Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Comparing Perceptions of Effective Characteristics of Middle School Advisors from Administrators, Teachers, and Students

This study compared perceptions of effective characteristics of middle school advisors from administrators, teachers and students at Fort Couch Middle School, located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The research questions for this study included the following: 1. What are the effective qualities that students value in an advisor? 2. What are the effective qualities that principals value in an advisor? 3. What are the effective qualities that teachers value in an advisor? 4. What is the comparison between student, principal and teacher perceptions of effective qualities in implementing an advisor program? This was a descriptive research study using quantitative (survey) and qualitative (focus groups) methods to define the effective characteristics of middle level advisors. The questions were designed to collect data regarding the perceptions that students, administrators and teachers had on the qualities of an effective middle level advisor. The survey was given to eighth level students, four administrators at Upper St. Clair School District and twelve eighth level advisors/teachers at Fort Couch Middle School. Data collected from the students, administrators and teacher surveys; and the focus groups’ perceptions of qualities for effective middle level advisors were used to determine how students, administrators and teachers perceived the qualities of an effective middle school advisor. Consistent with the research regarding the impact of affective qualities in relation to advisory programs, the data from both the focus groups and the survey provides clear evidence that all affective qualities such as honesty, positive attitude, caring attitude, nonjudgmental attitude, sense of humor, listens to concerns, optimism, supportive attitude and sympathetic to student needs all scored as the “most important”
Lack of association of the 5‐HT3A receptor with schizophrenia

The serotonin type 3 (5‐HT3) receptor (R) belongs to the family of ligand‐gated ion channels. It is supposed to play an important role in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia and might also represent an interesting target for the pharmacological treatment of this disorder. In this study, we searched for variations within the 5‐HT3A receptor gene which might be specifically associated to schizophrenia. Twenty‐nine single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of 943 schizophrenic patients compared to 2,343 healthy individuals were analyzed. SNPs were selected taking into account previous results on a 5‐HT3A receptor domain involved in neuroleptic binding. Dominant logistic and linear regression models were calculated for the phenotypes number of hospitalizations, duration of hospitalization, age at onset and case–control. The data did not show significant associations of any SNP under investigation specific for schizophrenic patients. In conclusion, our study does not support the hypothesis that the 5‐HT3A receptor plays a major role in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
The Implications of Organizational Structure, Political Control, and Internal System Responsiveness on Whistleblowing Behavior

This study examines how organizational structure, political control, and internal system responsiveness to employee complaints or grievances influence U.S. federal employees’ internal and external whistleblowing. Although prior research has investigated a number of personal, organizational, and social factors that affect whistleblowing, very little research has examined the three factors that are the focus of this study and the roles that they might play in whistleblowing behavior. The results show that (a) wider spans of control of middle-level versus upper-level managers have opposite effects on internal whistleblowing, (b) fixed terms for agency leaders are negatively related to internal whistleblowing, and (c) internal system responsiveness to employee complaints or grievances has mixed effects on internal whistleblowing. This study concludes by discussing the implications of these findings and proposing effective ways to manage whistleblowing within public organizations.
Endothelin-1 in the kidney and urine of patients with glomerular disease and proteinuria.

BACKGROUND Endothelin-1 (ET-1) is a strong vasoconstrictive peptide that is involved in the pathogenesis of arterial hypertension. There is increasing evidence, based on studies in experimental animals, that endothelin-1 is produced by tubular epithelial cells in response to activation by filtered protein and is involved in the development of renal scarring. The aim of this study is to examine the distribution of ET-1 in the renal tissue of patients with heavy proteinuria and to estimate the changes in its urinary excretion after immunosuppressive therapy. PATIENTS AND METHODS Twenty-four patients with severe proteinuria (7.5 +/- 6.5 g/24 h) due to different types of glomerular disease and normal renal function (creatinine clearance 91 +/- 14 ml/ min) were investigated. All patients underwent a renal biopsy and commenced on immunosuppressive therapy with corticosteroids and cyclosporin A. The localization of ET-1 in the renal tissue was examined by immunohistochemistry and compared to control renal tissue from 9 patients who underwent nephrectomies because of hypernephroma. In patients with proteinuria, endothelin-1 excretion in the urine at diagnosis was determined by radioimmunoassay and compared to that of 14 healthy subjects. A second measurement of urinary ET-1 excretion was performed after remission of proteinuria or 6 months after the initiation of treatment in patients with persistent nephrotic syndrome. RESULTS ET-1 in renal tissue of patients and controls was localized within the cytoplasm of endothelial cells. In nephrotic patients, it was also localized within the cytoplasm of tubular epithelial cells. Urinary ET-1 levels were higher in nephrotic patients compared to healthy subjects (746 +/- 180 ng/24 h vs 410 +/- 112 ng/ml, p < 0.001). In 17 of 24 patients who showed remission of proteinuria with immunosuppressive therapy, the urinary ET-1 levels decreased (from 803 +/- 168 ng/24 h to 511 +/- 80 ng/24 h, p < 0.001) whereas in 7 patients with persistent proteinuria, urinary ET-1 excretion remained elevated. CONCLUSIONS The increased urinary excretion of ET-1 in patients with severe proteinuria followed by a significant decrease after remission ofproteinuria with immunosuppressive treatment, along with its expression within tubular epithelial cells, suggests a possible relationship between proteinuria and renal ET-1 production.
PATHOLOGIC INSIGHTS FROM INTEGRATED IMAGING OF RETICULAR PSEUDODRUSEN IN AGE-RELATED MACULAR DEGENERATION

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to analyze the integrated infrared reflectance, fundus autofluorescence, and fluorescein angiography (integrated confocal scanning laser ophthalmoscopy fundus imaging) features of reticular pseudodrusen and eye-tracked Spectralis high-resolution spectral domain optical coherence tomography (Spectralis SD-OCT; Heidelberg Engineering, Heidelberg, Germany). Methods: Twenty-two consecutive patients with reticular pseudodrusen were prospectively enrolled and evaluated regarding confocal scanning laser ophthalmoscopy fundus imaging and eye-tracked SD-OCT findings. Results: Integrated fundus imaging revealed a “target” aspect of most reticular pseudodrusen in the 42 included eyes (22 patients; 12 women, 10 men; mean age 81.38 ± 6.47 years). On fundus autofluorescence and infrared reflectance, the center of most reticular pseudodrusen appeared as an area of isoautofluorescence/reflectance surrounded by halos of reduced autofluorescence/reflectance. Similarly, on fluorescein angiography, the center of reticular pseudodrusen appeared as an area of decreased fluorescence surrounded by a faint halo of increased fluorescence. Spectral domain optical coherence tomography showed a well-defined round or triangular hyperreflective deposit localized between, externally, the retinal pigment epithelium layer, and, internally, the external limiting membrane or the outer plexiform layer. Moreover, SD-OCT showed the loss of both outer segment/retinal pigment epithelium interface and inner segment/outer segment interface over the hyperreflective lesions, as well as an abrupt interruption of both these interfaces at the border of the hyperreflective lesions. Conclusion: The peculiar confocal scanning laser ophthalmoscopy fundus imaging and tracked SD-OCT of reticular pseudodrusen suggest the presence of central lipofuscin-like retinal deposits localized above the retinal pigment epithelium. These findings give insights to other possible aspects of age-related retinal changes.
High-Precision Control of Linear Actuators Based on Internal Model Control

In recent years, a high-precision stage has received great attention due to the progress of nano-technology. This paper presents a fast-response and high-precision control method based on the internal model control in the case where the controlled object has the integral characteristic. Firstly, we refer the problems when the internal model control (IMC) is applied to the integral plant. Next, in order to overcome these problems, we introduce the disturbance observer to IMC. The disturbance observer-based internal model control (DIMC) system has the advantages of no-overshoot, easy-design and simple-realization comparing to the conventional IMC method for the integral objects. Experimental results with an ultra-precision stage demonstrate that the proposed control system achieves high-precision positioning performance with robustness to frictional disturbances.
Research and design of digital power quality analysis system based on mixed radix FFT

This paper is dedicated to the research on the digital analysis system of the power quality which is greatly deteriorated by the development of power electronic technology and the widespread application of nonlinear loads. Researchers at home and abroad have done many studies on the measurement of the power quality indicators and have proposed many measuring methods which are too complex to be used in practice. This paper proposes a hardware detection method for frequency measurement and a digital harmonic analysis method based on mixed radix fast Fourier transform (FFT) for the measurement of harmonics, and adopts a frequency-domain analysis method based on mixed radix FFT to measure the fluctuations and flicker of voltage. Compared with other measuring methods, the measuring methods proposed in this paper are simpler and more reliable, and they have fewer complex mathematical calculations and a better real-time performance. Finally, a real-time digital power quality analysis system was designed and implemented in the laboratory by using ARM processor and mixed radix FFT algorithm. After that, we tested the system by using the relay protection tester, in the laboratory, and the experimental results showed that the power quality analysis system designed satisfied the requirement of IEC61000-4-30 standard.
Expression of heat‐stable antigen on tumor cells provides co‐stimulation for tumor‐specific T cell proliferation and cytotoxicity in mice

Heat‐stable antigen (HSA/J11d/possibly homologous to CD24), a cell adhesion molecule capable of providing a co‐stimulatory signal for T cell proliferation, is expressed on B cells, activated T cells, monocytes, granulocytes, Langerhans cells and thymocytes. Recent studies have demonstrated that co‐stimulatory signals provided by cell adhesion molecules such as B7‐1 play an essential role in generation of an anti‐tumor immune response. To examine whether the co‐stimulatory signal provided by HSA can induce an anti‐tumor immune response, we have transfected HSA cDNA into the murine melanoma cell line K1735M2, and examined the ability of this transfected cell line to induce tumor‐specific T cell responses. The results demonstrate that spleen cells from mice immunized with HSA‐transfected K1735M2 cells showed enhanced T cell proliferation in a mixed lymphocyte tumor reaction (MLTR) assay and also demonstrated a significant anti‐tumor cytotoxicity to the parent tumor cell (K1735M2). This anti‐tumor cytolytic activity could be abrogated by pretreatment of effector cells with anti‐mouse CD8 monoclonal antibody and complement. Under similar conditions, spleen cells from C3H mice immunized with vector‐transfected K1735M2 cells neither actively proliferate in an MLTR assay, nor did they exert significant cytolytic activity against the respective tumor cells. In summary, our study demonstrated that HSA can provide a co‐stimulatory signal for the T cell immune response against tumor cells in a murine model.
Use of Time Studies for Determining Intervention Costs

BackgroundCost-effectiveness analyses are increasingly recommended to evaluate the effectiveness of health interventions. Determining the costs associated with delivery of a particular intervention is essential in conducting a cost-effectiveness analysis. Yet, there are few guidelines available to assist investigators in how to assess intervention costs associated with the personnel portion of an intervention. ObjectivesTo describe the use of time studies in calculating the program costs of personnel for use in future cost-effectiveness analysis of health interventions. MethodsThe literature on calculating intervention costs for use in cost-effectiveness analyses is reviewed. The process for conducting a time study for determining personnel costs in delivering an intervention and a step-by-step example from a time study are used to illustrate how personnel costs associated with delivery of the intervention can be separated from those costs associated with implementation of research procedures in the determination of research costs. ConclusionsTime studies provide a good estimate of part of the cost of implementing an intervention that is often difficult to determine—personnel time. The design of the time study should consider intervention components, staff involvement, and the time period for data collection.
The peptaibol antiamoebin as a model ion channel: similarities to bacterial potassium channels

Antiamoebin (AAM) is a polypeptide antibiotic that is capable of forming ion channels in phospholipid membranes; planar bilayer studies have suggested the channels are octamers. The crystal structure of a monomeric form of AAM has provided the basis for molecular modelling of an octameric helical bundle channel. The channel model is funnel‐shaped due to a substantial bend in the middle of the polypeptide chain caused by the presence of several imino acids. Inter‐monomer hydrogen bonds orientate a ring of glutamine side chains to form a constriction in the pore lumen. The channel lumen is lined both by side chains of Gln11 and by polypeptide backbone carbonyl groups. Electrostatic calculations on the model are compatible with a channel that transports cations across membranes.
Intralesional Cryosurgery Combined With Topical Silicone Gel Sheeting for the Treatment of Refractory Keloids

BACKGROUND A variety of therapeutic procedures for treating keloids have been previously reported, with varying success and recurrence rates. As a monotherapy, intralesional cryosurgery has yielded convincing clinical results. OBJECTIVE We combined intralesional cryosurgery with the application of topical silicone gel sheeting. MATERIALS AND METHODS In this retrospective study, which was conducted between 2008 and 2012, 21 patients with 32 keloids were enrolled. Twenty-five lesions were treated with intralesional cryotherapy combined with postoperative silicone gel sheeting (the cryotherapy + silicone group), and 7 keloids were treated with intralesional cryotherapy alone (the cryotherapy group). The scar volume reduction was assessed, and the patients' subjective and objective parameters were evaluated. Additionally, patient satisfaction was estimated using a modified Gorney Gram scale (0–3). RESULTS In all cases (n = 32 for both groups), a significant keloid volume reduction was observed. The patients' subjective complaints were significantly improved, whereas the combined therapy showed slightly better results in hardness (p < .0012), pain (p < .0233), and discomfort (p < .0029), whereas monotherapy achieved higher satisfaction scores in redness (p < .0220) and pruritus (p < .0206), although these differences were not significant between the treatment modalities. CONCLUSION The results of this study support the use of combined intralesional cryosurgery followed by the application of silicone gel sheeting to treat refractory keloids.
Verbal memory deficits associated with fornix atrophy in carbon monoxide poisoning

Magnetic resonance (MR) images and neuropsychological testing data of 69 carbon monoxide (CO) poisoned patients were prospectively obtained within 1 day of CO poisoning, two weeks and six months. CO patients' Day 1 cross-sectional fornix surface area measurements, corrected for head size by using a fornix-to-brain ratio (FBR), were compared to normal age and gender-matched controls. Additionally, a within-subjects analysis was performed comparing the mean areas between CO patients' Day 1, 2 weeks and 6-month FBR. The FBR was correlated with patients' neuropsychological data. There were no significant differences between CO patients' Day 1 fornix measurements compared to normal control subjects. However, significant atrophic changes in the fornix of CO poisoned patients occurred at two weeks with no progressive atrophy at 6 months. By 6 months, CO patients showed significant decline on tests of verbal memory (when practice effects were taken into account), whereas visual memory, processing speed and attention/concentration did not decline. This study indicates that CO results in brain damage and cognitive impairments in the absence of lesions and other neuroanatomic markers. (JINS, 2001, 7, 640–646.)
Opioids for chronic noncancer pain

The recent American Academy of Neurology position paper by Franklin, “Opioids for chronic noncancer pain,” suggests that the benefits of opioid treatment are very likely to be substantially outweighed by the risks and recommends avoidance of doses above 80–120 mg/day morphine equivalent. However, close reading of the primary literature supports a different conclusion: opioids have been shown in randomized controlled trials (RCTs) to be highly effective in the treatment of chronic nonmalignant pain; long-term follow-up studies have shown that this effectiveness can be maintained; and effectiveness has been limited in many clinical trials by failure to take into account high variability in dose requirements, failure to adequately treat depression, and use of suboptimal outcome measures. Frequency of side effects in many RCTs has been inflated by overly rapid dose titration and failure to appreciate the high interindividual variability in side effect profiles. The recent marked increase in incidence of opioid overdose is of grave concern, but there is good reason to believe that it has been somewhat exaggerated. Potential causes of overdose include inadequately treated depression; inadequately treated pain, particularly when compounded by hopelessness; inadvertent overdose; concurrent use of alcohol; and insufficient practitioner expertise. Effective treatment of pain can enable large numbers of patients to lead productive lives and improve quality of life. Effective alleviation of suffering associated with pain falls squarely within the physician's professional obligation. Existing scientific studies provide the basis for many improvements in pain management that can increase effectiveness and reduce risk. Many potentially useful areas of further research can be identified.
Determination of the B-type natriuretic peptide level as a criterion for abnormalities in Japanese individuals in routine clinical practice: the J-ABS Multi-Center Study (Japan Abnormal BNP Standard).

OBJECTIVE The present study was undertaken to establish a useful range for the B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) level, with the ultimate goal of determining a cut-off BNP level that will make it possible to identify patients with clinically important organic heart disorders among patients encountered in clinical practice. METHODS A total of 11,967 outpatients were evaluated for this study, and, after applying the exclusion criteria, 361 patients were finally recruited for the analysis. Compared to the factors of gender and body mass index, aging was considered to be an indispensable factor in this analysis. The 'median' plasma BNP level was found to increase slowly with age, but remained lower than 30 pg/mL, even in patients aged 60 years or older. In contrast, the overall '95th percentile' of the plasma BNP level in the patients younger than 60 years was 41 pg/mL, which increased to 139.8 pg/mL in the patients aged 60 years or older. CONCLUSION These findings suggest that the lower range of the BNP level allowing for identification of patients with clinically important organic heart disorders increases with age; however, it might be appropriate to adopt a level of approximately 40 pg/mL, even in elderly patients, in order to avoid any possible age-related effects of diastolic dysfunction or other factors.
Bayesian Model Selection: Some Thoughts on Future Directions

As advances in computational technology have made it possible to apply Bayesian methods to situations that are increasingly complex, using a wider variety of models that are increasingly more sophisticated, problems regarding model choice are now of central importance. As a result, the development of methods for model selection is now at the forefront of research in Bayesian statistics. This is reflected by many of the papers on Bayesian methods in this issue of Statistica Sinica, on topics ranging from variable selection in generalized linear models (Wang and George) to the need to choose between Bayesian nonparametric models and their parametric counterparts (Dunson; Bulla, Muliere, and Walker). This note describes some thoughts regarding future directions in Bayesian model selection, focusing on computational challenges. We briefly describe some unrelated approaches to Bayesian model selection that are currently used and argue that much can be gained by combining them. We proceed at a low technical level and make our points through a discussion of concrete examples; however, application of the ideas is not limited to those examples.