Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
State-level variations in racial disparities in life expectancy.

OBJECTIVE To explore state patterns in the racial life expectancy gap. DATA SOURCES The 1997-2004 Multiple Cause of Death PUF, 2000 U.S. Census. STUDY DESIGN We calculated life expectancy at birth for black and white men and women. DATA EXTRACTION METHODS Data were obtained by the NCHS and U.S. Census Bureau. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS States with small racial differences are due to higher-than-expected life expectancy for blacks or lower-than-expected for whites. States with large disparity are explained by higher-than-average life expectancy among whites or lower-than-average life expectancy among blacks. CONCLUSIONS Heterogeneous state patterns in racial disparity in life expectancy exist. Eliminating disparity in states with large black populations would make the greatest impact nationally.
High prevalence of antibodies to calreticulin of the IgA class in primary biliary cirrhosis: a possible role of gut-derived bacterial antigens in its aetiology?

BACKGROUND In a preliminary study we showed that antibodies to the endoplasmic reticulum protein calreticulin (CR) occur in primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) and autoimmune hepatitis type 1 (AIH). Since anti-CR antibodies have also been found in patients with infectious diseases, we investigated their prevalence and immunoglobulin classes in patients with various hepatic and intestinal diseases, hoping to get some information on a possible relationship between an infectious trigger and the induction of a certain class of anti-CR antibodies. METHODS Sera were tested for anti-CR antibodies of the IgA, IgG, and IgM class by Western blotting, using CR isolated from human liver: in autoimmune liver diseases (primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) (n = 86) and autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) type 1 (n = 57)), alcoholic liver cirrhosis (ALC) (n = 32), viral liver infections (acute hepatitis A (n = 8), acute hepatitis B (n = 20), and chronic hepatitis C (n = 28)), and intestinal diseases (Crohn disease (CD) (n = 30), acute yersiniosis (n = 26)). Sera from 100 healthy individuals served as negative controls. RESULTS The most prominent finding was the high prevalence of anti-CR antibodies of the IgA class and the similarity in the anti-CR antibody class pattern in PBC (IgA, 62%; IgG, 43%; IgM, 55%) and yersiniosis (IgA, 62%; IgG, 39%; IgM, 42%). Class IgA anti-CR antibodies also occurred frequently in ALC (IgA, 44%; IgG, 41%; IgM, 19%). In contrast, in AIH anti-CR antibodies were predominantly of class IgG (IgA, 28%; IgG, 60%; IgM, 33%). In hepatitis A anti-CR antibodies were absent. In the other diseases they had a low prevalence and were mostly of class IgG (acute hepatitis B: IgA, 0%; IgG, 15%; IgM, 0%; chronic hepatitis C: IgA, 7%; IgG, 21%; IgM, 0%; CD: IgA, 13%; IgG, 20%; IgM, 13%). Of the healthy individuals 7% had anti-CR antibodies exclusively of class IgG. CONCLUSIONS The high prevalence of anti-CR antibodies of class IgA in patients with PBC and yersiniosis as well as in alcoholic liver disease reflects a reactivity of the gut-associated immune system and could imply that a still undefined gut-derived bacterial (? ) agent may trigger PBC.
VALVULAR AND STRUCTURAL HEART DISEASES Original Studies A Pathologic Study of Explanted Parachute Devices From Seven Heart Failure Patients Following Percutaneous Ventricular Restoration

Objectives: We sought to evaluate the pathologic findings of the percutaneous Parachute device implanted in patients with severe heart failure (HF). Background: Currently, most treatments of HF rest on optimal medical therapy with adjunctive interventional or surgical palliative treatments. One such treatment is the Parachute device, which partitions the left ventricle excluding the scarred myocardium from functioning myocardium, and has shown promise in clinical studies. Methods: We have examined histopathologically seven cases [six males (age range 43–74 years; mean 56 years) and one female (55 years)] of Parachute device that were either retrieved at autopsy (n 5 4) or during transplantation (n 5 3); implant duration, 15–1,533 days. Results: Three patients died of cardiac causes and none died from complications. Histologic early changes (<30 days, n 5 1) included adherent thrombus, with focal neutrophil infiltration and degenerating inflammatory cells. Over time (31–300 days, n 5 4), there was organized thrombus and development of neoendocardial thickening especially at the free-edge of the device and its contact with the adjacent endocardium while the base of the device showed varying degrees of fibrin thrombus. The greatest organization of thrombus was observed in devices removed at >300 days (680 and 1533 days); both had fractures of the foot along with strut fracture and one had tearing of the expanded polytetrafluoroethylene. Conclusions: The percutaneous Parachute device appears as a promising adjunctive treatment for patients suffering from severe HF. The pathologic changes are those of organizing thrombus with and without inflammation with minor complications of foot and strut fracture. VC 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Identifying and addressing drinking water system sprawl, its consequences, and the opportunity for planners’ intervention: evidence from Los Angeles County

Across the United States, poorly-performing, small drinking water systems operate under nominal public oversight in spatial patterns that neither cohere with other administrative jurisdictions nor conform to environmental, efficiency, or equity criteria. This study lays out the case for planning intervention to address the over-dispersion of drinking water systems, or water system sprawl. An analysis of data collected on every publicly-regulated drinking water system in Los Angeles County serves as a case study to illustrate the extent of sprawl and its consequences. To inform an understanding of feasible interventions to address sprawl, this study reviews development approval regulations and general plans, and conducts interviews with state and regional officials in California. Findings suggest that planning authorities that provide nominal safeguards against sprawl are not actively used to influence drinking water system boundaries, but both the tools of LAFCOs and novel governance authorities hold more promise for reform.
A Manually Validated Code Refactoring Dataset and Its Assessment Regarding Software Maintainability

Refactoring is a popular technique for improving the internal structure of software systems. It has a solid theoretical background while being used in development practice at the same time. However, we lack empirical research results on the real effect of code refactoring and its ways of application. This paper presents a manually validated dataset of applied refactorings and source code metrics and maintainability of 7 open-source systems. It is a subset of our previously published dataset containing the refactoring instances automatically extracted by the RefFinder tool. We found that RefFinder had around 27% overall average precision on the subject systems, thus our new -- manually validated -- subset has substantial added value allowing researchers to perform more accurate empirical investigations. Using this data, we were able to study whether refactorings were really triggered by poor maintainability of the code, or by other aspects. The results show that source code elements subject to refactorings had significantly lower maintainability values (approximated by source code metric aggregation) than elements not affected by refactorings between two releases.
Behavioral Modeling of Inventory Sharing Among Decentralized Retailers: An Experimental Study

Mismatch between supply and demand is a prevalent problem in business. One mitigation strategy is inventory sharing, also referred to as transshipment, which is popular in multiple industries including automobiles, apparels, computers, furniture, information technology products, shoes, sporting goods, and toys. Inventory sharing is powerful, particularly when demand is difficult to predict, because it enables multiple retailers to pool demand risks. Excess supply of one retailer can be used to fulfill excess demand of another.
Fish consumption and risk of sudden cardiac death.

CONTEXT Dietary fish intake has been associated with a reduced risk of fatal cardiac end points, but not with nonfatal end points. Dietary fish intake may have a selective benefit on fatal arrhythmias and therefore sudden cardiac death. OBJECTIVE To investigate prospectively the association between fish consumption and the risk of sudden cardiac death. DESIGN Prospective cohort study. SETTING The US Physicians' Health Study. PATIENTS A total of 20 551 US male physicians 40 to 84 years of age and free of myocardial infarction, cerebrovascular disease, and cancer at baseline who completed an abbreviated, semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire on fish consumption and were then followed up to 11 years. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE Incidence of sudden cardiac death (death within 1 hour of symptom onset) as ascertained by hospital records and reports of next of kin. RESULTS There were 133 sudden deaths over the course of the study. After controlling for age, randomized aspirin and beta carotene assignment, and coronary risk factors, dietary fish intake was associated with a reduced risk of sudden death, with an apparent threshold effect at a consumption level of 1 fish meal per week (P for trend=.03). For men who consumed fish at least once per week, the multivariate relative risk of sudden death was 0.48 (95% confidence interval, 0.24-0.96; P=.04) compared with men who consumed fish less than monthly. Estimated dietary n-3 fatty acid intake from seafood also was associated with a reduced risk of sudden death but without a significant trend across increasing categories of intake. Neither dietary fish consumption nor n-3 fatty acid intake was associated with a reduced risk of total myocardial infarction, nonsudden cardiac death, or total cardiovascular mortality. However, fish consumption was associated with a significantly reduced risk of total mortality. CONCLUSION These prospective data suggest that consumption of fish at least once per week may reduce the risk of sudden cardiac death in men.
Femoral Avulsion of the Medial Patellofemoral Ligament after Primary Traumatic Patellar Dislocation Predicts Subsequent Instability in Men

Background The clinical relevance of medial patellofemoral ligament (MPFL) injury location in primary patellar dislocation has not been studied. Hypothesis Prognosis after primary traumatic patellar dislocation may vary by MPFL injury location. Study Design Cohort study; Level of evidence, 3. Methods The initial magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings in 53 patients with identical nonoperative management were retrospectively analyzed for medial restraint injuries. The MPFL injury sites were classified as follows: femoral, midsubstance, and patellar. Magnetic resonance imaging was used to assess initial and control articular cartilage lesions in the patellofemoral joint. After a mean follow-up of 7 years, 42 patients were evaluated for redislocations, subjective symptoms, and functional limitations. Results Based on the initial MRIs, MPFL rupture was classified as femoral in 35 patients, midsubstance in 11, and patellar in 7. At follow-up, 15 patients reported an unstable patella (13 femoral, 1 patellar, 1 midsubstance; P =. 01) and 9 reported patellar redislocations (8 femoral, 1 midsubstance; P =. 05). The proportion of patients who regained their preinjury activity level was significantly smaller among those with femoral MPFL injury than among those with midsubstance or patellar MPFL injury (P =. 05). The median Kujala score was as follows: 90 for femoral, 91 for patellar, and 96 for midsubstance (P =. 76). Control MRI showed full-thickness patellofemoral cartilage lesions in 50% of the patients, unrelated to MPFL injury location. Conclusion An MPFL avulsion at the femoral attachment in primary traumatic patellar dislocations predicts subsequent patellar instability. The authors suggest that MPFL injury location be taken into account when planning treatment of primary traumatic patellar dislocation.
Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Developmental Disorders of the Cerebral Cortex

Summary: Developmental disorders of the neocortex are commonly associated with epilepsy. The development of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has advanced our understanding of these disorders by permitting accurate recognition and clinical correlation during life. These disorders have multiple etiologies and are dependent on the time of injury to the developing nervous system. MRI has permitted the classification of these malformations in three major groups: generalized disorders, unilateral hemispheric, and focal disorders. Generalized disorders include lissencephaly, pachygyria, band heterotopia, and subependymal heterotopias. Hemimegalencephaly comprised the unilateral disorder. Focal lesions include focal cortical dysplasia, polymicrogyria, schizencephaly, and focal subcortical heterotopias. The information provided by MRI, in conjunction with the clinicoelectrographic features, is extremely important in the recognition of these syndromes and for the appropriate medical and surgical management of those patients with epilepsy.
Basal cold but not heat tolerance constrains plasticity among Drosophila species (Diptera: Drosophilidae)

Thermal tolerance and its plasticity are important for understanding ectotherm responses to climate change. However, it is unclear whether plasticity is traded‐off at the expense of basal thermal tolerance and whether plasticity is subject to phylogenetic constraints. Here, we investigated associations between basal thermal tolerance and acute plasticity thereof in laboratory‐reared adult males of eighteen Drosophila species at low and high temperatures. We determined the high and low temperatures where 90% of flies are killed (ULT90 and LLT90, respectively) and also the magnitude of plasticity of acute thermal pretreatments (i.e. rapid cold‐ and heat‐hardening) using a standardized, species‐specific approach for the induction of hardening responses. Regression analyses of survival variation were conducted in ordinary and phylogenetically informed approaches. Low‐temperature pretreatments significantly improved LLT90 in all species tested except for D. pseudoobscura, D. mojavensis and D. borealis. High‐temperature pretreatment only significantly increased ULT90 in D. melanogaster, D. simulans, D. pseudoobscura and D. persimilis. LLT90 was negatively correlated with low‐temperature plasticity even after phylogeny was accounted for. No correlations were found between ULT90 and LLT90 or between ULT90 and rapid heat‐hardening (RHH) in ordinary regression approaches. However, after phylogenetic adjustment, there was a positive correlation between ULT90 and RHH. These results suggest a trade‐off between basal low‐temperature tolerance and acute low‐temperature plasticity, but at high temperatures, increased basal tolerance was accompanied by increased plasticity. Furthermore, high‐ and low‐temperature tolerances and their plasticity are clearly decoupled. These results are of broad significance to understanding how organisms respond to changes in habitat temperature and the degree to which they can adjust thermal sensitivity.
Solidarity and Responsibility in the Euro Area: Foes or Friends?

Abstract The recent debate on the reform of the economic governance in the euro area has been marred by a stark disagreement on the correct sequence between risk-reduction (responsibility) and risk-sharing (solidarity). In fact, the dichotomy between risk-reduction and risk-sharing may be fallacious as they reinforce each other, particularly in a monetary union with no lender of last resort for the public sector and no common macroeconomic stabilization mechanisms. The lack of risk-sharing mechanisms is per se a major source of redenomination and default risks and thus it makes the euro area prone to financial market segmentation along national borders and ultimately weaker. At the same time, greater structural convergence has to be achieved through structural reforms and fiscal prudence in order to reduce the likelihood of future negative idiosyncratic shocks in currently vulnerable countries. Notwithstanding some progress towards a politically viable solution encompassing both responsibility and solidarity, a number of important issues remain controversial. This short article summarizes the debate and introduces some of these controversial issues, ranging from the correct role of market discipline when markets are prone to self-fulfilling prophecies and multiple equilibria, to the (dis)advantages of sovereign debt restructuring mechanisms based on rules rather than discretion, from the pros and cons of new safe assets in the euro area to the primacy of coping with debt legacy problems, and the like.
Wideband reflectors with zero-contrast gratings.

We present wideband resonant reflectors designed with gratings in which the grating ridges are matched to an identical material, thereby eliminating local reflections and phase changes. This critical interface thus possesses zero refractive-index contrast; hence "zero-contrast gratings. " We design reflectors with zero-contrast gratings and high-contrast gratings and compare the results. For simple gratings with two-part periods, we show that zero-contrast grating reflectors outperform comparable high-contrast grating reflectors. An example silicon-on-glass reflector exhibits a 99% reflectance bandwidth of ∼700 nm for zero refractive-index contrast Δn=0, whereas a high-contrast device with Δn=2 yields a bandwidth of ∼600 nm. It follows that local Fabry-Perot modes residing in the grating ridges and reflecting off a high-contrast interface are not the root cause of wideband reflection.
The Hypertension Optimal Treatment (HOT) Study--patient characteristics: randomization, risk profiles, and early blood pressure results.

The Hypertension Optimal Treatment (HOT) Study is a prospective, randomized, multicenter trial being conducted in 26 countries. Its main aim is to evaluate the relationship between three levels of target diastolic blood pressure (< or = 90, < or = 85 or < or = 80 mmHg) and cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in hypertensive patients. In addition, the study will examine the effects on morbidity and mortality of a low dose, 75 mg daily, of acetylsalicylic acid (ASA, aspirin) or placebo. In the HOT Study, basic antihypertensive treatment is initiated with the calcium antagonist felodipine at a dose of 5 mg daily. If target blood pressure is not reached, additional antihypertensive therapy with either an angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor or a beta-adrenoceptor blocking agent is given. Further dosage adjustments are made in accordance with a set protocol. As a fifth and final step, a diuretic may be added. Inclusion of patients was stopped on April 30, 1994. At that time 19,196 patients had been randomized. There were 9,055 (47%) women and 10,141 (53%) men with an average age of 61.5 +/- 7.5 (SD) years. At enrollment, 52% of patients were receiving antihypertensive treatment. These patients entered a wash-out period of at least 2 weeks before randomization. The average randomization blood pressure in untreated patients was 169 +/- 14/106 +/- 3 mmHg and in the treated patients 170 +/- 14/105 +/- 3 mmHg. On August 15, 1994, blood pressure data were available for 14,710 and 10,275 patients, who had completed 3 and 6 months treatment, respectively. The average reduction in diastolic blood pressure was 22 mmHg after 6 months. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Japanese self‐initiated expatriates as boundary spanners in Chinese subsidiaries of Japanese MNEs: Antecedents, social capital, and HRM practices

This article examines the potential boundary-spanning roles of Japanese self-initiated expatriates (SIEs) working at Japanese-affiliated companies in China. We show that, compared to Japanese assigned expatriates (AEs), Japanese SIEs have longer living and working experience in China and better linguistic proficiency in Chinese, and build a relationship of trust with Japanese AEs, Chinese employees, and the headquarters in Japan. We also find human resource management (HRM) practices that emphasize normative integration will lead to the nurturing of trust (social capital) among the parties concerned, and the social capital will enhance the boundary-spanning functions of Japanese SIEs. This research demonstrates the value of these SIEs as a new option to replace the dichotomy of AEs or host-country nationals and the importance of practices for normative integration and social capital, which can be expected to facilitate the boundary-spanning roles of Japanese SIEs.
Neural correlates of object-based attention

Much research has been directed toward disentangling the “units” of attention: Is attention directed to locations in space, visual objects, or to individual features of an object? Moreover, there is considerable interest in whether attention increases the gain of neural mechanisms (signal enhancement) or acts by other means, such as reducing noise or narrowing channel tuning. To address these questions, we used a direct measure of signal strength: the amplitude of visual evoked potentials and a task in which selection could be based on a depth order cue but not on location. Attended and nonattended stimuli were presented at different temporal frequencies, and, thus, responses to the two stimuli could be analyzed separately even though they were presented simultaneously. Attention increased the amplitude of the second harmonic component of the response, but not the fourth harmonic. In addition, responses measured at the second harmonic, but not at the fourth harmonic, were larger for stimuli seen as behind. The results are consistent with the fourth harmonic being generated at a stage of processing that is not accessible to attention and where depth order has not been extracted. The second harmonic, on the other hand, is modifiable by attention and shows evidence for differential encoding of depth order.
Multi-threading as a Tool for Efficient Simulation of Wireless Communication Systems

Cellular communication systems now more than ever play a major role in the technological evolution. Every day activities are based on everywhere communication capabilities. Wireless technology offers a variety of services such voice, data and video to any mobile user. New communication standards for service quality have been established due to increasing user demands. Computer and programming technology constitute imperative tools for developing simulation environments. Through simulation environments, a cellular communication system can be designed and its behavior can be predicted. The rapid change of this technology led to the development of more sophisticated simulation environments for designing and evaluating modern communication systems that support efficiently advanced services. In this paper, the application of modern computer and programming technology for efficient design and simulation of cellular communication systems is presented. Moreover, a novel methodology for efficient modeling and simulation of wireless systems using the multi-threading technology is also presented and evaluated.