Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Adult Asperger Syndrome

Introduction. Defining Asperger Syndrome in Adulthood. Conceptualization of Mental Health Problems in Adult Asperger Syndrome. The Initial Assessment. Individualized Case Formulation and Treatment Plan Design. Psychoeducation and Orientation to Treatment. Intervention: Increasing Skills to Address the Core Problems of Asperger Syndrome. Intervention: Addressing Comorbid Mental Health Problems. Adjunctive Therapies and Interdisciplinary Collaboration. Obstacles to Treatment and How to Address Them. Ending Treatment and Looking Ahead. Appendix: Therapy Resources.
Combined Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor Targeting with the Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitor Gefitinib (ZD1839) and the Monoclonal Antibody Cetuximab (IMC-C225)

Purpose: The epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is abnormally activated in cancer and two classes of anti-EGFR agents, monoclonal antibodies and low-molecular-weight tyrosine kinase inhibitors, have shown antitumor activity in patients. Because these two classes of antireceptor agents target the EGFR at different sites, we decided to explore whether the combined administration of gefitinib, a tyrosine kinase inhibitor, and cetuximab, a monoclonal antibody, had superior antitumor activity than either agent given alone. Experimental Design: We studied the effects of the combination of gefitinib and cetuximab in a panel of human cancer cell lines and in an EGFR-dependent human tumor xenograft model (A431). The effects of these two agents on EGFR signaling, proliferation, apoptosis, and vascularization were evaluated. In addition, we analyzed, with cDNA arrays, changes in gene expression profiles induced by both agents. Results: The combined treatment with gefitinib and cetuximab resulted in a synergistic effect on cell proliferation and in superior inhibition of EGFR-dependent signaling and induction of apoptosis. In a series of in vivo experiments, single-agent gefitinib or cetuximab resulted in transient complete tumor remission only at the highest doses. In contrast, suboptimal doses of gefitinib and cetuximab given together resulted in a complete and permanent regression of large tumors. In the combination-treated tumors, there was a superior inhibition of EGFR, mitogen-activated protein kinase, and Akt phosphorylation, as well as greater inhibition of cell proliferation and vascularization and enhanced apoptosis. Using cDNA arrays, we found 59 genes that were coregulated and 45 genes differentially regulated, including genes related to cell proliferation and differentiation, transcription, DNA synthesis and repair, angiogenesis, signaling molecules, cytoskeleton organization, and tumor invasion and metastasis. Conclusions: Our findings suggest both shared and complementary mechanisms of action with gefitinib and cetuximab and support combined EGFR targeting as a clinically exploitable strategy.
Factors influencing food intake of rats fed low-protein rations

Rats fed low-protein rations increased food intake, weight gain and gain in lean body mass when forced to expend energy by low environmental temperature or exercise (swimming). Rats fed low-protein rations with a higher proportion of fat in their weight gain had a greater food intake and gain in lean body mass. Therefore, gain in lean body mass was improved not only by stimulating energy loss by cold environment or exercise but by an innate ability to deposit more fat in the weight gain, because of an increased food intake, and hence protein intake.
Contributing storage using the transparent file system

Contributory applications allow users to donate unused resources on their personal computers to a shared pool. Applications such as SETI@home, Folding@home, and Freenet are now in wide use and provide a variety of services, including data processing and content distribution. However, while several research projects have proposed contributory applications that support peer-to-peer storage systems, their adoption has been comparatively limited. We believe that a key barrier to the adoption of contributory storage systems is that contributing a large quantity of local storage interferes with the principal user of the machine. To overcome this barrier, we introduce the Transparent File System (TFS). TFS provides background tasks with large amounts of unreliable storage—all of the currently available space—without impacting the performance of ordinary file access operations. We show that TFS allows a peer-to-peer contributory storage system to provide 40% more storage at twice the performance when compared to a user-space storage mechanism. We analyze the impact of TFS on replication in peer-to-peer storage systems and show that TFS does not appreciably increase the resources needed for file replication.
Tool Support for the Comprehensive Modeling of Quality Information within Business Process Models

Business process modeling is commonly used to document information about structure and behavior of a business process. However, current business process modeling notations do not support well the expression of quality information relating to business processes. Organizations are interested in the capturing of quality information for quality improvement of business processes and supporting IT systems. We are developing an approach to capture quality information comprehensively within business process models. In contrast to existing approaches, our notation allows the capturing of a broad range of quality characteristics as well as detailed attributes and measures. The approach is implemented as an extension of a CASE tool. Moreover, we discuss lessons learned from the application of the approach to a business process from practice.
Autopsy consent practice at US teaching hospitals: results of a national survey.

BACKGROUND Autopsy rates continue to fall despite the enduring benefit of the procedure to families and medical science, yet there are few data about the consent process itself. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the current practice of obtaining autopsy consent, by assessing the consent forms currently in use, the knowledge and attitudes of chief residents on the procedure, and the expert opinion of pathologists in those institutions. DESIGN Cross-sectional survey. SETTINGS AND PARTICIPANTS One hundred twenty-seven US teaching hospitals. RESULTS Of all autopsy consent forms we surveyed, 84.7% contained 7 of 10 elements recommended by the College of American Pathologists. Only 7.1% of institutions supplied educational materials for the physician, as recommended by the College of American Pathologists. Overall, 50.1% of chief residents reported deficiencies in their knowledge of the autopsy procedure. Correspondingly, greater than 74.5% felt that educational materials would be beneficial for physicians and the family. Finally, 93.3% of chief residents believed that a limited autopsy should be offered to families, while 68 (90%) of 76 pathologists at these institutions believed that limited autopsies are an unsatisfactory alternative to the complete procedure. CONCLUSIONS Chief residents at US teaching hospitals reported substantial deficiencies in their knowledge about autopsy and desire more training on the consent process. Autopsy consent forms are often lacking information that might help physicians and families in making an educated choice about autopsy. Teaching institutions need to reevaluate the training for the autopsy consent practice.
Synaptic Integration in Tuft Dendrites of Layer 5 Pyramidal Neurons: A New Unifying Principle

Fine Dendrites Fire Differently The pyramidal neuron is the basic computational unit in the brain cortex. Its distal tuft dendrite is heavily innervated by horizontal fibers coursing through cortical layer-I providing long-range corticocortical and thalamocortical associational input. Larkum et al. (p. 756) investigated whether the apical tuft dendrites of layer-5 neocortical pyramidal neurons, like basal dendrites, generate n-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) spikes using two-photon–guided direct dendritic recording, glutamate uncaging, and modeling. NMDA spikes could be evoked in the distal tuft dendrites, while Ca2+ spikes could be triggered at the bifurcation points. Block of the hyperpolarization-activated current enhanced these NMDA spikes. Thus, the generation of NMDA spikes is a general principle of thin, basal, and tuft dendrites. Thin tuft and basal dendrites of pyramidal neurons use N-methyl-d-aspartate spikes to sum up synaptic inputs in semi-independent compartments. Tuft dendrites are the main target for feedback inputs innervating neocortical layer 5 pyramidal neurons, but their properties remain obscure. We report the existence of N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) spikes in the fine distal tuft dendrites that otherwise did not support the initiation of calcium spikes. Both direct measurements and computer simulations showed that NMDA spikes are the dominant mechanism by which distal synaptic input leads to firing of the neuron and provide the substrate for complex parallel processing of top-down input arriving at the tuft. These data lead to a new unifying view of integration in pyramidal neurons in which all fine dendrites, basal and tuft, integrate inputs locally through the recruitment of NMDA receptor channels relative to the fixed apical calcium and axosomatic sodium integration points.
Functionally distinct melanocyte populations revealed by reconstitution of hair follicles in mice

Hair follicle reconstitution analysis was used to test the contribution of melanocytes or their precursors to regenerated hair follicles. In this study, we first confirmed the process of chimeric hair follicle regeneration by both hair keratinocytes and follicular melanocytes. Then, as first suggested from the differential growth requirements of epidermal skin melanocytes and non‐cutaneous or dermal melanocytes, we confirmed the inability of the latter to be involved as follicular melanocytes to regenerate hair follicles during the hair reconstitution assay. This clear functional discrimination between non‐cutaneous or dermal melanocytes and epidermal melanocytes suggests the presence of two different melanocyte cell lineages, a finding that might be important in the pathogenesis of melanocyte‐related diseases and melanomas.
Quality Assurance in the Department of Pediatrics

A continuous quality improvement program can provide the means through which medical organiza tions can guide their activities. This article illustrates how a pediatrics department in an urban medical center incorporated continuous quality improvement into the management of health services. Key elements of the Quality Assurance program included the orga nization and facilities in the department of pediatrics, important processes related to patient care, and out come measures. If a structure is established that al lows participation in decision-making and mutual ad justment, trained professionals can perform up to their standards and those standards of their peers. Involvement of physicians in the design of quality management programs and other administrative strategies offer an opportunity to develop a working formula for ongoing success.
Allometry of hummingbird lifting performance

SUMMARY Vertical lifting performance in 67 hummingbird species was studied across a 4000 m elevational gradient. We used the technique of asymptotic load-lifting to elicit maximum sustained muscle power output during loaded hovering flight. Our analysis incorporated direct measurements of maximum sustained load and simultaneous wingbeat kinematics, together with aerodynamic estimates of mass-specific mechanical power output, all within a robust phylogenetic framework for the Trochilidae. We evaluated key statistical factors relevant to estimating slopes for allometric relationships by performing analyses with and without phylogenetic information, and incorporating species-specific measurement error. We further examined allometric relationships at different elevations because this gradient represents a natural experiment for studying physical challenges to animal flight mechanics. Maximum lifting capacity (i.e. vertical force production) declined with elevation, but was either isometric or negatively allometric with respect to both body and muscle mass, depending on elevational occurrence of the corresponding taxa. Maximum relative muscle power output exhibited a negative allometry with respect to muscle mass, supporting theoretical predictions from muscle mechanics.
Design of a silicon photomultiplier based compact radiation detector for Homeland Security screening

Next-generation compact radiation detector was studied for more accurate measurement of radiation and improvement of reliability of the detector with purpose of developing of radiation protection technology and military application. The radiation detector which was used previously had some limitations due to the bulky size, limited range and the environment of radiation measurement. On the other hand, the compact radiation detector under this study which has adopted the silicon photomultiplier seems to be suitable for the application because of its physical excellence which are characterized by its small size, high sensitivity and durability. Accordingly, a SiPM based Scintillation detector has been made as a part of basic study of military radiation detector development. The detector has been tested for obtaining the operating characteristics of a sensor and analyzed with variation of parameter values and the efficiency of detection in accordance with the factor of measurement environment of radiation. The two SiPM based Scintillation detectors with the LYSO, BGO and CsI:Tl scintillator were made and the detectors were analyzed with the variation of operating characteristics as reverse bias, operating temperature and high magnetic field that are depend on environmental changes of radiation measurement. The results of three scintillators for a photon count rate and spectra were compared with each other. It was found that there are variations of radiation detection which are characterized by reverse bias, temperature and high magnetic field. Also, It was found that there were the 11.9 % for the LYSO, 15.5 % for BGO and 13.5 % for CsI:Tl energy resolution using array SiPM, and 18 % for CsI:Tl energy resolution using single SiPM, respectively when we measured energy resolution of 511keV for 22Na. The results demonstrate the potential of SiPM based compact radiation detector to be used widely for Homeland Security applications.
Affect Cognition and Social Behavior: New Evidence and Integrative Attempts

One of the most time-honored issues in the history of psychology is addressed in this book: the links among the three components of the ancient "trilogy of the mind" - affect, cognition and conation. Affect is now one of the more prominent areas of investigation in contemporary psychology, especially in its relationship with cognition. This book contrasts and integrates some of the most promising theories and research dealing with the cognitive and behavioural implications of affective states. In particular, it deals with the emerging pluralism and diversity of theorizing about affect, as well as the growing number of practical implications of this work. The focus here is on modern trends and developments, considered within the relevant historical context.
Causes and outcome predictors of traumatic brain injury among emergency admitted pediatric patients at Cairo University Hospitals.

BACKGROUND Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a major global public health problem with significant morbidity and mortality, especially among the pediatric age group. Researchers are eager to find new diagnostic tools that might be useful for outcome prediction of pediatric TBI. OBJECTIVE This study aims to determine the causes of TBI in pediatric patients admitted to the Emergency Hospital at Cairo University, and monitor and evaluate some clinical and laboratory markers for outcome prediction. PATIENTS AND METHODS A hospital-based prospective study was carried out; all pediatric patients with TBI admitted to the New Emergency Hospital during 6 months (November 2014-April 2015) were enrolled in the study. A total of 67 pediatric patients with TBI were examined and investigated upon admission and followed prospectively till discharge or death. Probing questions were used to collect data on child abuse and neglect. The Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) was used for clinical assessment, followed by cerebral tomography (computed tomography scan). Routine laboratory investigations, arterial blood gases (pH, PCO2, and HCO3), and coagulopathy tests (prothrombin time, prothrombin concentration, international normalized ratio, and D-dimer) were performed on days 1 and 7. RESULTS Fall from height, traffic accidents, and direct head trauma represented 38.8, 34.3, and 21% of head trauma etiologies, respectively. Child neglect and abuse was detected in 62.7 and 18% of patients, respectively. Values of GCS at days 1 and 7 were significantly higher among survivors (P<0.001). D-dimer levels on days 1 and 7 were significantly higher among nonsurvivors (P<0.001). Receiver operating characteristics curve analysis showed the discriminative ability of D-dimer level on day 1 in predicting mortality with 89.3% sensitivity and 76.9% specificity. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS Falls, traffic accidents, and direct head trauma were the most frequent etiologies for TBI in emergency admitted pediatric patients. Child neglect and abuse were the most prominent predisposing factors. GCS and D-dimer were the most important clinical and laboratory markers predicting mortality. Further large-scale studies are needed to determine the prevalence of TBIs and to prove the prognostic role of the D-dimer.
Plasma adiponectin and gastric cancer.

BACKGROUND Recently, increased body weight has been associated with an increased risk of cancers at multiple specific sites, including gastric cancer. Adiponectin is a peptide hormone secreted by adipose tissue, affecting the proliferation and insulin sensitivity of various types of cells. Moreover, the circulating level of adiponectin has been reported to be inversely related to body mass index. METHODS Fasting plasma levels of adiponectin were determined in 75 patients with gastric cancer and 52 healthy controls using an ELISA. In these patients, we analyzed the association between plasma adiponectin level and gastric cancer risk as well as various clinicopathologic characteristics. RESULTS Plasma adiponectin level was significantly lower in patients with gastric cancer than in healthy controls (9.1 +/- 6.2 versus 13.3 +/- 9.4 ng/mL, P < 0.01) and showed a significant modest inverse relation with the gastric cancer (odds ratio, 0.92; 95% confidence interval, 0.85-0.97; adjusted odds ratio, 0.89; 95% confidence interval, 0.84-0.95], although body mass index was not different. In addition, adiponectin level was extremely low in patients with upper gastric cancers (upper, 5.5 +/- 4.1 ng/mL; middle, 9.7 +/- 6.4 ng/mL; lower, 10.7 +/- 4.1 ng/mL; P = 0.012). Furthermore, adiponectin level tended to decrease as the tumor stage increased (stage I, 9.9 +/- 6.9 ng/mL; stage II, 8.7 +/- 5.5 ng/mL; stage III, 8.6 +/- 4.1 ng/mL; stage IV, 5.2 +/- 6.2 ng/mL; P = 0.34). Interestingly, in 32 patients with undifferentiated cancer, serum adiponectin showed a negative correlation with pathologic findings such as tumor size, depth of invasion, as well as tumor stage (P < 0.05), but no correlation in the remaining 43 patients with differentiated cancer. CONCLUSIONS Our results suggest that a low plasma adiponectin level is associated with an increased risk for gastric cancer and raise the possibility that adiponectin has a potential role in the progression of gastric cancer, especially in undifferentiated type cancers in the upper stomach.
Toward a Generalization and a Reformulation of Goods in SAT - Preliminary Report

Learning useful information when solving SAT or CSP problems to speed up a tree-search approaches, is one of the main explored tracks in various works. Such information are known as goods and nogoods and they aim to forbid to repetitively visit the same parts of the search space. Unfortunately and unlike nogoods, the exploitation of goods is limited to tree-search approaches based on the structural properties of the problem. In this paper, we propose to generalize and reformulate structural goods under SAT. We also propose a learning scheme of general goods and show their integration in a DPLL-like procedure.
Mind the Gap: Evidences from Gender Differences in Scores in Brazil

There is always been a claim that: "boys are good at counting, and girls are good at reading". Analysis of the data on the gender difierences in mathematics achievement up to the present indicates that females are not consistently under-performing relative to males. Guiso, Monte, Sapienza and Singales (2008) analyzed data for 40 difierent counties and showed that culture explains most of the difierence in maths, at least. Also, the gap in mathematics scores between boys and girls virtually disappears in countries with high levels of sexual equality. In this paper we want to investigate the gender score gap using data from Entrance Test Scores for Universidade Federal de Pernambuco (UFPE) in Brazil. Our results show that in fact, the gender gap in scores varies across subjects and also across quantiles of the conditional score distribution. Boys may show an advantage in Math, but the advantage is lower as we control for family background and academic variables. This shows that girls disadvantage in math may be in fact related to family background and cultural factors, as conflrming the results by Guiso, Monte, Sapienza and Singales (2008). Girls have an advantage when it comes to language, and to some extent to Portuguese, conflrming the results found on the international literature that girls out-perform boys in reading and writing.
Objectieve beoordeling van spraakproblemen bij sprekers met dysartrie

Het onderzoek en de behandeling van neurogene spraakstoornissen is gebaat bij het gebruik van betrouwbare onderzoeksmaten en -methodes. In recente jaren zijn nieuwe technieken en methodes ontwikkeld die de differentiaaldiagnose, behandeling, en voortgangsmonitoring van spraakstoornissen kunnen ondersteunen. In het kader van het toepassen van evidence-based practice in de klinische praktijk zijn objectieve meetmethodes meer dan welkom. In deze tutorial wordt een aantal methodes behandeld die breed toepasbaar zijn en een lage gebruiksdrempel hebben. Deze methodes zijn in eerste instantie toegespitst op dysartrie, maar zouden ook toegepast kunnen worden bij het onderzoek naar andere taal- en spraakstoornissen. In de tutorial wordt het systematisch en quasi-automatisch meten van verstaanbaarheid, spreeksnelheid, articulatiesnelheid, en maximale prestatietaken besproken. Voor elk van deze methodes geldt dat deze door logopedisten en onderzoekers uitgevoerd kunnen worden met behulp van gemakkelijk beschikbare of open-source programma's. Daarnaast wordt in dit artikel een overzicht gegeven van een aantal recent ontwikkelde experimentele onderzoeksmethodologieen die spraakvariabiliteit meten, als kwantitatieve beoordeling van spraakproblemen. Aangezien afwijkingen in de precieze controle van kinematische bewegingen de belangrijkste stoornis is in dysartrie, is het meten van variabiliteit en stabiliteit gedurende spraak een uitstekende manier om spraakmotorcontrole in dysartrie te bestuderen. Hoewel deze methodologieen op het gebied van technische implementatie en validiteit nog werk behoeven, hebben zij de potentie om als klinisch waardevol instrument gebruikt te worden in de logopedische praktijk.