Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Motion artifact removal using cascade adaptive filtering for ambulatory ECG monitoring system

A motion artifact removal method with a two-stage cascade LMS adaptive filter is proposed for an ambulatory ECG monitoring system. The first LMS stage consisting of analog feedback prevents the signal saturation to reduce the input dynamic range. An adaptive step-size LMS algorithm is introduced and employed for the second LMS stage. The adaptive step-size algorithm can achieve fast convergence to track large sudden motion artifact quickly, while preventing the distortion of the ECG component. The filtering performance is evaluated by the heart beat detection, measured by sensitivity (Se) and positive predictive value (+p), and the performance is increased by 9.8% and 6.48%, respectively, compared to the unfiltered signal at the worst case with -25dB SNR. The proposed motion artifact method is implemented on an ambulatory ECG monitoring module, and the real-time measurement shows a significant performance improvement.
Agent Server: Semantic Agent for Linked Data

The demo features Agent Server, a web platform allowing fully distributed and decentralized querying on the Web of Linked Data. It works under the REST principles, and is lightweight and provides a safe environment in which users can develop and deploy software agents for web computing and Semantic Web, independent of their own computing devices and can run indeﬁnitely. For this case study, We develop Nauti‐ LOD in a fully distributed version using reactive agent architectures
Two doses of oral sustained-release tramadol do not reduce pain or morphine consumption after modified radical mastectomy: a randomized, double blind, placebo-controlled trial.

BACKGROUND Tramadol is a weak opioid agonist with antinociceptive effects through its action on the mu-receptor and by inhibiting the neuronal re-uptake of both noradrenaline and serotonin. Tramadol is commonly used for treatment of mild to moderate post-operative pain. An oral form of sustained-release tramadol (SR) was recently formulated for reducing the administration frequency from qid to bid. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the analgesic efficacy and safety of two doses of oral tramadol SR for the treatment of pain after modified radical mastectomy. STUDY DESIGN Randomized, double blind, placebo-controlled trial. METHOD Fifty women were randomly allocated to receive either tramadol SR 100 mg (group T), or placebo tablet (group P) orally approximately 1 hour before surgery with a repeat dose administered 12 hours later by nurses not apprised of the patient groupings. All patients received the standard general anesthesia. Post-operatively, nurses in the research team assessed pain using a visual analog scale 0-100 mm at rest (rVAS) and during arm movements (mVAS) at admission to postanesthesia care unit (PACU) (T0) and 2 (T2), 6 (T6), 12 (T12) and 24 (T24) hours after surgery. Rescue analgesia was provided for 24 hours via a morphine-loaded patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) device at 1 mg bolus with a 5-minute lockout interval. Cumulative morphine consumption and adverse events were recorded. RESULTS Twenty-five patients with comparable baseline characteristics from each group were studied. The proportions of patients with VAS > 30 (both rVAS and mVAS) at each measurement period were not significantly different between the groups except for the mVAS at T24, where the proportion in group T was higher than group P (48% vs 20%, 95% CI of difference: -53%, -3%, p = 0.04). The median morphine consumption in both groups at T2, T6, T12 and T24 were comparable. No serious adverse effects were observed; however, patients in group T reported nausea and vomiting more than group P (56% vs 24%, p = 0.02). CONCLUSION Two doses of oral tramadol SR 100 mg had no effect on post-operative pain scores and morphine consumption in patients who underwent modified radical mastectomy. In fact, more patients in the tramadol group reported nausea and vomiting than the placebo group.
Effects of Thermostable Phytase Supplementation on the Growth Performance and Nutrient Digestibility of Broilers

2 Abstract: A study was conducted to investigate the effects of thermostable phytase supplementation on the growth performance and nutrient digestibility of broilers for 42 d. 1-day-old Arbor Acres chicks with similar initial body weight were randomly divided into 3 treatments consisting 6 pens of 20 chicks per pen. The control group was given maize-soybean meal basal diet and the other two groups were fed the basal diet including either 500 U ordinary phytase/kg diet or 500 U thermostable phytase/kg diet. The results indicated that broilers given diets supplemented with thermostable phytase have increased body weight, body weight gain and feed intake than these fed basal diet (p<0.05). However, the same effect was only noted for body weight in ordinary phytase-supplemented group (p<0.05). Birds fed diet supplemented with thermostable phytase had enhanced crude protein utilization when compared with these given basal diet (p<0.05) but the same effect was not observed for broilers fed ordinary phytase-supplemented diet. As expected, dietary phytase supplementation significantly enhanced nitrogen-corrected apparent metabolizable energy of broilers (p<0.05) and this effect was more pronounced in the thermostable phytase-supplemented group. The results suggested that phytase supplementation, especially thermostable phytase supplementation, can improve the growth performance and nutrient utilization of broilers.
The effect of pH and ionic strength on the sorption of sulfachloropyridazine, tylosin, and oxytetracycline to soil

Antimicrobial agents are the most heavily used pharmaceuticals in intensive husbandry. Their usual discharge pathway is application to agricultural land as constituents of animal manure, which is used as fertilizer. Many of these compounds undergo pH‐dependent speciation and, therefore, might occur as charged species in the soil environment. Hence, pH and ionic strength of the soil suspension can affect the sorption behavior of these compounds to soil. Consequently, the soil sorption of three antimicrobial agents—sulfachloropyridazine (SCP), tylosin (TYL), and oxytetracycline (OTC)—was investigated. Their respective sorption coefficients in two agricultural soils ranged from 1.5 to 1,800 L/kg. Sorption coefficients were greater under acidic conditions. Addition of an electrolyte to the solution led to decreased sorption of TYL and OTC by a factor of 3 to 20, but it did not influence the sorption of SCP. This behavior was analyzed by accounting for the pH‐dependent speciation of TYL and OTC and considering the presence of OTC‐calcium complexes. It appears that the decreased sorption of TYL and OTC with increasing ionic strength results from competition of the electrolyte cations with the positively charged TYL species and the positively charged OTC complexes. A model linking sorbate speciation with species‐specific sorption coefficients can describe the pH dependence of the apparent sorption coefficients. This modeling approach is proposed for implementation in the assessment of sorption of ionizable compounds.
Filtering of plant functional traits is determined by environmental gradients and by past land use in a Mediterranean coastal marsh

Question What is the effect of past land use and environmental gradients on plant functional traits within coastal marsh plant communities? Location Mediterranean microtidal marshes in the Llobregat Delta, NE Spain. Methods We used a data set collected previously comprising 45 vegetation plots with associated soil parameters, water table conditions and past land use. For each species we obtained the values or states for a set of plant functional traits: plant height, leaf dry matter content, specific leaf area, seed production, seed weight, life form and lateral expansion. To account for the effect of phylogeny, we evaluated trait diversity skewness by means of an ultrametric phylogenetic tree specifically constructed for the species studied. The association between both environmental gradients and past disturbance, and plant functional traits was tested by means of RLQ analysis. Results Of all the traits, only seed weight showed a phylogenetic signal; consequently, phylogeny was not included in the RLQ analysis. Conductivity was negatively correlated with seed weight, whereas water table conditions and soil ionic balance were negatively correlated with specific leaf area. Past disturbance was negatively correlated with leaf dry matter content and with lateral expansion. Conclusions Plant traits of Llobregat Delta coastal marsh communities are conditioned by environmental gradients and by past land use. Soil ionic balance and water table conditions determine key plant functional traits such as specific leaf area. This finding also corroborates the importance of soil ionic balance as a plant life driver in microtidal Mediterranean marshes. The effect of past land use on species traits might, however, be partially indirect and mediated by associated environmental changes.
SYSTEMIC ADMINISTRATION OF PHOSPHODIESTERASE V INHIBITOR, SILDENAFIL CITRATE, FOR ATTENUATION OF CEREBRAL VASOSPASM AFTER EXPERIMENTAL SUBARACHNOID HEMORRHAGE

OBJECTIVEOne of the phosphodiesterase isoenzymes, Type V (PDE V), specifically hydrolyzes cyclic guanosine monophosphate to cause vasoconstriction. This study analyses the effect of PDE V inhibition with sildenafil citrate (SC) on cerebral vasospasm and its effect on apoptotic changes of the vascular endothelium. METHODSTwenty-four rabbits were divided into four groups. The first group was composed of sham-surgery animals. The second group was the subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) group, in which cerebral vasospasm was induced. In the third group, sham-surgery rabbits were treated with SC. In the fourth group, animals were treated with SC after SAH. SC was administered for 48 hours, 0.7 mg/kg, three times per day in Groups 3 and 4. Basilar artery lumen circumferences were measured in all groups by computerized image analysis. The terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated deoxyuridine triphosphate nick end-labeling (TUNEL) method was used to evaluate the rate of apoptosis between SAH and SC-treated SAH groups. Results were compared by analysis of variance and paired t tests, and P values less than 0.05 were considered significant. RESULTSBasilar artery circumferences between groups were significantly different(P < 0.001). SC (0.7 mg/kg, three times per d) significantly dilated the basilar arteries in both the sham-surgery group (2370 ± 233 μm; P = 0.039) and the SAH group(2142 ± 195 μm; P = 0.006) after 48 hours of treatment. The TUNEL method for apoptosis revealed that actual numbers of the apoptotic endothelial cells per cross section after SAH in the control (no treatment) (73 ± 2) and SC-treated (0.7 mg/kg) groups(76 ± 3) were not significantly different (P > 0.05). CONCLUSIONThe vasodilatory effect of SC was observed to be significant on normal cerebral vessels and after SAH-induced vasospasm. SC did not prevent apoptosis of the endothelium in our study, which suggests that prevention of apoptosis is not necessary in the treatment of cerebral vasospasm.
Assessment of Physical Activity by Movement Registration Systems in Chronic Pain: Methodological Considerations

Objectives:Physical activity assessments in chronic pain research have mostly been based on self-report. However, earlier research indicated that chronic pain patients have difficulties in estimating their own daily life activity level. Movement registration systems have been introduced to overcome the limitations of self-reported measures. However, no uniform guidelines for researchers on how to analyze and interpret movement registration data in chronic pain exist. The aim of the study was to provide recommendations for physical activity assessment based on movement registration in patients with chronic pain. Methods:First, a systematic review of the procedures and data processing techniques used in movement registration for chronic pain patients will be performed. Second, it will be discussed whether the recommendations for physical activity assessment in healthy individuals are applied in chronic pain research. Last, recommendations regarding assessment procedure and data processing for using movement registration systems in future research in patients with chronic pain will be given. Results:In chronic pain literature, 27 articles on movement registration were identified. According to the recommendations for activity assessment in healthy individuals, the various descriptions of the assessment procedures in these articles were mostly limited. Especially, information regarding the minimal requirements for the assessment period and the method used for calculation of the final outcome variable were often lacking. Discussion:It is recommended that studies in chronic pain research explicitly apply and report the criteria that have been used to define an assessment day, the total assessment time, and the method for calculating the final test outcome.
A comparative study between laparoscopic appendectomy and conventional open appendectomy

Aims And Objectives -compare the outcome of laparoscopic and open appendectomy, in terms of Operating time. Intra operative and post operative complication. Hospital stay. Cost effectiveness. Material And Methods -This prospective comparative study was performed in JA Groups of Hospital and Gajra Raja Medical College Gwalior (M.P.), from November 2012 to November 2013. The merits and drawbacks of LA and OA were explained to all of the patients who suffered an attack of acute appendicitis. Patients who gave their informed consent were randomized to either LA or OA groups. 50 patients were included in this study. Our study plan was approved by ethical committee of our institution. ResultsThe study included 32 patients in open appendectomy group and 18 patients in laparoscopic appendectomy group. The two groups were similar to each other in terms of their age and sex characteristic. The mean operation time was 60.8 and 45.7 min. respectively for the laparoscopic and open approach. There was significantly different between the two groups. Conversion rate of laparoscopic appendectomy to open procedure was 17%. 3 cases each were converted to open appendectomy. Laparoscopic appendicectomy was associated with less post operative pain with comparable complication rates. Duration of stay in the hospital was significantly less with the Laparoscopic procedure. The time of return to normal activity and work was significantly more for open approach as compared to the laparoscopic approach, the mean being 10.9 days for open appendectomy and 9.6 days for laparoscopic appendectomy. Laparoscopic appendectomy is thus a safe, simple and efficient technique for treatment of appendicitis in experienced hands. Cases with gangrenous appendicitis and chronic inflammation with fibrosis were the most difficult to complete laparoscopically. Laparoscopic approach enables appendectomy to be performed in 83% of cases with lesser morbidity and an earlier return to the normal activity and work. More benefit is to be obtained from the laparoscopic approach in cases of milder appendicitis and where the diagnosis is uncertain. Conclusion -we conclude that LA is a considerably better procedure as compared to OL, the advantages of LA being as follows-Less operating time, Less post operative pain, Less hospital stay, Earlier return to normal activity, Better cosmetic acceptability of scar, Diagnosis of other abdominal pathology
Memoryless Sequences for Differentiable Losses

One way to define the “randomness” of a fixed individual sequence is to ask how hard it is to predict. When prediction error is measured via squared loss, it has been established that memoryless sequences (which are, in a precise sense, hard to predict) have some of the stochastic attributes of truly random sequences. In this paper, we ask how changing the loss function used changes the set of memoryless sequences, and in particular, the stochastic attributes they possess. We answer this question for differentiable convex loss functions using tools from property elicitation, showing that the property elicited by the loss determines the stochastic attributes of the corresponding memoryless sequences. We apply our results to price calibration in prediction markets.
Gender differences in Computing Programs: Colombian Case Study

This article analyzes the information has been collected from two focus groups with students in training as Systems Engineers. In it data related to the selection process of his career and collected formation process. Female students were interviewed between the ages of 16 and 24 years and in all semesters of two universities in Cali: San Buenaventura University and ICESI University. Common elements were found, like the influence of their parents to make the decision of study this career, the unusual games for girls in childhood and adolescence, as well as the serious difficulties encountered in programming courses in the process of training as engineers.
Railway satellite channel at Ku band and above: Composite dynamic modeling for the design of fade mitigation techniques

Past studies on the railway satellite channel (RSC) at Ku band and above consider exclusively the attenuation coming from the metal power arches (PAs) along the railway route, producing significant though deterministic periodical fast fading. Nevertheless, limited attention has been given to model tropospheric effects on the RSC. The present paper takes a more comprehensive view of the RSC by introducing a novel stochastic dynamic model of rain fading in mobile satellite systems on top of the diffraction because of PAs. The proposed approach builds upon well‐established research on rain attenuation time series synthesizers employing stochastic differential equations. It is shown that this propagation tool may provide significant aid, in general, in mobile satellite system simulations and in the design of fade mitigation techniques (FMTs), particularly aiming at the railway scenario. The tool enables the generation of fade events, fade duration statistics, rain attenuation power spectrum and predicting the necessary FMT control loop margin. This is particularly useful for the RSC because most of the proposed FMTs focusing on PAs are not appropriate for compensating atmospheric fading. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Experimental Demonstration of Multipoint Temperature Warning Sensor Using a Multichannel Matched Fiber Bragg Grating

A novel time-division-multiplexing fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensor for multipoint temperature warning sensor is proposed and demonstrated. A multiwavelength pulsed laser based on a multichannel matched FBG is employed. The sensor array consists of multiple uniform FBGs at different positions and with different nominal wavelengths. When the temperature exceeds the threshold at a certain position, the light at the corresponding time slot and wavelength can be detected. The sensor provides a simple and flexible solution to locate the abnormal temperature increase with different tolerable thresholds at different locations.
Sélection séquentielle en environnement aléatoire appliquée à l'apprentissage supervisé

Cette these se penche sur les problemes de decisions devant etre prises de maniere sequentielle au sein d'un environnement aleatoire. Lors de chaque etape d'un tel probleme decisionnel, une alternative doit etre selectionnee parmi un ensemble d'alternatives. Chaque alternative possede un gain moyen qui lui est propre et lorsque l'une d'elles est selectionnee, celle-ci engendre un gain aleatoire. La selection operee peut suivre deux types d'objectifs.Dans un premier cas, les tests viseront a maximiser la somme des gains collectes. Un juste compromis doit alors etre trouve entre l'exploitation et l'exploration. Ce probleme est couramment denomme dans la litterature scientifique "multi-armed bandit problem". Dans un second cas, un nombre de selections maximal est impose et l'objectif consistera a repartir ces selections de facon a augmenter les chances de trouver l'alternative presentant le gain moyen le plus eleve. Ce deuxieme probleme est couramment repris dans la litterature scientifique sous l'appellation "selecting the best". La selection de type gloutonne joue un role important dans la resolution de ces problemes de decision et opere en choisissant l'alternative qui s'est jusqu'ici montree optimale. Or, la nature generalement aleatoire de l'environnement rend incertains les resultats d'une telle selection. Dans cette these, nous introduisons une nouvelle quantite, appelee le "gain espere d'une action gloutonne". Sur base de quelques proprietes de cette quantite, de nouveaux algorithmes permettant de resoudre les deux problemes decisionnels precites seront proposes.Une attention particuliere sera ici pretee a l'application des techniques presentees au domaine de la selection de modeles en l'apprentissage artificiel supervise. La collaboration avec le service d'anesthesie de l'Hopital Erasme nous a permis d'appliquer les algorithmes proposes a des donnees reelles, provenant du milieu medical. Nous avons egalement developpe un systeme d'aide a la decision dont un prototype a deja ete teste en conditions reelles sur un echantillon restreint de patients.
Characteristics of breast carcinomas missed by screening radiologists.

PURPOSE To determine whether breast cancers missed at screening mammography have distinguishing characteristics from those of detected cancers. MATERIALS AND METHODS The mammograms of 146 women with mammographically identifiable breast cancer were viewed independently by two radiologists who were blinded as to whether the cancer had been missed or detected (group 1 lesions, missed cancers; group 2 lesions, detected cancers) at screening. The mammographic lesions were characterized as to location, size, density, type, and visibility on two views. RESULTS A significant difference between missed and detected cancers was found for diameter (P = .03), number of views (P < .0017), and density (P = .0007). Stepwise multivariable logistic regression showed that density (P = .01) and the number of views (P = .03) but not diameter (P = .27) were independently significant in distinguishing the groups. No statistically significant difference was found between the two groups for lesion type (P = .32 for reader 1 and P = .27 for reader 2) or location (P = .86 for reader 1 and P > .96 for reader 2). CONCLUSION Missed cancers were statistically significantly lower in density and more often seen on only one of two views than detected cancers.
Process change identification using workflow specification matching

Adaptive workflow systems and dynamic-change handling methodologies have been a focus of current workflow development. The goal of such systems is to develop a framework that allows changes to be carried out dynamically. However, a systematic change management approach that ensures changes are properly evaluated, implemented and reviewed has yet to be developed. A dynamic workflow system can be achieved by implementing change management strategies in current workflow systems that cater for change. This paper presents a matching algorithm to identify changes made to a workflow process over time by comparing different versions of the process, and to present the changes in a way that is meaningful to the users. The matching result is useful for change notification and for reviewing how a process has changed over time, for change management purposes. The algorithm is based on tree matching at the overall level and graph matching at the lower level. The matching algorithm is applied to an example construction process and results are presented in this paper.