Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Using theory-based evaluation to build evidence-based health and social care policy and practice

Building an evidence base to underpin policy and practice in health and social care is one of the cornerstones of New Labour's modernization programme. However, the history of evaluation research in Britain and America suggests that this enterprise may be thwarted as much by politics as by methodological debates. The 'paradigm wars' that characterize the social sciences also feature in the field of evaluation research, and changes in the way 'health' is conceptualized in the 'new public health' have intensified debates about approaches to evaluation and what counts as evidence. Health Action Zones have been vaunted as both the 'flagships' of the government's health policy and as 'learning initiatives'. This paper uses the example of Health Action Zones to discuss the use of a theory-based approach to evaluation for the purpose of generating the policy learning needed to tackle health inequalities, drawing on experience in Plymouth. The limitations of the 'traditional' approach to evaluation are examined, along with recent guidance from the Medical Research Council about evaluating complex community initiatives. It is argued that the case for theory-based evaluation extends beyond criticism of the traditional approach to develop evaluation theory and practice from the perspective of critical realism. This approach to evaluation seeks explanation and understanding about how and why projects 'work' or not in specific contexts, rather than pragmatic solutions to de-contextualized problems. The paper concludes by reflecting on the politics of evaluation in the field of health and social care, calling into question the government's commitment to evidence-based policy and practice.
Game-Based Training for Improving Skill and Physical Fitness in Team Sport Athletes

The purpose of this paper is to provide a brief review of the relevant literature on game-based training, and summarise the advantages and disadvantages of this approach to training. At present, studies investigating the effectiveness of game-based training are limited, with many of the suggested advantages and disadvantages of game-based training based on anecdotal evidence. Of the studies that have been performed, most have reported that game-based training offers a specific method of conditioning for team sport competition, but game-based training may not simulate the high-intensity, repeated-sprint demands of international competition. Game-based training has been reported to offer a safe, effective method of conditioning for team-sport athletes that results in comparable (and, in some cases, greater) improvements in physical fitness and performance than traditional conditioning activities. While technical instruction training has been associated with a higher volume of skill executions (i.e., more ‘touches’), game-based training has been associated with greater cognitive effort – an important condition for skill learning. Indeed, studies investigating skill learning have reported comparable (and, in some cases, greater) improvements in skill execution and decision-making following game-based training than training involving repetitious technical instruction. Collectively, these findings demonstrate the value of game-based training for improving skill and physical fitness in team sport athletes. Further studies investigating the long-term skill and physical benefits of game-based training are warranted.
Bienestar Subjetivo en Maximizadores y Satisfacedores

The purpose of this research was to evaluate the decision making using maximal and satisficing approaches and their effects on subjective well-being, according to its emotional component (happiness) and its cognitive dimension (satisfaction with the life). A total of 209 undergraduate students answered four questionnaires to asses maximization, satisfaction, regret and subjective well-being. The result shows that there are significant differences between maximizers and satisficers as for the subjective well-being just in its cognitive component of vital satisfaction. The satisficers presents a better evaluation of their lives than the maximizers (t[194]= 3.28, p≤ .05) Finally a positive relation was found between maximizers and the tendency to express regret (r= .393). These finds are discussed in based to internationally ones.
Implicit Simulation Methods for Stochastic Chemical Kinetics

In biochemical systems some of the chemical species are present with only small numbers of molecules. In this situation discrete and stochastic simulation approaches are more relevant than continuous and deterministic ones. The fundamental Gillespie's stochastic simulation algorithm (SSA) accounts for every reaction event, which occurs with a probability determined by the configuration of the system. This approach requires a considerable computational effort for models with many reaction channels and chemical species. In order to improve efficiency, tau-leaping methods represent multiple firings of each reaction during a simulation step by Poisson random variables. For stiff systems the mean of this variable is treated implicitly in order to ensure numerical stability. This paper develops fully implicit tau-leaping-like algorithms that treat implicitly both the mean and the variance of the Poisson variables. The construction is based on adapting weakly convergent discretizations of stochastic differential equations to stochastic chemical kinetic systems. Theoretical analyses of accuracy and stability of the new methods are performed on a standard test problem. Numerical results demonstrate the performance of the proposed tau-leaping methods.
Causal consistency in mobile environment

Causal consistency stipulates that causally dependent writes to data items should be executed in causal order. Traditionally this has been done by causally ordered message delivery using vector clocks. In a vector clock of size N, each element of the vector corresponds to each of the N hosts in the system and hence the message overhead is &Theta;(N). In a mobile environment the number of hosts can not be fixed because hosts join and leave the system dynamically. Hence traditional vector clocks are not suitable in a mobile environment. Consistency of a system consisting of M data items can be maintained using a vector in which each element corresponds to each data item. We propose a mechanism for maintaining causal consistency whose message overhead is &Theta;(M). Such a model will be advantageous in a mobile environment, because the message overhead is independent of the number of hosts. Further in applications such as collaboration the number of data items is small. Also, the delivery of a message is never inhibited due to causally overwritten messages.
A medication therapy management program's impact on low-density lipoprotein cholesterol goal attainment in Medicare Part D patients with diabetes.

OBJECTIVES To determine a medication therapy management (MTM) service's impact on (1) Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS) quality measures and (2) use and cost expenditures. DESIGN Nonequivalent group, quasiexperimental study. SETTING Florida, January 1, 2006, through September 30, 2007. PARTICIPANTS 2,114 Florida Health Care Plans Medicare Part D enrollees with diabetes. INTERVENTION Intervention group participated in the MTM program during the HEDIS measurement year. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Presence of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) screening, LDL-C values, and LDL-C control (<100 mg/dL). The use measure was the total number of 30-day medication equivalents. Cost measures were (1) total Medicare Part D drug cost, (2) enrollees' out-of-pocket Part D medication costs, and (3) total medication copayments. Statistical analyses included chi-square, independent and paired t tests, and analysis of variance with post hoc comparisons. RESULTS Of 2, 114 enrollees eligible for comprehensive diabetes care (CDC) according to HEDIS guidelines, 255 participated in the MTM intervention group and 56 patients were MTM eligible but opted out of the program or could not be reached for medication review during 2008 (MTM nonparticipants). A higher proportion of patients in the MTM participant group had LDL-C levels less than 100 mg/dL (69.0%) compared with those in the MTM nonparticipant (50.0%) and CDC only (54.1%) groups (chi2 = 20.9(3), P < 0.001). The two control groups' average LDL-C (90.8 and 93.6 mg/dL) was significantly higher than the intervention group (83.4 mg/dL, P < 0.001). Overall, per member per month use and drug costs differed from 2007 to 2008 and enrollees in the MTM participant group had greater percentage cost reductions. CONCLUSION Enrollees who were eligible for MTM services but did not receive them had poorer clinical, use, and cost outcomes compared with the MTM intervention group. Pharmacists collaborating with physicians through a MTM program can improve quality of metrics for chronic diseases and reduce medication costs.
Dynamic Sociometry in Particle Swarm Optimization

The performance of Particle Swarm Optimization is greatly affected by the size and sociometry of the swarm. This research proposes a dynamic sociometry, which is shown to be more effective on some problems than the standard star and ring sociometries. The performance of various combinations of swarm size and sociometry on six different test functions is qualitatively analyzed.
Dynamic determination of the functional state in photolyase and the implication for cryptochrome

The flavin adenine dinucleotide cofactor has an unusual bent configuration in photolyase and cryptochrome, and such a folded structure may have a functional role in initial photochemistry. Using femtosecond spectroscopy, we report here our systematic characterization of cyclic intramolecular electron transfer (ET) dynamics between the flavin and adenine moieties of flavin adenine dinucleotide in four redox forms of the oxidized, neutral, and anionic semiquinone, and anionic hydroquinone states. By comparing wild-type and mutant enzymes, we have determined that the excited neutral oxidized and semiquinone states absorb an electron from the adenine moiety in 19 and 135 ps, whereas the excited anionic semiquinone and hydroquinone states donate an electron to the adenine moiety in 12 ps and 2 ns, respectively. All back ET dynamics occur ultrafast within 100 ps. These four ET dynamics dictate that only the anionic hydroquinone flavin can be the functional state in photolyase due to the slower ET dynamics (2 ns) with the adenine moiety and a faster ET dynamics (250 ps) with the substrate, whereas the intervening adenine moiety mediates electron tunneling for repair of damaged DNA. Assuming ET as the universal mechanism for photolyase and cryptochrome, these results imply anionic flavin as the more attractive form of the cofactor in the active state in cryptochrome to induce charge relocation to cause an electrostatic variation in the active site and then lead to a local conformation change to initiate signaling.
Comparative Study of Circadian Oscillatory Network Models of Drosophila

The circadian clock of Drosophila is a model pathway for research in biological clock mechanisms, both with traditional experimental approaches and with emerging systems biology approaches utilizing mathematical modeling and in silico computer simulation. Dynamic diurnal oscillations are achieved by the complex interaction of components as a system, and mathematical reconstruction has proven to be an invaluable means of understanding such systematic behavior. In this study, we implemented eight published models of the Drosophila circadian clock in Systems Biology Markup Language (SBML) for comparative systems biology studies using E-Cell Simulation Environment version 3, to examine the system-level requirements for the clock mechanism to be robust, by calculating the period and amplitude sensitivity coefficients with simulation experiments. While all models were generally robust as determined by the network topology of the oscillatory feedback loop structure, existing models place relatively strong emphasis on transcription regulation, although this is a limitation on robustness. We suggest that more comprehensive modeling including protein phosphorylation, polymerization, and nuclear transport with regard to amplitude sensitivity will be necessary for understanding the light entrainment and temperature compensation of circadian clocks.
Quality of Life, at What Cost?

Along with the many scientific advances in cancer therapeutics, the field of oncology has advanced by focusing on ways to improve the symptomatic effects this therapy has on our patients. We are learning how to better quantify the observation that some medications make our patients feel worse than others. With improved statistical methods, we now routinely incorporate quality of life measurements in phase III clinical trials. From the patients’ perspective, it is critical that we continue this practice, especially in the evaluation of therapy for incurable diseases, where the quality of life is as important as the quantity. In the study by Kiebert, Jonas, and Middleton in this issue of Cancer Investigation, health-related quality of life (HRQL) was measured in patients with metastatic melanoma who were randomized to treatment with temozolomide or dacarbazine. Patients completed the EORTC Quality of Life Questionnaire after each cycle, and the HRQL data from the two arms were compared at 12 and 24 weeks. Because there were not enough patients and HRQL data at 24 weeks for accurate data analysis, we were left with evaluating the information at 12 weeks. At this time period, patients taking temozolomide had a small but statistically significant improvement in the physical functioning scale and individual symptom scales for fatigue and sleep disturbance compared to those taking dacarbazine. The other four functioning scales and seven symptom scales showed no difference between the two groups. The overall global quality of life scale was also not different statistically. If melanoma patients taking temozolomide have a better HRQL than those taking dacarbazine, the gain is small. This study, and the original trial comparing these medications, both claim a statistical advantage for temozolomide in progression-free survival (PFS). The PFS for temozolomide and dacarbazine was 1.9 months and 1.5 months, respectively. In the trial, patients were assessed for response after every two cycles, but the cycle length was different for temozolomide (28 days) and dacarbazine (21 days). Therefore, the first radiological evaluation for temozolomide was at 56 days (about 1.9 months) and for dacarbazine was at 42 days (about 1.5 months). The median time to progression effectively equaled the time of first radiological evaluation for each drug. Finally, to complete a comparison of the two medications, we must examine the issue of drug cost. As of September 2002, the average wholesale price (AWP) in the United States for 2600 mg of dacarbazine, enough for one cycle in a patient with a body surface area of 2.0, is $360.45. The AWP for a cycle of temozolomide in the same patient would be $2895.50. Using the same 12-week evaluation period, the cost of the medications would be $1441.80 for dacarbazine and $8686.50 for temozolomide. The difference in cost appears to be substantially greater than the difference in quality of life and efficacy.
Altered Platelet Function in Newborns

Extract: Studies of platelet function were performed on venous blood specimens from 64 newborn infants within 0–48 h after birth. Fifty-two of the infants studied were normal, full-term average for gesta-tional age (AGA) infants, three were normal, premature AGA infants, seven were premature AGA infants with the respiratory distress syndrome (RDS), and two were premature AGA infants who had repeated apneic periods. Although it was not possible to study all variables of platelet function in each of the groups, those studies that were performed showed no differences in the results based on the group to which an individual infant belonged.Compared with 24 normal adult controls, the infants showed impaired platelet aggregation in the presence of ADP, collagen, and thrombin. The mean time required for maximal platelet aggregation with ADP, collagen, and thrombin for the adults was 120, 230, and 74 sec, respectively, compared with values of 160, 443, and 158 sec for the infants (table II, figs. 2, 3, and 4). The percentage total platelet aggregation with ADP, collagen, and thrombin for the adults was 79, 91, and 74% compared with 47, 73, and 47%, respectively, for the infants (table II, figs. 2, 3, and 4). Infant whole blood and platelet-rich plasma clot retraction were markedly defective compared with normal adults (table I). In addition, platelet factor 3 release in 10 normal infants, as measured by the modified Stypven time, was decreased when compared with 10 values for normal adults (fig.5). Other variables of platelet function (bleeding times, native blood platelet adhesiveness, petechiometer tests) studied in newborn infants were normal (table I). Thrombelastograms were compatible with hypercoagulability of the blood (table I). None of the infants studied had clinical evidence of a bleeding tendency.In vitro mixing experiments suggested that the impaired ADP platelet aggregation was due neither to the presence of plasma ADP inhibitors, a refractory state due to increased circulating levels of ADP, anticoagulants, nor to a selected population of platelets. Physiologic alterations of infant platelets are similar to platelet functional changes observed in thrombasthenia.Speculation: Transient physiologic alterations have been described in many components of the newborn's blood, i.e., decreased plasma coagulation factors, red cell enzyme changes, low immunoglobulins, and an altered kinin system. It is not surprising, therefore, to find a transient platelet functional deficiency as well. Indeed, this hypofunction may be a defense against intravascular coagulation at a time when the infant's blood may be hypercoagulable and susceptible to increased thrombotic tendencies. Whether this platelet functional alteration could aggravate or be related to the cause of hemorrhage in severely ill infants remains to be shown.
Data Capacity Improvement of Wireless Sensor Networks Using Non-Uniform Sensor Distribution

Energy conservation is an important design consideration for battery powered wireless sensor networks (WSNET). Energy constraint in WSNETs limits the total amount of sensed data (data capacity) received by sinks. In the commonly used static model of sensor networks with uniformly distributed homogenous sensors with a stationary sink, sensors close to the sink drain their energy much faster than sensors far away from the sink due to the unevenly distributed forwarding workloads among sensors. A major issue, which has not been adequately addressed so far, is the question of how sensor deployment governs the data capacity, and how to improve data capacity of WSNETs. In our previous work, we provided a simple analytical model to address this issue for one specific type of WSNETs. In this paper, we extend our previous work to address this issue for general WSNETs. In the extended static models, for large networks, we find that after the lifetime of a sensor network is over, there is a great amount of energy left unused, which can be up to 90% of the total initial energy. Thus, the static models with uniformly distributed homogenous sensors cannot effectively utilize their energy. This energy waste implies that the potential data capacity is much larger than the capacity achieved in these static models. To increase the total data capacity, we propose a non-uniform sensor distribution strategy. Simulation results show that, for large, dense WSNETs, the non-uniform sensor distribution strategy can increase the total data capacity by an order of magnitude.
Simulation model verification and validation

Verification and validation of simulation models are discussed. The different approaches to deciding model validity are described; how model verification and validation relate to the model development process is specified; various validation techniques are defined; conceptual model validity, model verification, operational validity, and data validity are discussed; ways to document results are given; and a recommended validation procedure is presented. <<ETX>>
Developmental and evolutionary diversity of plant MADS-domain factors: insights from recent studies

Members of the MADS-box transcription factor family play essential roles in almost every developmental process in plants. Many MADS-box genes have conserved functions across the flowering plants, but some have acquired novel functions in specific species during evolution. The analyses of MADS-domain protein interactions and target genes have provided new insights into their molecular functions. Here, we review recent findings on MADS-box gene functions in Arabidopsis and discuss the evolutionary history and functional diversification of this gene family in plants. We also discuss possible mechanisms of action of MADS-domain proteins based on their interactions with chromatin-associated factors and other transcriptional regulators.
Atypische Neuroleptika in der Behandlung von Aggressivität und Feindseligkeit bei schizophrenen Patienten

The treatment of aggressive symptoms in schizophrenic patients is a relevant clinical problem. We systematically review the efficacy of the different atypical neuroleptics on acute or persistent aggressive symptoms also regarding methodological problems. Currently typical neuroleptics are still first choice in treating acute aggressive symptoms, while risperidone and olanzapine could be alternatives. In persistent aggression clozapin shows the best specific results. Typical depot neuroleptics should be considered in cases when medication compliance is a problem.
Family-Based Bivariate Association Tests for Quantitative Traits

The availability of a large number of dense SNPs, high-throughput genotyping and computation methods promotes the application of family-based association tests. While most of the current family-based analyses focus only on individual traits, joint analyses of correlated traits can extract more information and potentially improve the statistical power. However, current TDT-based methods are low-powered. Here, we develop a method for tests of association for bivariate quantitative traits in families. In particular, we correct for population stratification by the use of an integration of principal component analysis and TDT. A score test statistic in the variance-components model is proposed. Extensive simulation studies indicate that the proposed method not only outperforms approaches limited to individual traits when pleiotropic effect is present, but also surpasses the power of two popular bivariate association tests termed FBAT-GEE and FBAT-PC, respectively, while correcting for population stratification. When applied to the GAW16 datasets, the proposed method successfully identifies at the genome-wide level the two SNPs that present pleiotropic effects to HDL and TG traits.
More than a Feeling: Emotional Contagion Effects in Persuasive Communication

The authors develop an affect-as-information model to explain how targeted emotions used in persuasion can influence unrelated products and brands that are presented nearby. In Study 1, the presence of an emotion-eliciting image affected consumer spending on unrelated products in a simulated retail environment. In Study 2, emotional processing ability and whether consumers monitored their feelings moderated emotional transfers between unrelated advertisements, providing support for an affect-as-information model. In Studies 3 and 4, the authors use the context of evaluative conditioning to generalize the incidence of emotional contagion in persuasive communication. They manipulate salience of affect and whether brand attitudes were measured or primed to provide additional evidence for and extend affect-as-information theory.