Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
BLOCKCHAIN: How the implementation of blockchain is affected by, and affects, business models

The world is becoming more and more digitalized, and technologies are emerging and being developed continuously. Some of these technologies are considered to have disruptive potential, whereby it is of importance that companies keep themselves updated with the ongoing changes. One technology with an ongoing hype is called “Blockchain”; however, it is not only believed to be an occasional hype but also to possibly be disruptive and to have great potential within most industries. Nevertheless, blockchain is a novel technology that still is immature and uncertain, and it is not yet clear how it will develop and affect companies. The purpose of this study is, therefore, to analyse how the implementation of blockchain is affected by business model environments, and how it, in turn, affects business model canvases. The research was conducted in collaboration with “Coboom”, a joint project with CGI Sweden AB, Stena AB, and Volvo Cars AB, based on two frameworks; the business model environment framework and the business model canvas. The first one investigating which external factors within the environment of the companies that affect the implementation of blockchain in the different companies and industries, and the latter which factors, and how these factors, will be impacted by the implementation of the technology. Since the area is novel and previous literature lacks information concerning it, a qualitative study with interviews was used in order to gather information for the study. The findings indicate that the implementation of blockchain will be affected by regulatory trends, technology trends, and industry forces, while it, in turn, is expected to primarily affect the key partners and key activities seen from the company-side, and the customer segments and value propositions from the customer-side. Blockchain is however still under development, making it an interesting area for future research.
IS IT THE EXCEPTION OR THE RULE? DAILY CO-OCCURRENCE OF PHYSICAL, SEXUAL, AND PSYCHOLOGICAL PARTNER VIOLENCE IN A 90-DAY STUDY OF SUBSTANCE-USING, COMMUNITY WOMEN.

OBJECTIVE This study aims to describe the daily co-occurrence of physical, sexual, and psychological intimate partner violence (IPV) among substance-using, community-based women currently experiencing IPV. METHODS A micro-longitudinal study design was used to collect data daily from 49 women for 90 days. RESULTS On the majority of days (62%), no IPV occurred; 27% of days were characterized by psychological IPV alone, followed by the co-occurrence of psychological and physical IPV (6% of IPV days). Results of person-level analyses showed comparable sized correlations between the proportion of days with physical and sexual IPV and the proportion of days with physical and psychological IPV. However, results of day-level analyses revealed that the association between physical and psychological IPV was much stronger than the association between physical and sexual IPV; Physical IPV was 64 times more likely to occur on days when psychological IPV occurred. CONCLUSIONS Results revealed new information about physical, sexual, and psychological IPV experiences and demonstrate the utility of a micro-longitudinal design among this high risk population. Implications for practice, future research, and the development of preventive interventions are noted, underscoring the importance of psychological IPV and the range of IPV experiences among women.
The isolation, characterization, and identification of a novel species of bacterium in the Enterobacteriaceae family from Kephart Prong, Great Smoky Mountains National Park

The purpose of this study was to examine a single bacterial species isolated from Great Smoky Mountains Nation Park (GSMNP), characterize its growth requirements, and identify it down to the species level. A polyphasic approach that examined phenotypic, genotypic, and phylogenetic characteristics was used. Phenotypic analysis revealed that the isolate is Gram-negative, rod-shaped, non-motile, oxidase negative, catalase positive, and grows in the presence and absence of oxygen. Growth was observed at temperatures ranging from 4oC to 37oC, with optimum growth at 30oC based on visual observation of colony mass. The pH range for growth was pH7-9, with optimum growth at pH9 based on visual observation of colony mass. The isolate can tolerate up to 1% NaCl in the nutrient media. Genotypic analysis utilizing 16S rDNA sequences and whole genome sequencing (WGS) identified the isolate as a member of the order “Enterobacteriales” and the family Enterobacteriaceae. Phylogenetic analysis supported the isolate’s position in both taxa, but did not cluster the isolate with any specific genera. On the basis of phenotypic, genotypic, and phylogenetic properties, the isolate LD2 represents a novel species of a new genus.
Tackling User Research Challenges within the Finance Industry

We present a case study illustrating how a user experience (UX) team performs user research in the finance industry. In particular, we focus on the impact of salespeople and financial professionals on how the research is conducted. Challenges stemming from this--such as recruitment, time constraints, and conflicting expectations--and potential ways to mitigate them are discussed. Our work contributes to an understanding of how to do research in time-sensitive, high pressure environments while also working with gatekeepers to accessing users.
Credit Distribution: A Graph-Based Approach to Extract Product Description Words

In this paper, we proposed a method called "Credit Distribution" to extract product entities and features from Chinese customer reviews. Given several seed words, the system can discover new entity words and feature words appeared in the corpus. Quite different from the previous work, the proposed method first draws the graph of words in the corpus and then distributes the credit from the given seed words based on the graphpsilas topology structure. Finally, high ranked words are extracted. Our experiment results show that the method proposed here is highly effective.
Continuous Takagi–Sugeno's Models: Reduction of the Number of LMI Conditions in Various Fuzzy Control Design Technics

Fuzzy models of the Takagi-Sugeno type enable representation of a wide class of nonlinear models. Conditions about their stabilization can be derived systematically. Usually these conditions are written as linear matrix inequality (LMI) problems. In this paper, we use a collection of properties concerning matrices to extend the area of solutions involving the feedback control laws. We will work out with continuous fuzzy models, and supply results about the stabilization, the regulator problem, and also Hinfin control. Solutions based on a reduced number of decision variables, implying a reduced number of LMI conditions, are also proposed. We show that a good tradeoff can been obtained.
Alpha-fetoprotein expression is a potential prognostic marker in hepatocellular carcinoma.

AIM To characterize the alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) positive and negative hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) samples. METHODS Thirty-seven paraffin-embedded human HCC samples were analyzed by immunohistochemistry for the following antigens: AFP, beta-catenin, p53, CD44, MSH-2, MLH-1, and HNF-4. The tumors were divided into two groups based on the AFP expression. The immunophenotypic data and important clinical parameters were studied between the two groups. RESULTS Twenty-one of the thirty-seven examined HCCs were AFP positive. Seven with nuclear p53 staining were AFP positive, while seven tumors with nuclear beta-catenin staining were AFP negative. CD44 staining and high histological tumor grade were more frequent among the AFP-positive HCCs. The other immunophenotypical and clinical parameters did not show statistically significant difference in their distribution between the AFP positive and negative samples. CONCLUSION AFP expression in HCC correlates with unfavorable prognostic factors, while nuclear beta-catenin positivity is more common among the AFP-negative liver tumors. This observation supports the microarray data on in vivo human tumors.
Does Eating Garlic Lower Cholesterol?

TO THE EDITOR: The recent meta-analysis by Warshafsky [1] concludes that garlic, in an amount approximating one half to one clove per day, decreased total serum cholesterol levels by about 9% in the groups studied. If valid, this could be an important advance, but we have several important concerns. First, the criteria for including and excluding primary trials were established after the data sere extracted and reviewed. A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial [2] with 33 patients that showed no cholesterol-lowering effect of garlic was excluded because it did not satisfy a seemingly arbitrary inclusion criterion: a cholesterol level greater than 200 mg/dL in more than 75% of patients. Second, two other relevant randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials [3] with crossover designs in 85 patients found no difference in serum cholesterol levels between patients in the treatment and placebo arms. The authors excluded these trials because the published report did not contain the initial and final cholesterol values, which are necessary to calculate a difference between groups in the change in cholesterol levels; the missing data should have been obtained. Third, the sensitivity analysis, which combines eight noncontrolled trials with the five trials used in the primary analysis, assumes that hypercholesterolemic patients would not improve if left untreated and uses the pretreatment mean cholesterol levels as a proxy control for control group performance. However, a decrease in cholesterol level within a group selected for high initial levels can occur by regression to the mean, even in the absence of intervention, as shown by a trial included in the meta-analysis [4] in which serum cholesterol decreased by 12% in both the treatment and control groups. Thus, the uncontrolled observations in the sensitivity analysis add little to the proposition that garlic is a hypolipidemic agent. Our final concern is the overall quality of the primary trials. Specifically, we were disturbed that two of the five trials [5, 6] appeared in a journal supplement sponsored by a pharmaceutical company that manufactures garlic extract.
Enabling Innovation in Complex Welfare Service Systems

This paper explores the potential for innovation in welfare services. Using the complexity lens, the paper presents a theoretically founded basis for enabling innovation in complex public-private welfare service systems. The empirical data was collected by conducting semi-structured interviews with leading office holders responsible for social services in the City of Helsinki (Finland) and executive managers of social services producer organizations. As a result, this paper presents and discusses pro-innovation conditions for innovations in welfare services. Pro-innovation conditions consist of four dimensions: 1) creating trust, 2) increasing communication responsiveness, 3) utilising connectivity and interdependencies, and 4) pursuing diversity. This paper claims that the interaction processes have an unknown potetial that can be translated into a resource for improving innovation performance in welfare services. The paper also presents research and managerial implications. It is argued that complexity thinking opens up potential for the movement of thought in innovation research. One avenue for future research could be to get more deeply understanding why some organizations are able to be more responsive to evolving innovations than others. In order to answer this question, we suggest elaborating the consequences the conventional management and administrative activities may have on innovation in complex welfare service systems. The paper reflects empirical findings on the literature of innovation and complexity, and thereby might open new insights for practitioners to interpret their own innovation environment. One of the most important issue linked to innovation management is the acceptance of the paradox of “being in charge but not in control”. Instead of equaling management with the elimination of uncertainty related to innovation processes, management should be seen consisting of activities that have effects on ongoing interaction processes within the complex welfare service system. These effects can be anticipated, but not fully known. We suggest that managing innovation in complex welfare service systems require the ability to articulate emerging themes, to stand “co-opetition” states of diversity, to acknowledge the boundaries of rational thinking and resist the urge to rapidly draw conclusions, and reflect on one’s own behavior and its consequences.
Vulnerability as a Concept for Health Systems Research

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Possible functional role of NSPs in cancer

Since the discovery of several distinct yet similar cDNA clones encoding novel structural proteins an initiative was taken to investigate their role in tumorigenesis. Sequence analysis revealed that these cDNAs correspond to locus HCMOGT-1 located at chromosome 17p11.2. A total of four isoforms had been isolated (1). Sequence homology revealed slight similarity to SMC/SbcC ATPase motifs for all isoforms and a CH domain (Calponin-like) (2,3) in particular for the two 3B isoforms. Sequence analysis of the 3B isoforms, predict a carboxyl terminus with a potential Calcium-dependent actin-binding domain. Expression of NSP 5a3a was high in certain cancer cell lines in-vitro while in others levels were low. Interestingly, in normal tissues, NSP5a3a was found highly expressed in testicular tissue while very low to null in other body tissues (1). In this study we find most importantly, through siRNA silencing of HCMOGT-1 and proteomic analysis we show that nucleolar phosphoprotein B23, which is involved in mitosis, interacts with both NSP 5a3a and 5a3b, supporting early assumptions of the potential role of these NSP isoforms in cell division for cancer cells and lastly through FACS analysis and siRNA silencing of HCMOGT-1 and NPM1 we elucidate possible roles of NSP 5a3a and 5a3b in cell proliferation and apoptosis with respect to B23.
Design and pilot implementation of an evaluation tool assessing professionalism, communication and collaboration during a unique global health elective

Background: Global health electives (GHEs) allow medical students to experience different health systems, but there are few instruments to assess performance, prompting us to adapt and pilot such an instrument. Methods: A tool to evaluate professionalism, communication and collaboration was developed and piloted on GHE students. The main outcome measure was Faculty assessment of students, but peer assessment and self-assessment were also performed and semi-structured interviews with students were used for corroboration. The 31 items were rated using a Likert scale and marks before and after the GHE were compared. Results: The tool was sensitive to change. Students improved in each competency, the greatest change being in collaboration, which moved from 4.5/7 to 5.44/7. Qualitative analyses supported observed changes. Conclusions: Our tool, adapted from accreditation bodies’ requirements, appeared to be able to discern changes in acquisition of skills in several important competencies in medical students participating in a GHE.
The structure and function of the avian immune system.

Among the avian species, the immune system of the chicken has been studied most extensively. There are many similarities between the general immune mechanisms of mammals and chickens. There are also important differences. Birds respond to antigenic stimulation by generating antibodies as well as cellular immunity. There are three principal classes of antibodies in birds i.e., IgM, IgG (also called IgY) and IgA. Antibody diversity is achieved by gene conversion. T cells are the main effector cells of cellular immunity. The avian T cells differentiate into two distinct pathways i.e., alpha/beta and gamma/delta. Avian T cell diversity is likely generated through combinatorial and junctional mechanisms similar to the mechanisms that operate in mammalian T cell receptors. As in mammals, avian T cells engage in helper and cytotoxic functions that are MHC restricted. The innate effector mechanisms include those mediated by natural killer (NK) cells and antibody dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC). Recently, genes of several avian cytokines have been cloned and expressed. A number of naturally occurring viruses cause immunosuppression in chickens. There is much current interest in understanding the mechanisms of immunosuppression and developing strategies to enhance immune responsiveness in commercial poultry.
Melatonin promotes seed germination under high salinity by regulating antioxidant systems, ABA and GA4 interaction in cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.)

Although previous studies have found that melatonin can promote seed germination, the mechanisms involved in perceiving and signaling melatonin remain poorly understood. In this study, it was found that melatonin was synthesized during cucumber seed germination with a peak in melatonin levels occurring 14 hr into germination. This is indicative of a correlation between melatonin synthesis and seed germination. Meanwhile, seeds pretreated with exogenous melatonin (1 μm) showed enhanced germination rates under 150 mm NaCl stress compared to water‐pretreated seeds under salinity stress. There are two apparent mechanisms by which melatonin alleviated salinity‐induced inhibition of seed germination. Exogenous melatonin decreased oxidative damage induced by NaCl stress by enhancing gene expression of antioxidants. Under NaCl stress, compared to untreated control, the activities of antioxidant enzymes including superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and peroxidase (POD) were significantly increased by approximately 1.3–5.0‐fold, with a concomitant 1.4–2.0‐fold increase of CsCu‐ZnSOD, CsFe‐ZnSOD, CsCAT, and CsPOD in melatonin‐pretreated seeds. Melatonin also alleviated salinity stress by affecting abscisic acid (ABA) and gibberellin acid (GA) biosynthesis and catabolism during seed germination. Compared to NaCl treatment, melatonin significantly up‐regulated ABA catabolism genes (e.g., CsCYP707A1 and CsCYP707A2, 3.5 and 105‐fold higher than NaCl treatment at 16 hr, respectively) and down‐regulated ABA biosynthesis genes (e.g., CsNECD2, 0.29‐fold of CK2 at 16 hr), resulting in a rapid decrease of ABA content during the early stage of germination. At the same time, melatonin positively up‐regulated GA biosynthesis genes (e.g., GA20ox and GA3ox, 2.3 and 3.9‐fold higher than NaCl treatment at 0 and 12 hr, respectively), contributing to a significant increase of GA (especially GA4) content. In this study, we provide new evidence suggesting that melatonin alleviates the inhibitory effects of NaCl stress on germination mainly by regulating the biosynthesis and catabolism of ABA and GA4.
A Cross-Layer based Energy Efficient Cluster Head Selection Model for Wireless SensorNetwork Ms

Due to rapid growth of the wireless based application services; demand for wireless sensor networks has increased that use battery more efficiently. In WSN enhancing the life span of network depends on the energy dissipation of the sensor devices. Reducing the energy dissipation of sensor devices will improve the lifetime and device failure which help in better connectivity and coverage of sensor network. There has been various approach that has been developed to improve energy efficiency of sensor network among that clustering is a significant technique that help in improving the network lifetime by reducing the energy consumption but the issues with existing methodology is the energy inefficiency in selecting the cluster head which result in loss of connectivity thus reducing the life time of network. To overcome this, the author proposes a cross layer design for cluster head selection based on connectivity of node. The experimental result shows that the proposed CL_LEACH perform better than existing LEACH in term of network lifetime, node decay rate and network communication overhead.
Aspergillus Immunohistochemistry of Culture-proven Fungal Tissue Isolates Shows High Cross-reactivity

Increased use of immunosuppressive drugs has broadened the range and increased the incidence of invasive fungal diseases. Successful therapy relies on early diagnosis; however, fungal organisms show overlapping morphology on histologic sections. As commercially available fungal immunohistochemistry (IHC) has been validated for crossreactivity with few other fungi, we ran Aspergillus and Candida IHCs on formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue of fungal cases. The cases had also been cultured from fresh tissue submitted to the clinical microbiology laboratory. Commercially available polyclonal and monoclonal Aspergillus and Candida IHCs were run with antigen retrieval on 16 culture-confirmed fungal cases (9 Aspergillus, 2 Candida, 2 Bipolaris, 1 Fusarium, 1 Curvularia, and 1 Rhizopus). Three additional cases, which stained positive for Zygomycete IHC at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which had not been confirmed by culture, were also tested against the antibodies. Preabsorption controls with formalin-fixed fungi were run on 2 cases. Fifteen of the 16 culture-confirmed cases stained with the polyclonal Aspergillus antibody, whereas only 7 of 14 cases stained with the monoclonal Aspergillus antibody. Sensitivities and specificities for the polyclonal and monoclonal Aspergillus antibodies were 100% and 29%, and 43% and 14%, respectively. Two Zygomycete IHC Centers for Disease Control and Prevention cases stained strongly positive for monoclonal Aspergillus. Although Aspergillus cultures were often correctly identified on IHC, false positive staining was seen with both polyclonal and monoclonal Aspergillus antibodies. The number of culture-confirmed Candida cases was too low to adequately evaluate sensitivity. More accurate and reliable fungal IHCs, including those for Zygomycete staining, are needed.
Microemulsion-based synthesis of porous zinc ferrite nanorods and its application in a room-temperature ethanol sensor

Porous zinc ferrite (ZnFe2O4) nanorods with a diameter of around 50 nm and a length of several micrometers have been synthesized by a microemulsion-based method in combination with calcination at 500 °C. The morphology and structure of the ZnFe2O4 nanorods and its precursor (ZnFe2(C2O4)3 nanorods) were systematically characterized by x-ray powder diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, field emission scanning electron microscopy and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. The formation mechanism for the porous ZnFe2O4 nanorods is also discussed. Moreover, the porous ZnFe2O4 nanorods were applied in a room-temperature ethanol sensor and exhibited much better sensing performance than ZnFe2O4 nanoparticles.