Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Java-based diabetes type 2 prediction tool for better diagnosis.

BACKGROUND The concept of classification of clinical data can be utilized in the development of an effective diagnosis system by taking the advantage of computational intelligence. Diabetes disease diagnosis via proper interpretation of the diabetes data is an important problem in neural networks. Unfortunately, although several classification studies have been carried out with significant performance, many of the current methods often fail to reach out to patients. Graphical user interface-enabled tools need to be developed through which medical practitioners can simply enter the health profiles of their patients and receive an instant diabetes prediction with an acceptable degree of confidence. METHODS In this study, the neural network approach was used for a dataset of 768 persons from a Pima Indian population living near Phoenix, AZ. A neural network mixture of experts model was trained with these data using the expectation-minimization algorithm. RESULTS The mixture of experts method was used to train the algorithm with 97% accuracy. A graphical user interface was developed that would work in conjunction with the trained network to provide the output in a presentable format. CONCLUSIONS This study provides a machine-implementable approach that can be used by physicians and patients to minimize the extent of error in diagnosis. The authors are hopeful that replication of results of this study in other populations may lead to improved diagnosis. Physicians can simply enter the health profile of patients and get the diagnosis for diabetes type 2.
Consumer privacy concerns about Internet marketing

The Internet is quickly becoming the world’s largest public electronic marketplace. It is estimated to reach 50 million people worldwide, with growth estimates averaging approximately 10% per month. Innovative business professionals have discovered that the Internet can A BUYER’S-EYE VIEW OF ONLINE PURCHASING WORRIES. • H U A I Q I N G W A N G , M A T T H E W K . O . L E E , A N D C H E N W A N G •
$L_{\infty}$  and $L_{2}$  Low-Gain Feedback: Their Properties, Characterizations and Applications in Constrained Control

Low-gain feedback has found several applications in constrained control, robust control, and nonlinear control. In this paper, we first generalize the existing low-gain design methods by introducing the notion of <i>L</i><sub>∞</sub>-vanishment and by providing a full characterization of feedback gains that achieve such a property. We observe that <i>L</i><sub>∞</sub> low-gain feedback can lead to energy peaking, namely, the control energy required by <i>L</i><sub>∞</sub> low-gain feedback increases toward infinity as the low-gain parameter decreases to zero. Motivated by this observation, we consider the notion of <i>L</i><sub>2</sub>-vanishment and establish several of its characterizations, based on which a new design approach referred to as the <i>L</i><sub>2</sub> low-gain feedback approach for linear systems is developed. Different from the <i>L</i><sub>∞</sub> low-gain feedback, the <i>L</i><sub>2</sub> low-gain feedback is instrumental in the control of systems with control energy constraints. As an application of <i>L</i><sub>2</sub> low-gain feedback, the problem of semiglobal stabilization of linear systems with control energy constraints is solved in this paper. The notions of <i>L</i><sub>∞</sub> and <i>L</i><sub>2</sub>-vanishment also allow us to establish a systematic approach to the design of <i>L</i><sub>∞</sub> and <i>L</i><sub>2</sub> low-gain feedback. The advantage of this new design approach is that it results in a family of control laws, including those resulting from the existing design methods.
Multi-Order Statistical Descriptors for Real-Time Face Recognition and Object Classification

We propose novel multi-order statistical descriptors which can be used for high speed object classification or face recognition from videos or image sets. We represent each gallery set with a global second-order statistic which captures correlated global variations in all feature directions as well as the common set structure. A lightweight descriptor is then constructed by efficiently compacting the second-order statistic using Cholesky decomposition. We then enrich the descriptor with the first-order statistic of the gallery set to further enhance the representation power. By projecting the descriptor into a low-dimensional discriminant subspace, we obtain further dimensionality reduction, while the discrimination power of the proposed representation is still preserved. Therefore, our method represents a complex image set by a single descriptor having significantly reduced dimensionality. We apply the proposed algorithm on image set and video-based face and periocular biometric identification, object category recognition, and hand gesture recognition. Experiments on six benchmark data sets validate that the proposed method achieves significantly better classification accuracy with lower computational complexity than the existing techniques. The proposed compact representations can be used for real-time object classification and face recognition in videos.
A novel injectable and degradable calcium phosphate/calcium sulfate bone cement

The aim of this study was to obtain a composite material which not only has suitable workability but also has excellent degradability. A novel injectable and degradable bone cement consisting of a mixture of calcium phosphate (α-tricalcium phosphate; α-TCP) and calcium sulfate dihydrate (CaSO 4 . 2H 2 O; CSD) powders as the solid phase and an aqueous solution containing 2.5 weight percent of Na 2 HPO 4 as the liquid phase, was prepared. Seven groups with differing CSD content (0, 5, 10, 20, 30, 40 and 100%) were tested. The injectability of α-TCP increased with increasing proportions of CSD in the mixture; a small addition of CSD powder sharply decreased the setting time of the cement, but further addition caused the setting time of the mixture to increase again. Simultaneously, adding CSD to α-TCP had little effect on the setting temperature. The compressive strength of the cement decreased with increasing content of CSD except in the 5% group, because addition of a small amount of CSD to the cement induced the appearance of fiber-like crystallization; this was confirmed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Furthermore, the bone cement mixture had good degradability in simulated body fluid (SBF) when the content of CSD was increased. Key words: Calcium phosphate, calcium sulfate dehydrate, bone cement, injectability, degradability, bonerepair.
Increased plasma levels of soluble TNF receptors 1 and 2 in bipolar depression and impact of lithium treatment

TNF system (TNF and its soluble receptors sTNFR1 and 2) has been investigated as a potential molecular target in bipolar disorder. The aim of the study was to compare plasma levels of these receptors in unmedicated bipolar depressed patients compared with healthy controls, and to evaluate the effects of a 6‐week lithium treatment on sTNFR1 and sTNFR2 levels.
JPEG Compression Detection Based on Edge-Corner Features Using SVM

This paper focuses on the detection of JPEG compression (JC) image forensics and extracts a feature vector that composed of the Hough line, peaks, and the Harris-Stephens corner features to classify the JC and the other type images. The longest Hough line is computed by the Hough transform with the Canny line, then the coordinates of the line’s endpoints would be the feature set. Also, the coordinates of the deep Hough peaks is defined as the feature set. Lastly, the coordinates of the Harris-Stephens corners would be the feature set, respectively. They are to be combined the feature vector for the JC detection. The defined feature vector is trained inSVM (Support Vector Machine) classifier for the JC detection of the forged images. The performance of the proposed JC detection is measured with the chose four types of the forged images in the experiment: unaltered, median filtering (3 × 3), averaging filter (3 × 3) and downscaling (0.9), respectively. Subsequently, the experimental items; the AUC (Area Under Curve) by the sensitivity and 1-specificity, PTP at PFP = 0.01, Pe (a minimal average decision error), and the classification are evaluating the performance of the proposed JC detector scheme. Thus, it confirmed that the grade evaluation of the proposed algorithm is 'Excellent (A)'.
Ab initio and molecular dynamic models of displacement damage in crystalline and turbostratic graphite.

One of the functions of graphite is as a moderator in several nuclear reactor designs, including the Advanced Gas-cooled Reactor (AGR). In the reactor graphite is used to thermalise the neutrons produced in the fission reaction thus allowing a self-sustained reaction to occur. The graphite blocks, acting as the moderator, are constantly irradiated and consequently suffer damage. This thesis examines the types of damage caused using molecular dynamic (MD) simulations and ab intio calculations. Neutron damage starts with a primary knock-on atom (PKA), which is travelling so fast that it creates damage through electronic and thermal excitation (this is addressed with thermal spike simulations). When the PKA has lost energy the subsequent cascade is based on ballistic atomic displacement. These two types of simulations were performed on single crystal graphite and other carbon structures such as diamond and amorphous carbon as a comparison. The thermal spike in single crystal graphite produced results which varied from no defects to a small number of permanent defects in the structure. It is only at the high energy range that more damage is seen but these energies are less likely to occur in the nuclear reactor. The thermal spike does not create damage but it is possible that it can heal damaged sections of the graphite, which can be demonstrated with the motion of the defects when a thermal spike is applied. The cascade simulations create more damage than the thermal spike even though less energy is applied to the system. A new damage function is found with a threshold region that varies with the square root of energy in excess of the energy threshold. This is further broken down in to contributions from primary and subsequent knock-on atoms. The threshold displacement energy (TDE) is found to be Ed=25eV at 300K. In both these types of simulation graphite acts very differently to the other carbon structures. There are two types of polycrystalline graphite structures which simulations have been performed on. The difference between the two is at the grain boundaries with one having dangling bonds and the other one being bonded. The cascade showed the grain boundaries acting as a trap for the knock-on atoms which produces more damage compared with the single crystal. Finally the effects of turbostratic disorder on damage is considered. Density functional theory (DFT) was used to look at interstitials in (002) twist boundaries and how they act compared to AB stacked graphite. The results of these calculations show that the spiro interstitial is more stable in these grain boundaries, so at temperatures where the interstitial can migrate along the c direction they will segregate to (002) twist boundaries.
Comparison of Different Disease-Specific Health-Related Quality of Life Measurements in Patients with Long-Term Noninvasive Ventilation

Background Two disease-specific questionnaires have been developed to assess health-related quality of life (HRQL) in patients with chronic respiratory failure: the Severe Respiratory Insufficiency (SRI) Questionnaire and the Maugeri Respiratory Failure (MRF) Questionnaire. We aimed to compare the characteristics of the SRI, MRF-26, and St. George's Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ) for use in patients with home noninvasive ventilation (NIV). Methods Fifty-six outpatients receiving long-term NIV were recruited and underwent assessments of pulmonary function, arterial blood gas, HRQL, dyspnea, and psychological status. Results Correlations of the SRI and MRF-26 with the SGRQ were modest. While pulmonary function was weakly related to only some domains of the SRI and MRF-26, the modified Medical Research Council (mMRC) dyspnea scale and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) were significantly related to all domains of the SRI and MRF-26. Multiple regression analyses showed that HADS depression and mMRC accounted for 34% and 27% of the variance in the SRI, 24% and 37% in the MRF-26, and 17% and 46% in the SGRQ, respectively. Conclusions The SRI and MRF-26 were reliable questionnaires for patients receiving long-term NIV. Dyspnea and psychological status were their main common determinants. The SRI covers more psychological health impairments than the MRF. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT00905476.
Rocky Intertidal Zonation Pattern in Antofagasta, Chile: Invasive Species and Shellfish Gathering

Background Biological invasions affecting rocky intertidal zonation patterns, yield information on species interactions. In the Bay of Antofagasta, northern Chile, the non-indigenous tunicate Pyura praeputialis, originally from Australia, has invaded (in the past century or so) and monopolized a major portion of the mid-intertidal rocky shore, displacing upshore the native mussel Perumytilus purpuratus. In Antofagasta the tunicate is subjected to intensive exploitation. Monitoring protocols show that in the past 10 years Antofagasta's tunicate population has experienced a drastic decline, affecting the intertidal zonation pattern. Methodology/Principal Findings A 12.5 km of coastline, on the southern eastern shore of the Bay of Antofagasta, was studied. Eight sites were systematically (1993–1994) or sporadically (2003–2014) monitored for the seaward-shoreward expansion or reduction of the tunicate Pyura praeputialis, and native mussel and barnacle bands. A notable reduction in the mid-intertidal band of P. praeputialis and a seaward expansion of the mussel, Perumytilus purpuratus, and barnacle bands was observed. We suggest that the major cause for the decline in the tunicate is due to its intensive exploitation by rocky shore Pyura-gathers. The rate of extraction of tunicates by professional Pyura-gathers ranged between 256–740 tunicates hour−1. Between 2009–2014 the density of professional Pyura-gather ranged between 0.5–4.5 km−1 per low tide. Hence, 10 professional Pyura-gathers working 1 h for 10 low tides per month, during 6 months, will remove between 307–888 m2 of tunicates. A drastic decline in tunicate recruitment was observed and several P. praeputialis ecosystems services have been lost. Conclusion and Significance In Antofagasta, the continuous and intensive intertidal gathering of the invasive tunicate Pyura praeputialis, has caused a drastic reduction of its population modifying the zonation pattern. Thereby, native mussel Perumytilus purpuratus has regained its ecological center in the intertidal zone. We recorded a Pyura recruitment failure and loss of ecosystem services.
An implementation of MQTT through the application of warehouse management system for climacteric fruits and vegetables

Automation has became an inseparable part of today's world for which IOT has emerged as an excellent platform providing connectivity between various sensors, controllers and internet that enables remote monitoring and controlling of different environments subject to automation. Storage is an important aspect of the total logistic business as it directly affects the product quality and thus the total revenue. Considering the requirements of the perishable goods like climacteric fruits and vegetable storing warehouses this project propose a Warehouse Management System based on light-weight MQTT protocol which enables the user to monitor and control the storage conditions of fruits /vegetables all the time globally through the web page access. Further this system also provides quantitative fruits/vegetable freshness updates and on qualitative measures it gives fruits/vegetable rotting alerts. IOT is furnished with number of application layer protocols, thus this paper includes an overview and comparative results of two potential M2M communication protocols, MQTT and COAP, in terms of bandwidth consumption and network latency.
Interfacial adhesion and mechanical properties of bamboo fibre composites

To achieve good wetting and adhesion of the bamboo fibre with different polymers, the fibre surface needs to be characterized. However, natural fibres have several complex characteristics such as liquid sorption, different cross sections along the fibre length, chemical heterogeneity, which make obtaining meaningful data from wetting measurements particularly challenging. Therefore, the interpretation of their wetting behaviour as quasi-equilibrium phenomena can be invalid.
Reactive Programming: A Walkthrough

Over the last few years, Reactive Programming has emerged as the trend to support the development of reactive software through dedicated programming abstractions. Reactive Programming has been increasingly investigated in the programming languages community and it is now gaining the interest of practitioners. Conversely, it has received so far less attention from the software engineering community. This technical briefing bridges this gap through an accurate overview of Reactive Programming, discussing the available frameworks and outlining open research challenges with an emphasis on cross-field research opportunities.
Preferred and Actual Relative Height among Homosexual Male Partners Vary with Preferred Dominance and Sex Role

Previous research has shown repeatedly that human stature influences mate preferences and mate choice in heterosexuals. In general, it has been shown that tall men and average height women are most preferred by the opposite sex, and that both sexes prefer to be in a relationship where the man is taller than the woman. However, little is known about such partner preferences in homosexual individuals. Based on an online survey of a large sample of non-heterosexual men (N = 541), we found that the majority of men prefer a partner slightly taller than themselves. However, these preferences were dependent on the participant’s own height, such that taller men preferred shorter partners, whereas shorter men preferred taller partners. We also examined whether height preferences predicted the preference for dominance and the adoption of particular sexual roles within a couple. Although a large proportion of men preferred to be in an egalitarian relationship with respect to preferred dominance (although not with respect to preferred sexual role), men that preferred a more dominant and more “active” sexual role preferred shorter partners, whereas those that preferred a more submissive and more “passive” sexual role preferred taller partners. Our results indicate that preferences for relative height in homosexual men are modulated by own height, preferred dominance and sex role, and do not simply resemble those of heterosexual women or men.
DIMENSION REDUCING METHODS FOR SYSTEMS OF NONLINEAR EQUATIONS AND UNCONSTRAINED OPTIMIZATION : A REVIEW

The purpose of this report is to review a new class of methods we have proposed for solving systems of nonlinear equations and optimization problems, named Dimension Reducing Methods. These methods are based on reduction to simpler one-dimensional nonlinear equations. Although these methods use reduction to simpler one, they converge quadratically, and incorporate the advantages of nonlinear SOR and Newton’s algorithms. Moreover, since they do not directly perform function evaluations, they can be applied to problems with imprecise function values.
Orthodontic bracket bonding without previous adhesive priming: A meta-regression analysis.

OBJECTIVE To determine the consensus among studies that adhesive resin application improves the bond strength of orthodontic brackets and the association of methodological variables on the influence of bond strength outcome. MATERIALS AND METHODS In vitro studies were selected to answer whether adhesive resin application increases the immediate shear bond strength of metal orthodontic brackets bonded with a photo-cured orthodontic adhesive. Studies included were those comparing a group having adhesive resin to a group without adhesive resin with the primary outcome measurement shear bond strength in MPa. A systematic electronic search was performed in PubMed and Scopus databases. RESULTS Nine studies were included in the analysis. Based on the pooled data and due to a high heterogeneity among studies (I(2) = 93.3), a meta-regression analysis was conducted. The analysis demonstrated that five experimental conditions explained 86.1% of heterogeneity and four of them had significantly affected in vitro shear bond testing. The shear bond strength of metal brackets was not significantly affected when bonded with adhesive resin, when compared to those without adhesive resin. CONCLUSIONS The adhesive resin application can be set aside during metal bracket bonding to enamel regardless of the type of orthodontic adhesive used.
Experiences of Informal Caregivers of Older Adults Transitioned From Nursing Homes to the Community Through the Money Follows the Person Demonstration

ABSTRACT This study examined experiences of 156 informal caregivers of older adults who transitioned to the community through the Connecticut Money Follows the Person (MFP) Rebalancing Demonstration after prolonged nursing home stays. Caregiver burden, positive aspects of caregiving, depressive symptoms, anxiety, and comparative subjective stress were examined in relation to caregiver demographics and care receiver characteristics with a cross-sectional survey. Caregivers reported low burden, depressive symptoms, and anxiety, and fairly high levels of positive aspects of caregiving and satisfaction with community services. Most caregivers were less stressed compared to the time the care recipient was in, or before they entered, a nursing home. Live-in caregivers experienced more positive aspects of caregiving, but adult children reported higher burden than other caregivers. Unmet service needs also increased caregiver burden. Programs like MFP are a viable option with broadly positive outcomes from a caregiver’s perspective. Enthusiasm for increasing access to community care is growing for older adults who otherwise would reside in nursing homes for extended periods. Identifying unmet service needs and needs for targeted functional support could further enhance caregiver experiences and contribute to the successful transition of older adults to the community.