Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Donor risk factors for white blood cell antibodies associated with transfusion‐associated acute lung injury: REDS‐II Leukocyte Antibody Prevalence Study (LAPS)

T he emergence of transfusion-associated acute lung injury (TRALI) as a leading cause of transfusion-associated morbidity and mortality has prompted the transfusion community to take active measures to reduce the risk of this complication. In this issue of TRANSFUSION, Eder and colleagues report that 70 to 75 percent of fatal TRALI cases recently reported to the American Red Cross are associated with female donors who have white blood cell (WBC) antibodies. The UK Serious Hazards of Transfusion data recently presented at the October 2006 AABB Annual Meeting in Miami, Florida (L. Williamson), showed that diversion of female plasma, starting in October 2003, has resulted in a major decline in reported TRALI cases and TRALI related mortality. On the heels of this information, the AABB issued a TRALI Association Bulletin on November 3, 2006, based on the recommendations of a recently convened AABB TRALI working group. The bulletin had three major recommendations:
On the performance of precoded OFDM systems in the presence of jamming

Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) is at the heart of current wireless standards and is the main modulation scheme envisioned for use in future generations of wireless communication systems. In this paper we study the performance of precoded OFDM systems in the presence of intentional jamming. Specifically, we consider OFDM systems with sub-band Hadamard precoding for which we derive the expression of the signal-to-jammer+noise-ratio (SJNR) and study how jamming signals with different bandwidths affect the bit error rate (BER) performance of the system.
Changes in self-reported drinking behaviors among US teenagers associated with the introduction of flavored malt beverages: An interrupted time series quasi-experiment

This study sought to examine high school students’ self-reported drinking behaviors following the introduction of flavored malt beverages, also known as alcopops, to the US market. We hypothesized that adolescents’ reported drinking behaviors would be significantly altered following the introduction of alcopops in the US. A cross-sectional time series Youth Risk Behavior Survey data set was created from publicly available data collected by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (N = 60,426) and used to conduct secondary data analysis, using an interrupted time series quasi-experimental design. Segmented regression analyses estimated how much the introduction of alcopops in the US affected drinking behaviors, whether the effects were immediate and/or delayed, and whether there may have been other factors than the intervention that could explain the effects. Respondents aged ≥18 years had statistically significant increases in three drinking behaviors after alcopops were introduced. Binge drinking increased significantly in the entire study population between 1997 and 2001, remaining steady in 2001–2003. Drinking on school property increased in some groups between 2001 and 2003. The statistically significant increases identified for some drinking behaviors and, for most behaviors, in certain population subgroups can be used to develop prevention strategies that are targeted accordingly.
Brain Allometry and Neural Plasticity in the Bumblebee Bombus occidentalis

Brain plasticity is a common phenomenon across animals and in many cases it is associated with behavioral transitions. In social insects, such as bees, wasps and ants, plasticity in a particular brain compartment involved in multisensory integration (the mushroom body) has been associated with transitions between tasks differing in cognitive demands. However, in most of these cases, transitions between tasks are age-related, requiring the experimental manipulation of the age structure in the studied colonies to distinguish age and experience-dependent effects. To better understand the interplay between brain plasticity and behavioral performance it would therefore be advantageous to study species whose division of labor is not age-dependent. Here, we focus on brain plasticity in the bumblebee Bombus occidentalis, in which division of labor is strongly affected by the individual’s body size instead of age. We show that, like in vertebrates, body size strongly correlates with brain size. We also show that foraging experience, but not age, significantly correlates with the increase in the size of the mushroom body, and in particular one of its components, the medial calyx. Our results support previous findings from other social insects suggesting that the mushroom body plays a key role in experience-based decision making. We also discuss the use of bumblebees as models to analyze neural plasticity and the association between brain size and behavioral performance.
Additive light field displays

We propose a see-through additive light field display as a novel type of compressive light field display. We utilize holographic optical elements (HOEs) as transparent additive layers. The HOE layers are almost free from diffraction unlike spatial light modulator layers, which makes this additive light field display more advantageous when modifying the number of layers, thickness, and pixel density compared with conventional compressive displays. Meanwhile, the additive light field display maintains advantages of compressive light field displays. The proposed additive light field display shows bright and full-color volumetric images in high definition. In addition, users can view real-world scenes beyond the displays. Hence, we expect that our method can contribute to the realization of augmented reality. Here, we describe implementation of a prototype additive light field display with two additive layers, evaluate the performance of transparent HOE layers, describe several results of display experiments, discuss the diffraction effect of spatial light modulators, and analyze the ability of the additive light field display to express uncorrelated light fields.
Scalable Architecture for Service Function Chain Orchestration

Network Function Virtualization (NFV) enables to implement network functions in software, high-speed packet processing functions which traditionally are dominated by hardware implementations. Virtualized Network Functions (NFs) may be deployed on generic-purpose servers, e.g., in datacenters. The latter enables flexibility and scalability which previously were only possible for web services deployed on cloud platforms. The merit of NFV is challenged by control challenges related to the selection of NF implementations, discovery and reservation of sufficient network and server resources, and interconnecting both in a way which ful fills SLAs related to reliability and scalability. This paper details the role of a scalable orchestrator in charge of finding and reserving adequate resources. The latter will steer network and cloud control and management platforms to actually reserve and deploy requested services. We highlight the role of involved interfaces, propose elements of algorithmic components, and will identify major blocks in orchestration time in a proof of concept prototype which accounts for most functional parts in the considered architecture. Based on these evaluations, we propose several architectural enhancements in order to implement a highly scalable network orchestrator for carrier and cloud networks.
Low power analog circuit techniques in the 5th generation intel coreTM microprocessor (broadwell)

Fabricated on a 14nm process technology node, the Intel CoreTM M and the 5th generation CoreTM processors (code named Broadwell) improve energy efficiency over the previous 22nm generation by up to 2.5x. Numerous optimizations were used in the analog circuits to achieve this power reduction. PLLs were designed to have low analog Vmin to enable operation without the use of a dedicated voltage rail. This enabled system level power optimization that yielded 28% lower power on that rail. Zero Distribution Latency to Full Distribution Latency (ZDL-to-FDL) mode was introduced in the PLLs, reducing clock distribution power and achieving ~150mV reduction in the clock distribution supply's Vmin. DDR power was reduced by 3x through the use of VTT termination, instead of the traditional Center Tapped Termination (CTT). A new package Cstate (C7+) was introduced to reduce integrated voltage regulator losses under low load conditions. Duty cycling of the thermal sensor reduced average power 10x relative to the prior generation while a fast wakeup technique reduced convergence time to ~10us.
Iatrogenc hypothyroidism: a consequence of external beam radiotherapy to the head & neck malignancies.

BACKGROUND Hypothyroidism is a known consequence of external beam radiotherapy to the neck encompassing part or whole of the thyroid gland for over 40 years. Still thyroid function tests are not a part of routine follow up of head - neck cancer patients treated with radiotherapy with or without surgery and / or chemotherapy. AIM Aim of this study was to find out the incidence of hypothyroidism in head - neck cancer patients treated with radiotherapy with or without chemotherapy where radiation portals included most or whole of the thyroid gland. MATERIALS AND METHODS From September 2001 to November 2003, 187 patients with head-neck malignancies were treated with external beam radiotherapy whose radiation portals included part or whole of the thyroid gland with / without chemotherapy. Thyroid function tests were done at the beginning of treatment, at six weeks after completion of radiotherapy and thereafter at six weeks interval for two years. RESULTS Out of 187 patients, five were excluded from the study as they were found to be hypothyroid before the initiation of treatment. Another four were excluded from result analysis because they underwent laryngectomy for uncontrolled disease. Of the patients attending the follow up clinic, 17.8 % and 21.8 % were found to have clinical and sub-clinical hypothyroidism at two year. CONCLUSION As a significant number of patients develop hypothyroidism following radiotherapy to the neck, thyroid function tests should be included in the routine follow up protocol of such patients. But certain questions have emerged from this study which need a large randomized study to find out the answers.
Regulation of extracellular matrix assembly: in vitro reconstitution of a partial fertilization envelope from isolated components

At fertilization, the glycocalyx (vitelline layer) of the sea urchin egg is transformed into an elevated fertilization envelope by the association of secreted peptides and the formation of intermolecular dityrosine bonds. Dityrosine cross-links are formed by a secreted ovoperoxidase that exists in a Ca2+-stabilized complex with proteoliaisin in the fertilization envelope. By using purified proteins, we now show that proteoliaisin is necessary and sufficient to link ovoperoxidase to the egg glycocalyx. Specifically, we have found that ovoperoxidase can associate with the vitelline layer only when complexed with proteoliaisin; proteoliaisin binds to the vitelline layer independently of its association with ovoperoxidase; proteolytic modification of the vitelline layer is not required for this interaction to occur; the binding of proteoliaisin to the vitelline layer is mediated by the synergistic action of the two major seawater divalent cations, Ca2+ and Mg2+; the number of proteoliaisin-binding sites on the vitelline layer of unfertilized eggs is equivalent to the amount of proteoliaisin secreted at fertilization; and the binding of ovoperoxidase to the vitelline layer, via proteoliaisin, permits the in vitro cross-linking of these two in vivo substrates. The association of purified ovoperoxidase and proteoliaisin with the vitelline layer of unfertilized eggs reconstitutes part of the morphogenesis of the fertilization envelope.
Authentication Using Side-Channel Information

Authentication based on cryptographic protocols is a key technology for recent security systems. However, the so-called relay attack where a malicious attacker tries to assume the role of the prover, is known to be a serious threat even for the cryptographically-secure authentication systems. This paper proposes a new authentication method that utilizes the side channel that already exists in many authentication systems. The side channel has been studied intensively from the attacker viewpoint, and it is best known for the key-recovery attack against cryptographic implementations via physical information. Here, reversing our way of thinking, we propose to use the information constructively via the side channel to enhance the existing cryptographic protocols. Using symmetric-key-based authentication as an example, we show based on experiments using an FPGA that each of the side-channel information leaked from provers is unique enough for the purpose of authentication.
Justifying scale type for a latent variable: Formative or reflective?

The study attempted to explore the possibilities to create a procedure at the experimental level to double confirm whether manifest variables scale type is formative or reflective. Now, the criteria of making such a decision are heavily depended on researchers’ judgment at the conceptual and operational level. The study created an experimental procedure that seems could double confirm the decisions from the conceptual and operational level judgments. The experimental procedure includes the following tests, Variance Inflation Factor (VIF), Tolerance (TOL), Ridge Regression, Cronbach’s alpha, Dillon-Goldstein’s rho, and first and second eigenvalue. The procedure considers manifest variables’ both multicollinearity and consistency. As the result, the procedure received the same judgment with the carefully established decision making at the concept and operational level.
Development of daptomycin-susceptible, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus pneumonia during high-dose daptomycin therapy.

tical RAPD patterns and pulsotypes (Figure 1) were found in the 4 isolates (isolates A, B, C, and D). RAPD patterns and pulsotypes of isolates E, F, and G were different from those of A, B, C, and D. We report a case with repeated bacteremia and septic arthritis due to K. pneumoniae serotype K57 in a patient with multiple underlying medical conditions (diabetic mellitus, liver cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma). To the best of our knowledge, 19 cases of septic arthritis due to K. pneumoniae have been reported in the English-language literature [1, 6– 9]. Among 13 patients with Klebsiella arthritis reviewed by Schelenz et al [3], 4 had diabetes mellitus, 1 had liver cirrhosis, and 1 had malignancy. Findings from a recent study indicate that diabetes mellitus is strongly correlated with recurrent K. pneumoniae infections [10]. The identical pulsotypes and RAPD patterns of the 4 K. pneumoniae isolates recovered within an 18-month period from our patient indicated that the unidentified and noneliminated primary foci was responsible for repeated bacteremia, which resulted in septic arthritis due to the same strain of K. pneumoniae. A previous study has concluded that patients with pyogenic liver abscess caused by non-K1 K. pneumoniae are considered to be more associated with diabetes mellitus, compared with those with infections caused by serotype K1 [1]. Impaired phagocytosis of capsular serotypes K1 or K2 K. pneumoniae is found in diabetic patients with poor glycemic control [2]. Little is known about patients infected with serotype K57 K. pneumoniae. The impaired phaygocytosis of non-K1 K. pneumoniae strains in patients with poor diabetic control (glycosylated hemoglobin level 19.0%) might partly contribute to the repeated bacteremia that occurred, despite adequate antimicrobial treatment, in our patient.
The future of educatona psychoogy

Educational psychology is airing its anguish in public, and if the assertions of Brown 2010, Coleman and Pine 2010, and Hornby 2010 are to be believed then this professional discipline is indeed in a parlous state. As a psychologist who worked for the old Department of Education's Psychological Service, and subsequently for the Special Education Service and Specialist Education Services, I also think that educational psychology is in trouble. However, the history of occupations is littered with the wrecks of vocations that have become redundant to requirements. At the outset of his paper, Brown 2010 raises the possibility that educational psychologists are a species that may speedily become extinct because of hostile environments, and this parallel with the natural world is another reminder that change happens as circumstances alter.
Gender Differences in the Spatial Distributions of the Tennis Serve

The serve location pattern of professional, Under-16 and Under-12 high performance male and female tennis players was examined. In general, male players tended to serve more to the corners of the service box, while female players hit more serves to their opponent's body. An examination of points won through service aces and service winners indicated that male professional players won points on first serve on the deuce side of the court by serving to their opponents' backhand, and female professional players more won points on first serve by serving to the opponent's body. The findings will focus the coaching of serve performance in youth tennis players, and encourage the charting of tennis match performance to enhance player-coach discussion of tactical tendencies that are gender and age-specific.
Separating Relational from Item Load Effects in Paired Recognition: Temporoparietal and Middle Frontal Gyral Activity with Increased Associates, but Not Items during Encoding and Retention

Working memory is affected by items stored and the relations between them. However, separating these factors has been difficult, because increased items usually accompany increased associations/relations. Hence, some have argued, relational effects are reducible to item effects. We overcome this problem by manipulating index length: the fewest number of item positions at which there is a unique item, or tuple of items (if length >1), for every instance in the relational (memory) set. Longer indexes imply greater similarity (number of shared items) between instances and higher load on encoding processes. Subjects were given lists of study pairs and asked to make a recognition judgement. The number of unique items and index length in the three list conditions were: (1) AB, CD: four/one; (2) AB, CD, EF: six/one; and (3) AB, AD, CB: four/two, respectively. Japanese letters were used in Experiments 1 (kanji-ideograms) and 2 (hiragana-phonograms); numbers in Experiment 3; and shapes generated from Fourier descriptors in Experiment 4. Across all materials, right dominant temporoparietal and middle frontal gyral activity was found with increased index length, but not items during study. In Experiment 5, a longer delay was used to isolate retention effects in the absence of visual stimuli. Increased left hemispheric activity was observed in the precuneus, middle frontal gyrus, and superior temporal gyrus with increased index length for the delay period. These results show that relational load is not reducible to item load.
The Usefulness of Serial Changes in Serum CA19-9 Levels in the Diagnosis of Pancreatic Cancer

We examined serial changes in serum CA19-9 levels in patients with pancreatic cancer (PC) or chronic pancreatitis (CP) to clarify whether these changes are useful in the diagnosis of PC. We chose 11 PC patients in whom serum CA19-9 levels had been measured serially before a definitive diagnosis of PC had been established. We also examined serial changes in serum CA19-9 levels during the recent 1-year follow-up period in 21 CP patients. Serial changes in these levels were classified into the following five types; normal, elevated, increased, decreased, and other. Of the 11 PC patients, seven patients (64%) showed the increased type, whereas none showed the normal type. However, among the CP patients, 10 patients (48%) showed the normal type and only one (5%) showed the increased type. The proportion of the increased type among PC patients was significantly higher than that among CP patients. In conclusion, serial changes in serum CA19-9 levels may be useful to differentiate between PC and CP. Close follow-up with various diagnostic modalities may be required for patients whose serum CA19-9 levels increase to more than twofold the initial level, because such findings are highly suggestive of PC.
Teachers' Opinions about Inclusion: A pilot study in a Palestinian context

The present study explored teachers' opinions about the inclusion of students with disabilities and special needs in regular primary schools in a Palestinian context, and factors that influenced such opinions. The sample consisted of 90 teachers at six schools. Eighty-seven (97%) of them had students with disabilities or special needs in their classes. Fifty-four (60%) of the teachers were of the opinion that students with disabilities and special needs should have an opportunity to attend public schools. Opinion-related factors were identified and compared to results of previous studies. Eighty-one (90%) of the teachers expressed a need for changes in the public schools in order to meet the needs of students with disabilities and special needs. Their focus of interest for building their own competence was on knowledge and skills that could empower them as teachers, not on knowledge about the students' disabling impairments.
Adaptive Bit Power Allocation Algorithm for Multiuser MIMO-OFDM Systems

In this paper, an improvement of the RA (Rate Adaptive) algorithm with alterable allocation step is proposed. Considering of the requirement on system bit error rate and the restriction on allocated bits in each channel, we compare the performance between the improved algorithm and the traditional RA algorithm. Simulation results show that the computational complexity of the proposed RA algorithm decreases a lot than the traditional algorithm while the capability of system is increased. So the proposed improved RA algorithm is a promising optimal method for implementation.
Dilated Intercellular Spaces: A Major Morphological Feature of Esophagitis

Objectives: Dilated intercellular spaces (DIS) in the esophageal epithelium have been identified by electron microscopy as marker of acid reflux damage in experimental animals and adults with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). We aimed to identify and quantify DIS by light microscopy in pediatric GERD and esophagitis. Methods: We prospectively took esophageal biopsies in 70 consecutive pediatric patients, 48 of whom had GERD symptoms. On hematoxylin and eosin-stained sections esophagitis was scored histologically, and DIS were graded as 0 (absent), + (small and focal), ++ (moderate) or +++ (large and diffuse). A computerized image analysis identified total, cellular and nuclear areas and DIS were quantified as percentage of total minus cellular area. Results: Forty of 48 GERD patients had histological esophagitis (33 G1, 4 G2, 3 G3, 1 of which with Barrett esophagus), and all 40 had DIS (33 +, 4 ++, 3 +++) with 100% interobserver agreement; 15 of 29 (55%) had abnormal pH study (reflux index, 5.7%-36%). In 30 patients the esophagus was histologically normal. DIS values were 2.21% ± 2.60% (range, 0.11%-12%) in patients with esophagitis and 0.44% ± 0.13% (0.2%-0.7%) in patients with normal histology (P < 0.00001), with 0.71% bearing 70% sensitivity and 100% specificity for GERD versus controls. Five other children with esophagitis unrelated to GERD (eosinophilic, Candida, food allergy) also had DIS + to +++, and median DIS area was 5% (1.3%-12%). Conclusions: DIS can be detected and evaluated by light microscopy, and the image analysis used provides an objective quantification of DIS and supports the light microscopy evaluation. DIS are a morphological feature of GERD and esophagitis in infancy and childhood.