Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Linear inference for mixed treatment comparison meta‐analysis: A two‐stage approach

Mixed treatment comparisons (MTC) meta‐analysis synthesises comparative evidence on multiple treatments or other interventions from a collection of randomised controlled trials (RCT) available in a research area, while still respecting the randomisation structure in RCTs. This paper sets out to examine the properties of MTC estimates and elucidate the concept of consistency between direct and indirect evidence in MTC networks. We decompose MTC synthesis into two stages. At the first stage, ordinary meta‐analysis is performed in each group of trials that have the same treatment comparators—this provides the ‘direct’ estimates of relative effect parameters. At the second stage, the optimal consistent estimates that minimise the distance between the direct estimates and the consistency hyper‐plane can be deduced as the weighted least squares solution to a linear regression model with a specific design matrix that represents the consistency conditions. The consistent MTC estimates can then be represented explicitly as linear combinations of direct estimates, and under normality assumptions the overall evidence consistency can be tested with a likelihood‐ratio statistic. This two‐stage framework further allows us to use the leverage statistics to diagnose influence of the first‐stage evidence and use the regression residuals to assess local inconsistency. The method is illustrated with two examples from medical research. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Iodine nutritional status in Himachal Pradesh state, India

Introduction: Iodine deficiency (ID) is the preventable causes of mental retardation worldwide. Himachal Pradesh (HP) state is a known endemic region to ID. Objective: the objective was to assess the current status of iodine nutrition in a population of HP, India. Methodology: There are three regions in HP namely: Kangra, Mandi, and Shimla. In each region, one district was selected namely: Kangra, Kullu, and Solan. In each district, 30 clusters were identified by utilizing population proportional-to-size cluster sampling methodology. A total of 5748 school-age children (SAC) (Kangra; 1864, Kullu; 1986, Solan: 1898), 1711 pregnant mothers (PMs) (Kangra; 647, Kullu; 551, Solan: 513), and 1934 neonates (Kangra; 613, Kullu; 638, Solan: 683), were included in study. Clinical examination of thyroid of each child and PM was conducted. Casual urine samples were collected from children and PMs. Cord blood samples were collected for estimation of thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) among neonates. Results: In SAC, total goiter rate (TGR) was 15.8% (Kangra), 23.4% (Kullu), and 15.4% (Solan). Median urinary iodine concentration (UIC) level was 200 μg/l (Kangra), 175 μg/l (Kullu), and 62.5 μg/l (Solan). In PMs, TGR was 42.2% (Kangra), 42.0% (Kullu), and 19.9% (Solan). Median UIC level was 200 μg/l (Kangra), 149 μg/l (Kullu), and 130 μg/l (Solan). In Neonates, TSH levels of > 5 mIU/L were found in 73.4 (Kangra), 79.8 (Kullu), and 63.2 (Solan) percent of neonates. Conclusion: As per, UIC level (<100 μg/l) in SAC, ID was found in district Solan. In Kullu and Solan districts, there were ID (UIC level < 150 μg/l) among PMs. TSH levels indicated ID in all districts surveyed.
Emulation of junction field-effect transistors for real-time audio applications

This work presents a nonlinear model for Junction Field-Effect Transistors (JFET) that is suitable for audio emulations in real-time. The model is implemented by using Wave Digital Filters (WDF), which offer accurate and real-time capability on digital processors. As emulation examples, a common source amplification stage and an electric guitar preamplifier are implemented in real-time in a reconfigurable Field Programmable Gate Array. For verification purposes, the WDF simulations were compared with the ones obtained by SPICE circuit analysis software. It is demonstrated how the JFET model and the emulation examples accurately work in real-time, matching the harmonic content of the reference SPICE simulations.
Quality Control in Manufacturing Oligo Arrays: A Combinatorial Design Approach

The advent of the DNA microarray technology has brought with it the exciting possibility of simultaneously observing the expression levels of all genes in an organism. One such microarray technology, called "oligo arrays," manufactures short single strands of DNA (called probes) onto a glass surface using photolithography. An altered or missed step in such a manufacturing protocol can adversely affect all probes using this failed step and is in general impossible to disentangle from experimental variation when using such a defective array. The idea of designing special quality control probes to detect a failed step was first formulated by Hubbell and Pevzner (1999). We consider an alternative formulation of this problem and use a combinatorial design approach to solve it. Our results improve over prior work in guaranteeing coverage of all protocol steps and in being able to tolerate a greater number of unreliable probe intensities.
Inferences about unobserved causes in human contingency learning

Estimates of the causal efficacy of an event need to take into account the possible presence and influence of other unobserved causes that might have contributed to the occurrence of the effect. Current theoretical approaches deal differently with this problem. Associative theories assume that at least one unobserved cause is always present. In contrast, causal Bayes net theories (including Power PC theory) hypothesize that unobserved causes may be present or absent. These theories generally assume independence of different causes of the same event, which greatly simplifies modelling learning and inference. In two experiments participants were requested to learn about the causal relation between a single cause and an effect by observing their co-occurrence (Experiment 1) or by actively intervening in the cause (Experiment 2). Participants’ assumptions about the presence of an unobserved cause were assessed either after each learning trial or at the end of the learning phase. The results show an interesting dissociation. Whereas there was a tendency to assume interdependence of the causes in the online judgements during learning, the final judgements tended to be more in the direction of an independence assumption. Possible explanations and implications of these findings are discussed.
BRCA1 Gene Mutations in Women With Papillary Serous Carcinoma of the Peritoneum

Objective To compare BRCA1 mutations in papillary serous carcinoma of the peritoneum and papillary serous ovarian carcinoma. Methods Germline DNA from 17 consecutive patients with peritoneal carcinoma was screened for mutations in the BRCA1 gene using single-strand conformation polymorphism analysis. Shifted DNA bands were sequenced. Patients with germline BRCA1 mutations were screened for allelic loss in tumor DNA at the BRCA1 locus. Results Two of the 17 patients (11%, 95% confidence interval 0.07, 0.37) exhibited the 185 delAG germline BRCA1 mutation described in the Ashkenazi Jewish population. The family history of one patient was notable for a mother and five aunts with breast or ovarian cancer. The other patient had a personal history of breast cancer. Both patients exhibited allelic loss of the normal BRCA1 allele in their tumor. A third patient was found to have a previously undescribed exon 11 single base pair substitution at nucleotide 1239 (CAG to CAC) resulting in a missense mutation (Gln to His). The patient had no family or personal history of breast or ovarian cancer, and her tumor did not exhibit loss of heterozygosity. Conclusion Germline BRCA1 mutations occur in papillary serous carcinoma of the peritoneum with a frequency comparable to the BRCA1 mutation rate in ovarian cancer. Although the penetrance is unknown, peritoneal carcinoma should be considered a malignancy expressed in the familial breast ovarian cancer syndrome.
Prevalence of Antimicrobial-Resistant Pathogens in Canadian Hospitals: Results of the Canadian Ward Surveillance Study (CANWARD 2008)

ABSTRACT A total of 5,282 bacterial isolates obtained between 1 January and 31 December 31 2008, inclusive, from patients in 10 hospitals across Canada as part of the Canadian Ward Surveillance Study (CANWARD 2008) underwent susceptibility testing. The 10 most common organisms, representing 78.8% of all clinical specimens, were as follows: Escherichia coli (21.4%), methicillin-susceptible Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA; 13.9%), Streptococcus pneumoniae (10.3%), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (7.1%), Klebsiella pneumoniae (6.0%), coagulase-negative staphylococci/Staphylococcus epidermidis (5.4%), methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA; 5.1%), Haemophilus influenzae (4.1%), Enterococcus spp. (3.3%), Enterobacter cloacae (2.2%). MRSA comprised 27.0% (272/1,007) of all S. aureus isolates (genotypically, 68.8% of MRSA were health care associated [HA-MRSA] and 27.6% were community associated [CA-MRSA]). Extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)-producing E. coli occurred in 4.9% of E. coli isolates. The CTX-M type was the predominant ESBL, with CTX-M-15 the most prevalent genotype. MRSA demonstrated no resistance to ceftobiprole, daptomycin, linezolid, telavancin, tigecycline, or vancomycin (0.4% intermediate intermediate resistance). E. coli demonstrated no resistance to ertapenem, meropenem, or tigecycline. Resistance rates with P. aeruginosa were as follows: colistin (polymyxin E), 0.8%; amikacin, 3.5%; cefepime, 7.2%; gentamicin, 12.3%; fluoroquinolones, 19.0 to 24.1%; meropenem, 5.6%; piperacillin-tazobactam, 8.0%. A multidrug-resistant (MDR) phenotype occurred frequently in P. aeruginosa (5.9%) but uncommonly in E. coli (1.2%) and K. pneumoniae (0.9%). In conclusion, E. coli, S. aureus (MSSA and MRSA), P. aeruginosa, S. pneumoniae, K. pneumoniae, H. influenzae, and Enterococcus spp. are the most common isolates recovered from clinical specimens in Canadian hospitals. The prevalence of MRSA was 27.0% (of which genotypically 27.6% were CA-MRSA), while ESBL-producing E. coli occurred in 4.9% of isolates. An MDR phenotype was common in P. aeruginosa.
What Determines the Purchase Intention of Liquid Milk during a Food Security Crisis? The Role of Perceived Trust, Knowledge, and Risk

Until today, inadequate food supply, malnutrition, food adulteration, etc., are still the key concern in developing economies. In order to address these issues of food security crisis, and to stimulate a sustainable supply of liquid milk (LM), a consumer behavior model was created, in which consumers’ perceived knowledge, trust and risk were the major catalysts. To shed light on this context, the study examined the effect of consumers’ perceived knowledge (PK) on their perceived risk (PR) and trust (in information sources and in the product). Further, the influence of consumers’ perceived knowledge, risk, and trust on their attitude and purchase intention (PI) were investigated via an exclusive survey design. The survey was conducted in the urban area of Dhaka and Chittagong, Bangladesh. The sample of 712 households was selected randomly and interviewed using a structured questionnaire. The data were analyzed employing descriptive statistics, exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, and structural equation modelling. The results show that during a food security crisis, consumers’ perceived knowledge amplifies their perceived risk and their trust in information sources (ISs). During such a period, their perceived knowledge does not induce purchase intention but trust in ISs does. Again, consumers’ perceived risk leads to reduced trust in products, and hence in LM, but not reduced trust in ISs. Moreover, a paradoxical influence was found, where consumers’ perceived risks had no significant effect on the PI, meaning that they underestimate the risk of purchasing LM. The results also show that when explaining the purchase intention of LM, the effect of ‘trust in ISs’ was higher than that of their perceived ‘trust in the product (LM)’ and perceived knowledge.
Alopecia Areata

Alopecia areata (AA) is a common, non-scarring alopecia that usually presents as well-circumscribed patches of sudden hair loss and affects 0.1-0.2% of the population. The aetiology of AA is thought to be both genetic and autoimmune in nature. One hundred and thirty-nine single nucleotide polymorphisms linked to AA have been identified in 8 regions of the genome and have been found to be associated with T cells or the hair follicle. Furthermore, patients with AA have been found to have an increased frequency of hair follicle-specific auto-antibodies. The diagnosis of AA is usually made on clinical grounds, and further investigations are not usually needed. Intralesional corticosteroids remain the treatment of choice. Systemic steroids are also highly effective; however, side effects make them less desirable to both patients and physicians. Other available treatment options include anthralin, minoxidil, topical immunotherapy and systemic immunosuppressants. These treatments will be discussed in depth in this chapter. The morbidity of AA is largely psychological; therefore, the successful treatment of AA should include focusing on improving the psychological impact of this condition.
The Importance of Social Support and Communities of Practice: Farmer Perceptions of the Challenges and Opportunities of Integrated Crop–Livestock Systems on Organically Managed Farms in the Northern U.S.

Most U.S. farms today specialize in either crop or livestock production, failing to harness the potential economic and environmental benefits of integrated crop–livestock systems (ICLS). This specialization is particularly contradictory for organic operations, which aim to promote biodiversity and reduce reliance on outside sources of feed and fertility. This study investigated the challenges and opportunities experienced by farmers interested in integrating crops and livestock on organically managed farms in Iowa, Pennsylvania, and Minnesota. Qualitative methods, including focus groups and interviews, generated four categories of challenges: farming norms, complexity of management, biophysical conditions, and financial costs, and four categories of opportunities: increasing support for ICLS, financial and labor advantages, biophysical improvements, and animal welfare. Discussion of the data analysis demonstrates how most of the challenges of ICLS are mitigated by opportunities. For instance, increasing support for ICLS means there are growing communities of practice in which farmer-to-farmer knowledge exchange and peer support overcome obstacles to success in these systems. Unmitigated challenges that are beyond the control of farmers include regional infrastructure, financing and insurance, and long time horizon for returns. These three unmitigated challenges may require interventions such as policy support, economic incentives and social infrastructure to enable successful farm transitions to ICLS in this region.
Impact of community oriented interventions on pediatric care-seeking practices - a multi-country study in Cambodia, Guatemala, Kenya And Zambia

Appropriate pediatric care-seeking for common childhood illnesses in rural communities continues to be a major challenge in low and middle-income settings. A quasi-experimental study with matched comparison groups was designed to determine the effect of community oriented interventions on illness care-seeking for children in Cambodia, Kenya, Guatemala, and Zambia. Study Design: Four districts or sub districts in each country were assigned to the intervention and comparison arms. Child caretakers in the intervention sites received timed counseling by community health workers (CHWs), and social accountability mechanisms including community scorecards were established to support community and health facility governance. Community councils were enhanced in all study sites, and comparison sites received routine CHW services. Results: At the end of the study, facility care-seeking for fever and diarrhea (and ARI in Zambia), improved significantly in intervention sites for Cambodia and Zambia (Cambodia, Fever, 52.7%-64.1%, p<0.001, Diarrhea, 27.1%-63.8%, p<0.001, Zambia, ARI, 29%-69.2%, p<0.001, Fever, 30%-79.3%, p<0.001, Diarrhea, 29.1%-77.4%, p<0.001) but they were not greater than the improvements in the comparison sites (Cambodia, Fever, 59.9%-75.5%, p<0.001, Diarrhea, 39.6%-79.1%, p<0.001, Zambia, ARI, 6.3%-70.3%, p<0.001, Fever, 11.2%-53%, p<0.001, Diarrhea, 4.6%-65.3%, p<0.001). Caretakers in the wealthiest quintiles reported significantly higher odds of facility care-seeking in all countries, except Zambia (Cambodia 2.19, 95%CI:1.39-3.45, p<0.010, Guatemala, 3.97, 95%CI:2.02-7.79, p<0.001, Kenya, 1.91, 95%CI:1.01-3.64, p<0.050). Comorbidities, child age, and caretaker’s education also emerged as predictors, but varied by country. The odds of facility care-seeking was higher in the comparison sites for Cambodia and Guatemala and intervention sites for Kenya and Zambia. Conclusion: The findings illustrate the contextual variations in facility care-seeking, but effective community based strategies can enhance coverage. Continued efforts for strengthening community based systems are warranted to ensure community demand and equitable service utilization for diseases that contribute to major mortality burden for children in rural communities.
Analisis Komparasi Abnormal Return Dan Volume Perdagangan Saham Atas Pemberlakuan Peraturan Pemerintah Nomor 1 Tahun 2014

The results showed during the study period (January 6 until January 20,2014) found the average - average abnormal return, where more abnormal return is positive which means the market is assessing the implementation of Regulation No. 1 of 2014 is good news. Nonetheless, there are significant differences in the average - average abnormal return before and after the implementation of Regulation No. 1 of 2014 which showed that the ban on the export of raw minerals would have no impact on the change in investor preference towards investment decisions. Statistical test results mean difference - Average Trading Volume Activity in the study period showed that there were no significant differences in the average Trading Volume Activity before and after the enactment of Regulation No. 1 of 2014. This condition showed no significant market reaction to the policy, so there was little decrease in the average - average trading volume of mining stocks after Regulation No. 1 of 2014 is enforced Keywords: Abnormal return, Trading Volume activity, event study
Early Warning Information System of Pregnancy Risk as an Effort to Reduce Maternal Mortality Rate

The maternal mortality rate (MMR) is one of the indicators that describe the welfare of people in a country. There are 3 factors that caused maternal death in Indonesia. Late in recognizing the danger signs of pregnancy is one of those factors. Pregnancy risk, actually could be detected in an early stage of pregnancy. Therefore there is a need to create such an early warning information system to detect pregnancy risk so that pregnant women and health professionals could anticipate it. Furthermore, maternal mortality rate could be decreased.
Partial compensation for N‐type Ca2+ channel loss by P/Q‐type Ca2+ channels underlines the differential release properties supported by these channels at cerebrocortical nerve terminals

N‐type and P/Q‐type Ca2+ channels support glutamate release at central synapses. To determine whether the glutamate release mediated by these channels exhibits distinct properties, we have isolated each release component in cerebrocortical nerve terminals from wild‐type mice by specifically blocking N‐type Ca2+ channels with ω‐conotoxin‐GVIA and P/Q‐type Ca2+ channels with ω‐agatoxin‐IVA. In addition, we have determined the release properties at terminals from mice lacking the α1B subunit of N‐type channels (Cav 2.2) to test the possibility that P/Q‐type channels can compensate for the loss of N‐type Ca2+ channels. We recently demonstrated that, while evoked glutamate release depends on P/Q‐ and N‐type channels in wild‐type nerve terminals, only P/Q‐type channels participate in these knockout mice. Moreover, in nerve terminals expressing solely P/Q‐type channels, metabotropic glutamate receptor 7 (mGluR7) fails to inhibit the evoked Ca2+ influx and glutamate release. Here, we show that the failure of mGluR7 to modulate evoked glutamate release is not due to a lack of receptors, as nerve terminals from mice lacking N‐type Ca2+ channels express mGluR7. Indeed, we show that other receptor responses, such as the inhibition of forskolin‐induced release, are preserved in these knockout mice. N‐type channels are more loosely coupled to release than P/Q‐type channels in nerve terminals from wild‐type mice, as reflected by the tighter coupling of release in knockout nerve terminals. We conclude that the glutamate release supported by N‐ and P/Q‐type channels exhibits distinct properties, and that P/Q‐type channels cannot fully compensate for the loss of N‐type channels.
SOCIAL MEDIA INFLUENCE ON SOCIETY DYNAMICS AND PUBLIC POLICY MAKING

INTRODUCTION Internet is growing, which was originally used by certain circles, now can be used by much wider audience, its users include individuals from diverse social strata. Internet has spread massively, which originally could only be used by the urban community, now, could be accessed over the remote areas. Initially, it costs comparatively high, now become more affordable. The services offered by the Internet Service Provider was initially restricted, and could only be accessed one directional, now become more diverse Ana people could accessed it interactively.
Comparison of the flexural strength of polymethyl methacrylate resin reinforced with multiwalled carbon nanotubes and processed by conventional water bath technique and microwave polymerization

Purpose: This in vitro study was done to compare the flexural strength of polymethyl methacrylate resin reinforced with multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) and processed by conventional water bath technique and using microwave energy. Materials and Methods: A total of 180 acrylic resin specimens measuring 65 mm × 10 mm × 2.5 mm were fabricated, with conventional water bath groups and microwave group having ninety specimens each. Ninety specimens were divided into thirty specimens as control and subgroups containing 0.025% MWCNTs and 0.050% MWCNTs with thirty specimens each. The specimens were tested for flexural strength by three-point bending test on universal testing machine. The statistical analysis was done using Student's t-test and one-way analysis of variance, and the intercomparison between each group was done using Tukey's post hoc analysis. Results: The mean flexural strength of specimens cured by water bath technique was 95.563 MPa and microwave technique was 118.416 MPa. Control Group B possesses highly significant increase in flexural strength than Control Group A with P < 0.01. Unpaired Student's t-test showed that Subgroup B1 and Subgroup B2 possess highly significant increase in flexural strength than Subgroup A1and Subgroup A2. Conclusion: Heat polymerized denture base resin with and without reinforcement of MWCNTs and polymerized by microwave technique possess higher flexural strength than heat polymerized fiber reinforced denture resin polymerized by water bath technique. MWCNTs could be used as an effective reinforcement material for denture base resin polymerized by either water bath technique or microwave energy.