Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Personal information concerns and provision in social network sites: Interplay between secure preservation and true presentation

Encouraging users of social network sites (SNS) to actively provide personal information is vital if SNS are to prosper, but privacy concerns have hindered users from giving such information. Previous research dealing with privacy concerns has studied mostly worries about information misuse, focusing on the protection aspects of privacy. By adopting an interpersonal conception of privacy and communication privacy management theory, this study offers a new way of understanding privacy concerns by examining the social and presentational aspects of privacy. It examines privacy concerns in terms not only of others' misuse but of others' misunderstanding and personal information in terms not only of identity but of self‐presentational information. Furthermore, it investigates the ways in which information and social risks inherent in SNS influence privacy concerns. A structural equation modeling analysis of a cross‐sectional survey of 396 Facebook users finds that longer usage does not alleviate the impact of information risk on either concern, that a greater proportion of offline friends among one's SNS friends aggravates the impact of social risk on both concerns, and that concerns about information misuse affect the provision only of identity information, whereas concerns about information misunderstanding affect the provision of both identity and self‐presentational information.
Community-Acquired Pneumonia in Adults.

BACKGROUND The clinical spectrum of community-acquired pneumonia ranges from infections that can be treated on an outpatient basis, with 1% mortality, to those that present as medical emergencies, with a mortality above 40%. METHODS This article is based on pertinent publications and current guidelines retrieved by a selective search of the literature. RESULTS The radiological demonstration of an infiltrate is required for the differentiation of pneumonia from acute bronchitis regardless of whether the patient is seen in the outpatient setting or in the emergency room. For risk prediction, it is recommended that the CRB-65 criteria, unstable comorbidities, and oxygenation should be taken into account. Amoxicillin is the drug of choice for mild pneumonia; it should be given in combination with clavulanic acid if there are any comorbid illnesses. The main clinical concerns in the emergency room are the identification of acute organ dysfunction and the management of sepsis. Intravenous beta-lactam antibiotics should be given initially, in combination with a macrolide if acute organ dysfunction is present. The treatment should be continued for 5-7 days. Cardiovascular complications worsen the patient's prognosis and should be meticulously watched for. Structured followup care includes the follow-up of comorbid conditions and the initiation of recommended preventive measures such as antipneumococcal and anti-influenza vaccination, the avoidance of drugs that increase the risk, smoking cessation, and treatment of dysphagia, if present. CONCLUSION Major considerations include appropriate risk stratification and the implementation of a management strategy adapted to the degree of severity of the disease, along with the establishment of structured follow-up care and secondary prevention, especially for patients with comorbidities.
Stepwise evolutionary training strategies for hardware neural networks

Analog and mixed-signal implementations of artificial neural networks usually lack an exact numerical model due to the unavoidable device variations introduced during manufacturing and the temporal fluctuations in the internal analog signals. Evolutionary algorithms are particularly well suited for the training of such networks since they do not require detailed knowledge of the system to be optimized. In order to make best use of the high network speed, fast and simple training approaches are required. Within the scope of this thesis, a stepwise training approach has been devised that allows for the use of simple evolutionary algorithms to efficiently optimize the synaptic weights of a fast mixed-signal neural network chip. The training strategy is tested on a set of nine well-known classification benchmarks: the breast cancer, diabetes, heart disease, liver disorder, iris plant, wine, glass, E.coli, and yeast data sets. The obtained classification accuracies are shown to be more than competitive to those achieved by software-implemented neural networks and are comparable to the best reported results of other classification algorithms that could be found in literature for these benchmarks. The presented training method is readily suited for a parallel implementation and is fit for use in conjunction with a specialized coprocessor architecture that speeds up evolutionary algorithms by performing the time-consuming genetic operations within a configurable logic. This way, the proposed strategy can fully benefit from the speed of the neural hardware and thus provides efficient means for the training of large networks on the used mixed-signal chip for demanding real-world classification tasks.
Cyclooxygenase-2, P-glycoprotein-170 and drug resistance; is chemoprevention against multidrug resistance possible?

BACKGROUND It is generally accepted that P-glycoprotein 170 (MDR1/Pgp170) expression in breast tumors results in poor response to chemotherapy due to its ability to export chemotherapeutic agents. Studies indicate that the use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) may enhance the anti-tumor activity of cancer chemotherapeutic agents and reduce the risk of many cancers. The best known function of NSAIDs is to block the enzyme cyclooxygenase (Cox), the rate limiting enzyme in the conversion of arachidonic acid to prostaglandins. In this study we investigated whether expression of the inducible isoform of Cox (Cox-2) is linked with the multidrug resistance phenotype in breast cancer. METHODS Expression of Cox-2 and MDR1/Pgp170 was investigated in tumor specimens along with normal epithelium in breast cancer patients using immunohistochemisrty. Expression of Cox-2, MDR1/Pgp170, Protein Kinase C (PKC), and Activator Protein 1 (AP1) were investigated in a series of increasingly resistant human MCF-7 breast cancer cells compared to wild type using immunohistochemistry, Western blots, Northern blots, RT-PCR, and Southern blots. RESULTS Immunohistochemical analyses of human breast tumor specimens revealed a strong correlation between expression of Cox-2 and MDR1/Pgp170. In drug resistant cell lines that over-express MDR1/Pgp170 there was also significant up-regulation of Cox-2 expression. In addition, PKC and AP1 subunits c-Jun and c-Fos were also upregulated. We hypothesized that increased prostaglandin production by Cox-2 induces PKC and the expression of transcriptional factor c-Jun, which in turn, induces the expression of MDR1/Pgp170. CONCLUSION We propose that pretreatment with selective Cox-2 inhibitors may be useful in the prevention of multidrug resistance in response to cancer chemotherapy and should be further evaluated.
Paracetamol rektal – das postoperative Analgetikum der Wahl?

Zusammenfassung Paracetamol rektal ist das derzeit meist genutzte postoperative Analgetikum im Kindesalter in Deutschland. Wie in verschiedenen Studien gezeigt werden konnte, weist es jedoch nur eine geringe analgetische Potenz auf und erreicht auf Grund niedriger Bioverfügbarkeit in den zugelassenen Dosierungen (10-15 mg/kg KG) bei rektaler Anwendung keine effektiven Plasmaspiegel. Als Monoanalgetikum ist es daher in aller Regel in dieser Applikationsform in der postoperativen Phase unzureichend. Da die langsame rektale Resorption das Erreichen der maximalen Plasmakonzentration auf 2-3 Stunden hinauszögert, wird eine wirksame Therapie erschwert; Opioide können zudem nicht optimal titriert werden. Darüber hinaus wirkt Paracetamol kaum antiphlogistisch und überhaupt nicht spasmolytisch. Bei zu hoher Dosierung verursacht Paracetamol potenziell letale hepatotoxische Nebenwirkungen, weshalb die Tageshöchstdosierungen in Abhängigkeit vom Lebensalter auf 50-90 mg/kg KG begrenzt sind. Wenn man sich trotz fehlender antiinflammatorischer und spasmolytischer Aktivität für Paracetamol entscheidet, sollte die Wahl auf die effektivere und zuverlässigere perorale oder noch besser auf die intravenöse Applikationsform fallen. Ansonsten bieten sich in der postoperativen Phase als effektive und hervorragend steuerbare Schmerzmittel vom Nonopioidtyp das Analgetikum Metamizol oder auch die nonsteroidalen Analgetika an.
Voting-Based Directional Interpolation Method and Its Application to Still Color Image Demosaicking

In this paper, we present a novel color image demosaicking algorithm using a voting-based edge direction detection method and a directional weighted interpolation method. By introducing the voting strategy, the interpolation direction of the center missing color component can be determined accurately. Along the determined interpolation direction, the center missing color component is interpolated using the gradient weighted interpolation method by exploring the intra-channel gradient correlation of the neighboring pixels. As compared with the latest demosaicking algorithms, experiments show that the proposed algorithm provides superior performance in terms of both objective and subjective image qualities.
[Metabolic characterization of ovarian tumors with positron-emission tomography and F-18 fluorodeoxyglucose].

PURPOSE This study describes diagnostic accuracy of PET imaging in patients with ovarian tumours using histological diagnosis as gold standard. METHODS AND RESULTS Pet studies were performed in 19 patients who were scheduled to undergo exploratory surgery for a suspicious ovarian mass and in 5 patients with suspected recurrence. The PET data were analyzed visually and quantitatively and compared to the histologic findings. 6 patients had ovarian cancer, while in 13 patients a benign tumour was found including inflammatory processes in 4 cases. All malignant tumours showed an enhanced FDG uptake with the exception of one false-negative borderline carcinoma. 4 cases with inflammatory processes as well as endometrial and follicular cysts revealed a high FDG uptake. A successful localisation of a recurrent tumour was possible in 4 out of 5 cases. Disseminated peritoneal carcinomatosis in two patients could not be detected by PET. CONCLUSIONS Enhanced glucose metabolism of ovarian cancer enables PET diagnosis with a sensitivity of 83%. An intensive FDG uptake in inflammatory processes resulted in a specificity of only 54% in this study. The high sensitivity of PET for malignant tumours may be useful in the detection of recurrent ovarian cancer.
Assessment of bone density in the posterior maxilla based on Hounsfield units to enhance the initial stability of implants.

PURPOSE The poor bone quality that exists in the posterior maxilla is associated with lower initial stability and higher failure rates in implants. This study examined the bone densities of edentulous posterior maxillae by computed tomography (CT). MATERIALS AND METHODS Based on CT images, the voxel values representing implant replacement in the posterior maxillary regions of 30 patients were calculated in the range from 150 to 2,000 Hounsfield units (HU). The bone densities of these regions were categorized according to Misch's classification and compared among individuals and between sexes. RESULTS The average of the median individual CT values was 495 HU (95% confidence interval: 442-547 HU) and was significantly higher in males than in females. Most of the bone in the posterior maxillae was classified as D3 (350-850 HU) or D4 (150-350 HU) according to Misch's classification, comprising 50% and 32% of the entire regions, respectively. CONCLUSIONS More than 80% of the edentulous posterior maxillae consisted of porous cortical crest or no cortical bone according to CT, although the bone densities varied markedly among individuals. More detailed assessments of bone density may be useful to enhance initial stability of implants in the posterior maxilla.
Antiepileptic drugs patterns in elderly inpatients in a Brazilian tertiary center, Salvador, Brazil.

UNLABELLED Epilepsy is very prevalent among elderly inpatients and treatment is far from ideal. OBJECTIVE To analyze prescribing patterns of antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) for hospitalized elderly with epilepsy, their relations with comorbidities and comedications. METHOD We assessed prescription regimen of elderly patients that were under AED use for treatment of epileptic seizures, during hospitalization. One hundred and nine patients were enrolled. AED regimen was categorized into two groups: Group 1 defined as appropriate (carbamazepine, oxcarbazepine, valproic acid, gabapentin, clobazan and lamotrigine) and Group 2 as inappropriate (phenytoin and phenobarbital). RESULTS We found 73.4% of patients used inappropriate AEDs (p<0.001). Monotherapy was prescribed for 71.6% of patients. The most common comorbidity was hypertension. Potentially proconvulsant drugs as comedications were used for nearly half of patients. CONCLUSION Inappropriate AED therapy was commonly prescribed regimen for elderly inpatients. Some recommendations are discussed for a better care of elderly inpatients with epilepsy.
Gene delivery of Kir6.2/SUR2A in conjunction with pinacidil handles intracellular Ca2+ homeostasis under metabolic stress

Metabolic injury is a complex process affecting various tissues, with intracellular Ca2+ loading recognized as a common precipitating event leading to cell death. We have recently observed that cells overexpressing recombinant ATP‐sensitive K+ (KATP) channel subunits may acquire resistance against metabolic stress. To examine whether, under metabolic challenge, intracellular Ca2+ homeostasis can be maintained by an activator of channel proteins, we delivered Kir6.2 and SUR2A genes, which encode KATP channel subunits, into a somatic cell line lacking native KATP channels. Hypoxia‐reoxygenation was simulated by application and removal of the mitochondrial poison 2,4 dinitrophenol. Under such metabolic stress, Ca2+ loading was induced by Ca2+ influx during hypoxia and release of Ca2+ from intracellular stores during reoxygenation. Delivery of Kir6.2/SUR2A genes, in conjunction with the KATP channel activator pinacidil, prevented intracellular Ca2+ loading irrespective of whether the channel opener was applied throughout the duration of hypoxia‐reoxygenation or transiently during the hypoxic or reoxygenation stage. In all stages of injury, the effect of pinacidil was inhibited by the selective antagonist of KATP channel, 5‐hydroxydecanoate. The present study provides evidence that combined use of gene delivery and pharmacological targeting of recombinant proteins can handle intracellular Ca2+ homeostasis under hypoxia‐reoxygenation irrespective of the stage of the metabolic insult. —Jovanović, N. , Jovanović, S. , Jovanović, A. , Terzic, A. Gene delivery of Kir6.2/SUR2A in conjunction with pinacidil handles intracellular Ca2+ homeostasis under metabolic stress. FASEB J. 13, 923–929 (1999)
Experimental syphilis in the chimpanzee. Immunoglobulin class of early antibodies reactive with Treponema pallidum.

Previous studies in this laboratory of experimental syphilis in chimpanzees have established that the Fluorescent Treponemal Antibody-Absorption (FTAABS) test and other serological tests for syphilis become reactive after inoculation with Treponema pallidum (Kuhn, Brown, and Cox, in preparation). Samples of chimpanzee sera collected before inoculation and at regular intervals thereafter were available from these investigations. In the present study we used monospecific fluorescent antibody (FA) reagents to identify the immunoglobulins operative in the FTA-ABS test reactivity which developed following infection.
A perturbative clustering hyper-heuristic framework for the Danish railway system

A new signaling system in Denmark aims to ensure fast and reliable train operation, imposing very strict time limits on recovery plans. This makes it necessary to rethink the whole maintenance scheduling process. In the largest region of Denmark, the Jutland peninsula, there is a decentralized structure for maintenance planning, where the crew start their duties from diﬀerent locations rather than starting from a single depot. In this paper, we partition the Jutland problem into subregions before the scheduling phase, according to the tasks and crew locations. To undertake this region splitting, we propose a perturbative clustering hyper-heuristic framework. The framework improves an initial solution by reassigning outliers (those tasks that are far away) to a better cluster choice at each iteration while taking balanced crews workloads into account. The framework introduces ﬁve low-level heuristics and employs an adaptive choice function as a robust learning mechanism. The results of adaptive clustering hyper-heuristic are compared with two exact and heuristic assignment algorithms from the literature and with the random hyper-heuristic framework on 12 datasets. In comparison with the exact formulation, the proposed framework could obtain promis-ing results and solved the data instances up to 5000 number of tasks. In comparison with heuristic assignment and the random hyper-heuristic, the framework yielded approximately 11%, 27% and 10%,13% improvement on total distance and the maximum distance availability, respectively. Finally, to assess the closeness of the tasks within each cluster the compactness measure was compared across the three diﬀerent solutions.
Predictors of women's exercise maintenance after cardiac rehabilitation.

PURPOSE Less than 50% of persons who participate in cardiac rehabilitation (CR) programs maintain an exercise regimen for as long as 6 months after completion. This study was conducted to identify factors that predict women's exercise following completion of a CR program. METHODS In this prospective, descriptive study, a convenience sample of 60 women were recruited at completion of a phase II CR program. Exercise was measured using a heart rate wristwatch monitor over 3 months. Predictor variables collected at the time of the subjects' enrollment were age, body mass index, cardiac functional status, comorbidity, muscle or joint pain, motivation, mood state, social support, self-efficacy, perceived benefits or barriers, and prior exercise. RESULTS Of women, 25% did not exercise at all following completion of a CR program and only 48% of the subjects were exercising at 3 months. Different predictors were found of the various dimensions of exercise maintenance. Predictors of exercise frequency were comorbidity and instrumental social support. Instrumental social support was the only predictor of exercise persistence. Comorbidity was the only predictor of exercise intensity. The only predictor of the total amount of exercise was benefits or barriers. CONCLUSIONS Interventions aimed at increasing women's exercise should focus on increasing their problem-solving abilities to reduce barriers to exercise and increase social support by family and friends. Because comorbidity was a significant predictor of exercise, women should be encouraged to use exercise techniques that reduce impact on muscles and joints (eg, swimming) or exercising for short periods several times a day.
Decrypting a Stream Cipher Based on J-K Flop-Flops

Pless has proposed a stream cipher based on J–K flip-flops that uses 8 linear shift registers with feedback, having a combined length of 97 bits, 4 J–K flip-flops, and a 4-stage cycling counter. The cipher has 2.54 × 1051initial states (keys), and generates a presumably pseudorandom stream whose period is 1.52 × 1029bits. Despite these impressive statistics, it is computationally feasible to solve such a cipher with a known-plaintext attack, using as few as 15 characters
High-Precision Gestural Input for Immersive Large-Scale Distributed Virtual Environments

Translating user motion into seamless input is a key concern for virtual reality-based applications. The level of immersion stands or falls both on the accuracy and immediacy of motion sensing, which applies in particular to distributed virtual environments where users interact and collaborate with each other. However, integrating precise gestural input instead of pre-defined, triggered animations increases the overall complexity, inducing additional overhead and imposing further load and constraints upon the underlying networks. This paper discusses a motion sensing prototype system for high-precision gestural input comprising an array of three-dimensional sensor devices combined with a head-mounted display. Based on this prototype, we examine the fundamental implications and requirements for the design and operation of large-scale distributed virtual environments.
The Prognosis of Primary Percutaneous Coronary Intervention after One Year Clinical Follow Up

Objectives The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical outcomes, one year after primary percutaneous coronary intervention(PCI). Patients and Methods From September 2009 to March 2012, primary PCI was performed on 70 cases, and the data relating to their catheterization were recorded. Peri-interventional treatment data included PCI with drug-eluting or bare-metal stent or balloon angioplasty alone. Results The mean age of the patients was 61.34+11.31 years, and 72.9% of them were males. The ratios of patients with diabetes, hypertension and, hyperlipidemia were 61.4%, 71.4%, and 52.9% respectively. In clinical follow-up, total incidence of death was 4.3%, with no death occurring during 30 days. However, 3 patients died after one-year, of which one patient (1.4%) had cardiac problem and the other 2 (2.9%) died because of non-cardiac reasons. Target vessel revascularization, reinfarction within 30 days, and mechanical complication or stroke were not found in any of the patients. Patients with hypertension (6%) and those with LAD ST-elevation myocardial infarction (5%) died after one year (P= 0.263 and P= 0.319 respectively). However, no mortality was reported in patients with RCA and LCX ST-elevation myocardial infarction. Of subjects with multivessel disease, 7% died after one-year (P= 0.161), but there was no reported mortality in those with single vessel disease. Conclusions The prognosis was satisfactory in patients undergoing PCI after one year clinical follow up.
Revealing the dark side of traditional democracies in plurinational societies: the case of Catalonia and the Spanish ‘Estado de las Autonomías’

In this article, I will deal with some elements related to the analysis of theories of democracies and federalism in plurinational contexts. The paper highlights some flaws and shortcomings of traditional liberal democracies in these contexts and the challenge of establishing effective practices of a politics of recognition and constitutional accommodation of internal national pluralism (Section 1). Secondly, the paper analyses the case of Catalonia after the recent reform of its Statute of Autonomy (Constitutional Law) in 2006 and its relationship with the development of the Spanish Estado de las Autonomias. The Catalan case reveals some practical flaws and important difficulties in the political recognition and accommodation of internal national pluralism according to traditional decentralising patterns (Section 2). Finally, the article makes a number of concluding remarks relating the previously highlighted elements of the theory of democracy and federalism to the analysis of the Catalan case