh enrichment techniques on unstructured grids have been explored in atmospheric modeling. Recently, some of these techniques have been applied to full blown air quality models. In this paper, adaptive grid methods used in air quality modeling are reviewed and categorized. The advantages and disadvantages of each adaptive grid method are discussed. Recent advances made in air quality simulation owing to the use of adaptive grids are summarized. Relevant connections to adaptive grid modeling in weather and climate modeling are also described.
International Policies for Achieving Safe Motherhood: Women's Lives in the Balance

Every minute of every day somewhere in the world one woman dies during pregnancy or childbirth and eight newborns die, which is a great loss to families and to societies. Nearly two decades of global efforts to promote safe motherhood and newborn health have led to several conclusions as to why these unnecessary deaths of women and newborns continue, especially in the developing world. Healthy women are needed for healthy newborns and families, yet attention to the health of women, especially during childbearing, has received minimal or no attention at country and lo cal levels where policies seem to ignore the value of the girl–child, women and newborns. One of the most important interventions proven to promote safe or healthy pregnancy for women and their newborns is the availability of skilled care—the combination of an accredited health professional with midwifery skills working in an well-equipped environment at the community level, supported by the political will needed to save the lives of mothers and babies. Yet skilled care is missing from nearly half of the world's women. This article describes the reasons for the continuing high rates of maternal and newborn deaths, key lessons learned about how to prevent such deaths based on the best available evidence, and the need for evidence-based policies directed at achieving safe motherhood for each woman who becomes pregnant and for her newborn.
Applied Metacognition: Autobiographical memories and beliefs: a preliminary metacognitive model

Returning a rented car, the authors of this chapter tried to remember whose credit card had been imprinted when the car had been picked up. After some thought, the senior author reported a clear memory of giving the rental agent her card, and the junior author concurred that this had happened. Despite this clear shared memory, it was the junior author's card that had been imprinted. People's memories and beliefs about events that may have happened to them can be true or false, and the consequences of being wrong are often more severe than those in the incident described above. Married couples argue about their divergent memories of past events, politicians are embarrassed when they misremember events that are a matter of popular record, and families can be destroyed when psychotherapy clients develop false memories of childhood abuse. The central thesis of this chapter is that the answers people give to questions regarding the occurrence of events in their life are based on metacognitive decisional mechanisms. These mechanisms take two factors into account: (a) the information that is available about the event at the moment of the decision; and (b) the metacognitive beliefs that people hold. We maintain that the same decisional mechanisms and metacognitive beliefs that play a role when people have to answer questions about the occurrence of events that actually happened are also involved when people develop false beliefs and memories for events that did not happen to them.
Neocognitron of a new version: handwritten digit recognition

The author (1988) and Fukushima and Miyake (1982) proposed a neural network model, neocognitron, for robust visual pattern recognition. This paper proposes an improved version of the neocognitron and demonstrates its ability using a large database of handwritten digits (ETL-1). To improve the recognition rate of the neocognitron, several modifications have been applied, such as: the inhibitory surround in the connections from S-cells to C-cells, contrast-extracting layer between input and edge-extracting layers, self-organization of line-extracting cells, supervised competitive learning at the highest stage, and so on. These modifications allowed the removal of accessory circuits that were appended to the previous versions, resulting in an improvement of recognition rate as well as simplification of the network architecture. The recognition rate varies depending on the number of training patterns. When we used 3000 digits (300 patterns for each digit) for the learning for example, the recognition rate was 98.5% for a blind test set (3000 digits), and 100% for the training set.
A Comparison of Single vs. Repeated MVIC Maneuvers Used in PNF Flexibility Techniques for Improvement in ROM

Several studies have focused on various modified proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) techniques in improving hip joint range of motion (ROM). There appears to be, however, confusion as to how many maximum voluntary isometric contraction (MVIC) maneuvers are necessary per trial to increase ROM. This study compared a single MVIC manuver to repeated MVIC maneuvers in increaing flexibility of the hip joint. Thirty female subjects, ages 25 to 31, were randomly assigned to one of two treatment groups. Each subject was measured prior to the treatment to establish a baseline measurement from which to gauge the subject's hip flexion improvement. Both groups utilized a hold-relax PNF treatment. Group 1 received a hold-relax PNF treatment incorporating a single six-second isometric contraction (1–6HR) of the hip extensors. The 1–6 HR PNF maneuver used a passive pre-stretch follwed by a six-second isometric contraction and subsequent passive stretch. Group 2 used a hold-relax PNF treatment with three consecutive six-second isometric contractions (3–6 HR). The 3–6 HR PNF maneuver began with a passive pre-stretch followed by three consecutive six-second isometric contractions, each followed by a passive stretch to a new tension point. A measurement was taken after the third contraction and subsequent passive stretch. The two stretching conditions involved the hip extensors of the preferred leg for both the passive stretch and isometric contraction. A two (PNF conditon) by four (trials) ANOV A research design was used. An average for the trials was significantly higher (p<.05) than the baseline. However, there was no significant difference between the two PNF treatments in increasing hip joint ROM. These findings appear to suggest that multiple MVIC maneuvers do not provide an advantage over the use of a single MVIC maneuver in the hold-relax PNF technique for increasing acute ROM.
Marginal Accuracy and Internal Fit of 3-D Printing Laser-Sintered Co-Cr Alloy Copings

Laser sintered technology has been introduced for clinical use and can be utilized more widely, accompanied by the digitalization of dentistry and the development of direct oral scanning devices. This study was performed with the aim of comparing the marginal accuracy and internal fit of Co-Cr alloy copings fabricated by casting, CAD/CAM (Computer-aided design/Computer-assisted manufacture) milled, and 3-D laser sintered techniques. A total of 36 Co-Cr alloy crown-copings were fabricated from an implant abutment. The marginal and internal fit were evaluated by measuring the weight of the silicone material, the vertical marginal discrepancy using a microscope, and the internal gap in the sectioned specimens. The data were statistically analyzed by One-way ANOVA (analysis of variance), a Scheffe’s test, and Pearson’s correlation at the significance level of p = 0.05, using statistics software. The silicone weight was significantly low in the casting group. The 3-D laser sintered group showed the highest vertical discrepancy, and marginal-, occlusal-, and average- internal gaps (p < 0.05). The CAD/CAM milled group revealed a significantly high axial internal gap. There are moderate correlations between the vertical marginal discrepancy and the internal gap variables (r = 0.654), except for the silicone weight. In this study, the 3-D laser sintered group achieved clinically acceptable marginal accuracy and internal fit.
QUANTILE BASED NOISE ESTIMATION FOR SPECTRAL SUBTRACTION OF SELF LEAKAGE NOISE IN ELECTROLARYNGEAL SPEECH

Transcervical electrolarynx is of great help in verbal communication to a large number of laryngectomy patients. The quality of the electrolaryngeal speech is generally low because of low frequency spectral deficiency due to poor coupling, lack of short-time pitch control, and low voiced/unvoiced contrast. Its intelligibility suffers from the presence of self or background noise, caused by leakage of the acoustic energy from the vibrator. It has been shown earlier that the spectral subtraction technique, developed earlier for enhancement of noisy speech, can be applied in a pitchsynchronous manner for reducing the leakage noise in electrolaryngeal speech. This paper extends the method for more effective enhancement by using a quantile based continuously updated estimate of the noise spectrum from noisy speech.
A New Family of Potent AB5 Cytotoxins Produced by Shiga Toxigenic Escherichia coli

The Shiga toxigenic Escherichia coli (STEC) O113:H21 strain 98NK2, which was responsible for an outbreak of hemolytic uremic syndrome, secretes a highly potent and lethal subtilase cytotoxin that is unrelated to any bacterial toxin described to date. It is the prototype of a new family of AB5 toxins, comprising a single 35-kilodalton (kD) A subunit and a pentamer of 13-kD B subunits. The A subunit is a subtilase-like serine protease distantly related to the BA_2875 gene product of Bacillus anthracis. The B subunit is related to a putative exported protein from Yersinia pestis, and binds to a mimic of the ganglioside GM2. Subtilase cytotoxin is encoded by two closely linked, cotranscribed genes (subA and subB), which, in strain 98NK2, are located on a large, conjugative virulence plasmid. Homologues of the genes are present in 32 out of 68 other STEC strains tested. Intraperitoneal injection of purified subtilase cytotoxin was fatal for mice and resulted in extensive microvascular thrombosis, as well as necrosis in the brain, kidneys, and liver. Oral challenge of mice with E. coli K-12–expressing cloned subA and subB resulted in dramatic weight loss. These findings suggest that the toxin may contribute to the pathogenesis of human disease.
Marital Rape in Ghana: Legal Options for Achieving State Accountability

Le présent article analyse la réglementation juridique du viol marital au Ghana à partir d'une perspective d'égalité substantive. La jurisprudence sur l'égalité au Ghana n'est présentement pas suffisamment abondante pour constituer le fondement nécessaire en vue d'établir l'obligation de l'État de criminaliser le viol marital. Par conséquent, le présent article analyse deux décisions judiciaires, Doe v. Metropolitan Toronto (Municipality) Commissioners of Police et Hadijatou Mani Koraou v. Niger afin d'explorer les défis d'une argumentation soutenant que le droit du Ghana est discriminatoire dans ses dispositions concernant le viol marital. L'article élabore une analyse d'égalite substantive du préjudice résultant de l'impunité judiciaire du viol marital au Ghana et du viol marital comme discrimination fondée sur le sexe. L'article comprend un examen de l'histoire du droit concernant le viol marital au Ghana et l'impact de ces dispositions, y compris les manières par lesquelles les femmes sont désavantagées par la perpétuation des mythes et des stéréotypes sexistes et une recension des outils juridiques disponibles pour contester la loi discriminatoire. L'article examine aussi comment l'expérience de la colonisation a contribué à l'inégalité associée avec les dispositions concernant le viol marital au Ghana ainsi que l'application du droit coutumier aux accusations de viol marital.