Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Let the Music Play: An Automated Test Setup for Blind Subjective Evaluation of Music Playback on Mobile Devices

Several methods for subjective evaluation for audio and speech have been standardized over the last years. However, with the advancement of mobile devices such as smartphones and Bluetooth speakers, people listen to music even outside their home environment, when traveling and in social situations. Conventional comparative methodologies are difficult to use for sound-quality evaluation of such devices, since subjects are likely to include other factors such as brand or design. Hence, we propose an automated test setup to evaluate music and audio playback of portable devices with subjects without revealing the devices or interfering with the tests. Furthermore, an identical placement of the devices in front of the listener is crucial to accommodate the individual acoustic directivity of the device. For this purpose, we use a large motorized turntable on which the devices are mounted so that the playback device is automatically moved to the defined position in advance. An enhanced version of rating software avrateNG enables the automatic playout of musical pieces and appropriate turning of the devices to face the listeners. Devices that can automatically be tested using our setup include Android and iOS smartphones, as well as Bluetooth and wired portable speakers. Preliminary user tests were conducted to verify the practical applicability and stability of the proposed setup.
Reavaliação nas doses de flavomicina para frangos de corte

The use of antibiotic growth promoters is known to support the control of microorganisms, contributing to the equilibrium of gut microflora, reducing subclinical diseases and, therefore, leading to improvements in animal performance and. However, due to the limited number of studies exploring maximum responses of flavophospholipol in broiler feeds, a study was conducted to evaluate bird responses to flavophospholipol at higher doses than those recommended by the Brazilian legislation. A trial was conducted with 900 male broilers divided into five dosis of flavophospholipol: 0, 2, 4, 8 and 16 mg/kg. The performance evaluation was performed weekly until 42 days of age. The evaluated parameters were: weight gain, feed conversion corrected for mortality, feed consumption and mortality. At the end of experimental period, birds supplemented with growth promoter differed from the negative control for weight gain and feed conversion in the period from 1 to 42 days. Body weight gain and feed conversion were significantly higher for birds fed 16 mg/kg of flavophospholipol, compared to treatment without the growth promoter in the period from 1 to 21 days. In the accumulated period from 22 to 42 days, all dosis were different to the negative control for feed conversion and body weight 1 Programa de Pos-graduacao em Zootecnia – UFRGS. 2 Departamento de Zootecnia – UFRGS. Correspondencias devem ser enviadas para: slvieira@ufrgs.br. 3 Graduacao em Medicina Veterinaria UFRGS
The Impact of EBM-Manufactured Ti6Al4V ELI Alloy Surface Modifications on Cytotoxicity toward Eukaryotic Cells and Microbial Biofilm Formation

Electron beam melting (EBM) is an additive manufacturing technique, which allows forming customized implants that perfectly fit the loss of the anatomical structure of bone. Implantation efficiency depends not only on the implant’s functional or mechanical properties but also on its surface properties, which are of great importance with regard to such biological processes as bone regeneration or microbial contamination. This work presents the impact of surface modifications (mechanical polishing, sandblasting, and acid-polishing) of EBM-produced Ti6Al4V ELI implants on essential biological parameters. These include wettability, cytotoxicity toward fibroblast and osteoblast cell line, and ability to form biofilm by Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Candida albicans. Obtained results indicated that all prepared surfaces exhibited hydrophilic character and the highest changes of wettability were obtained by chemical modification. All implants displayed no cytotoxicity against osteoblast and fibroblast cell lines regardless of the modification type. In turn, the quantitative microbiological tests and visualization of microbial biofilm by means of electron microscopy showed that type of implant’s modification correlated with the species-specific ability of microbes to form biofilm on it. Thus, the results of the presented study confirm the relationship between such technological aspects as surface modification and biological properties. The provided data are useful with regard to applications of the EBM technology and present a significant step towards personalized, customized implantology practice.
Prevalence and associated factors of overweight/obesity among school going children in Chandigarh, India.

BACKGROUND An increasing prevalence of childhood obesity is reported worldwide. Few data are available regarding childhood obesity in North India. The present study aimed to study the prevalence of overweight/obesity among adolescents aged 10-14, in schools of Chandigarh, and to examine associated factors. METHODS Nine co-educational schools were chosen to include both Government and Private schools in Chandigarh. We randomly sampled students from different sub sections/batches of classes 5th to 9th (aged 10-14) and those present on the day were measured and completed questionnaires. Obesity was classified according to the methods recommended by the IAP growth charts committee. RESULTS 1030 participants were included, 502 students from government and 528 students from private schools. The overall prevalence of overweight and obesity evaluated by using age-specific BMI cut-offs were found to be 9.9 % and 14.0 % respectively. The prevalence of overweight (adult equivalent of 23) was 10.3% in boys and 9.4% in girls and that of obesity (adult equivalent of 27) was found to be 13.3% and 14.7% respectively in boys and girls. In univariate analyses statistically significant associations were found between the risk of obesity and gender, socioeconomic status (SES), and reported physical activity. CONCLUSION We found significant levels of overweight and obesity amongst children aged 10-14 and found associations with SES, gender and reported physical activity as has been previously reported elsewhere.
LPS- or IFN-y-induced macrophage NO synthesis by PGE2

Macrophage nitric oxide (NO) synthesis is an integral component ofthe host defense system. We have previously found that NO and prostaglandins in- teract in a variety of ways. NO modulates Kupifer cell prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) production and we have re- cently described the inhibitory effects of PGE2 on NO synthesis in both Kupifer cells and hepatocytes. Activated macrophages produce a number of prosta- glandins but studies regarding the capacity of pros- taglandins to regulate macrophage NO synthesis have yielded conflicting results. We found that exogenous PGE2 decreased lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced NO synthesis in murine resident peritoneal macro- phages and in the RAW 264.7 murine macrophage cell line. PGE2 also suppressed NO synthesis in re- sponse to interferon-y (IFN-'y) alone and a combina- tion of LPS + IFN-'y. Inhibition of endogenous PGE2 synthesis with indomethacin or ibuprofen had no effect on NO synthesis. PGE2 added with the activating slim- ulus was most effective. PGE2 lost the capacity to block NO synthesis ifadded more than 180 min after LPS. PGE2 decreased inducible NO synthase (iNOS) mRNA and immunoreactive iNOS protein, consistent with the hypothesis that exogenous PGE2 inhibits mac- rophage iNOS expression but that the inhibition de- pends on the time and concentration of prostaglandin exposure. J. Leukoc. Biol. 61: 712-720; 1997.
Model-Based Location Recommender System Using Geotagged Photos On Instagram

Instagram is one of the popular social media services used by a variety of people around the world. It has a huge number of active users. The more users, the larger and the more different Instagram data are available. In this paper, we propose a Model-based location recommender system (MLRS), which creates a profile for each location and uses it to recommend locations, based on user interests. Since our analysis does not have an appropriate dataset to check, we use both Foursquare and Instagram to create our dataset. Next, we propose the Term-Frequency and Inverse Document Frequency(TF-IDF) method to rank extracted hashtags of selected Instagram locations based on Instagram image captions. This gives us the main idea of locations, based on 30 recent image captions hashtag posted. Then, we used FastText to classify hashtags of each location post. We evaluated our system with a large-scale real dataset collected from Instagram concerning precision, recall and the F-measure. Finally, the experimental results show that the highest result achieved when the FastText model tested with n=1 with an F-measure of 77.8%.
DITrust Chain: Towards Blockchain-Based Trust Models for Sustainable Healthcare IoT Systems

Today, internet and device ubiquity are paramount in individual, formal and societal considerations. Next generation communication technologies, such as Blockchains (BC), Internet of Things (IoT), cloud computing, etc. offer limitless capabilities for different applications and scenarios including industries, cities, healthcare systems, etc. Sustainable integration of healthcare nodes (i.e. devices, users, providers, etc.) resulting in healthcare IoT (or simply IoHT) provides a platform for efficient service delivery for the benefit of care givers (doctors, nurses, etc.) and patients. Whereas confidentiality, accessibility and reliability of medical data are accorded high premium in IoHT, semantic gaps and lack of appropriate assets or properties remain impediments to reliable information exchange in federated trust management frameworks. Consequently, We propose a Blockchain Decentralised Interoperable Trust framework (DIT) for IoT zones where a smart contract guarantees authentication of budgets and Indirect Trust Inference System (ITIS) reduces semantic gaps and enhances trustworthy factor (TF) estimation via the network nodes and edges. Our DIT IoHT makes use of a private Blockchain ripple chain to establish trustworthy communication by validating nodes based on their inter-operable structure so that controlled communication required to solve fusion and integration issues are facilitated via different zones of the IoHT infrastructure. Further, $\text{C}\mathrm {\sharp }$ implementation using Ethereum and ripple Blockchain are introduced as frameworks to associate and aggregate requests over trusted zones.
Tracking visual search demands and memory load through pupil dilation

Continuously tracking cognitive demands via pupil dilation is a desirable goal for the monitoring and investigation of cognitive performance in applied settings where the exact time point of mental engagement in a task is often unknown. Yet, hitherto no experimentally validated algorithm exists for continuously estimating cognitive demands based on pupil size. Here, we evaluated the performance of a continuously operating algorithm that is agnostic of the onset of the stimuli and derives them by way of retrospectively modeling attentional pulses (i.e., onsets of processing). We compared the performance of this algorithm to a standard analysis of stimulus-locked pupil data. The pupil data were obtained while participants performed visual search (VS) and visual working memory (VWM) tasks with varying cognitive demands. In Experiment 1, VS was performed during the retention interval of the VWM task to assess interactive effects between search and memory load on pupil dilation. In Experiment 2, the tasks were performed separately. The results of the stimulus-locked pupil data demonstrated reliable increases in pupil dilation due to high VWM load. VS difficulty only affected pupil dilation when simultaneous memory demands were low. In the single task condition, increased VS difficulty resulted in increased pupil dilation. Importantly, online modeling of pupil responses was successful on three points. First, there was good correspondence between the modeled and stimulus locked pupil dilations. Second, stimulus onsets could be approximated from the derived attentional pulses to a reasonable extent. Third, cognitive demands could be classified above chance level from the modeled pupil traces in both tasks.
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1Center for Corporate Sustainability and Environmental Finance, Faculty of Business and Economics, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia. Email: martina.linnenluecke@mq.edu. au 2Department of Marketing and Management, Faculty of Business and Economics, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia. Email: layla.branicki@mq.edu. au 3Faculty of Business and Economics, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia. Email: stephen. brammer@mq.edu. au 4Department of Applied Finance and Actuarial Studies, Faculty of Business and Economics, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia. Email: tom.smith@mq.edu. au
Snakebite epidemiology and health-seeking behavior in Akonolinga health district, Cameroon: Cross-sectional study

Background Snakebite envenoming causes 81,000–138,000 annual human deaths and pain, terror, or disability in 4.5–5.4 million victims. Accurate community-based epidemiological data is scarce. Our objective was to assess snakebite incidence, mortality, and health-seeking behavior, in an affected health district of Cameroon. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional multicluster household survey in Akonolinga health district, Centre Region, Cameroon, from October to December 2016. Using probability-proportional-to-size, 20 villages were randomly selected, then, all inhabited households were systematically selected. Annual incidence and adjusted odds-ratio for predictors were estimated. Findings Among the 9,924 participants, 66 suffered a snakebite during the past year: the resulting incidence is 665 (95%CI: 519–841) per 100,000 inhabitants per year. Victims were aged 5-75y (median: 34y), 53% were male and 57% farmer-cultivators. Two children died (case-fatality rate: 3%); 39 (59%) presented severity signs, including 2 (3%) neurotoxic syndromes, 20 (30%) systemic digestive syndromes, and 17 (26%) severe cytotoxic syndromes. Non-severe cases included 20 (30%) mild cytotoxic syndromes and 7 (11%) dry bites. Only two victims (3%) received antivenom. 59 (89%) used family traditional practices, 25 (38%) traditional healers, and 31 (47%) consulted health facilities. Median delays to these three care-options were 5, 45, and 60 minutes, respectively. Traditional treatments included incisions (n = 57; 86%), tourniquets (n = 51; 77%) and black-stones (n = 44; 67%). The two last procedures were also used in health facilities (n = 18). Consulting traditional healers was associated with severity (adjusted-OR: 19.6 (2.5–156), p = 0.005) and complications (aOR: 17.3, 2.4–123, p = 0.004). Long-term disabilities were subjective psychological trauma (n = 47; 71%), finger amputation (n = 1; 2%), ankylosis (n = 1; 2%) and chronic pain (n = 1; 2%). Conclusions We observed alarming levels of snakebite incidence, mortality, antivenom scarcity, and use of traditional medicine. It could represent several thousands of victims at national level. We suggested conducting a country-wide study, and improving antivenom supply, first-aid training, for traditional healers and health professionals.
Defining benchmarks for tolerable risk thresholds in cancer screening: Impact of HPV vaccination on the future of cervical cancer screening

The performance of cervical cancer screening will decline as a function of lower disease prevalence—a consequence of successful human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination. Replacement of cytology with molecular HPV testing as the primary screening test and adoption of risk‐based screening, with less intense screening of vaccinated individuals and initiated at older ages is expected to improve efficiency. However, policy officials may decide to further reduce or eliminate screening as the ratio of benefits to harms continues to decline. To evaluate the level of risk currently tolerated for different cancers in the United States (ie, for which clinical guidelines do not recommend secondary prevention though effective screening methods exist), we used US cancer registry data to compare incidence (2008‐2012) and survival (1988‐2011) associated with different cancers for which organized screening is recommended and not recommended. The most common cancer at ages 70 to 74 years (ie, age group with highest cancer incidence and reasonable life expectancy to consider screening in the US) satisfying Wilson and Jungner's classic screening criteria was vulvar cancer (incidence = 9/100 000 females). In comparison, the incidence of cervical cancer among females 65 years of age (the upper recommended age limit for screening) was 13 cases per 100 000 females (low as a reflection of effective screening), whereas 10‐year survival was 66% (similar to vulvar cancer at 67%). Our approach of defining tolerable risk in cancer screening could help guide future decisions to modify cervical screening programs.
Prostatic hyperplasia: Vascularization, hemodynamic and hormonal analysis of dogs treated with finasteride or orchiectomy

As a consequence of a hormonal imbalance, Prostatic Hyperplasia (PH) is characterized by increased prostate volume, along with higher local angiogenesis and vascularization. Orchiectomy is the common treatment for dogs, however it is not an option for breeding animals. Thus, finasteride arises as the drug of choice for stud dogs. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of orchiectomy or finasteride therapies on hormonal and vascular dynamics of PH dogs. Fifteen dogs, aged 6–13 years were assigned to: Untreated Group (dogs diagnosed with PH—n = 5), Finasteride treated group (PH dogs treated with finasteride—n = 5) and Orchiectomy treated group (PH dogs submitted to orchiectomy–n = 5). Evaluations were performed in a monthly interval (first day of treatment; after 30 and 60 days). Doppler ultrasonography was performed to measure prostatic volume, vascularization and hemodynamic profile of prostatic artery. Dihydrotestosterone, estrogen and testosterone concentrations were measured. At day 60, prostatic biopsy was performed for histological, immunohistochemical and qPCR analysis for VEGF-A expression. At day 60, vascularization score was higher in untreated compared to treated groups (finasteride and orchiectomy). Furthermore, VEGF-A expression was lower in the Orchiectomy Treated Group, but VEGF-A was immunohistochemically lower in both treated groups (finasteride and orchiectomy) compared to the Untreated Group. The efficiency of finasteride treatment in reducing clinical signs, prostate volume and vascularization appears to be similar to orchiectomy. In conclusion, both PH medical and surgical therapy lead to reduction in prostate dimension and VEGF-A expression and, consequently, lower local vascularization. However, orchiectomy promotes marked hormonal changes, which ultimately lead to prostate atrophy.
Developments in feed formulations, feeding practices and culture techniques for marine shrimp larvae

This paper reviews topics related to shrimp hatchery nutrition and zootechnics (managing captive or domestic animals) with special emphasis on practical diets and techniques that can significantly help shrimp hatchery operators to optimize daily protocols. Optimized techniques for the production and use of Artemia have been communicated extensively through workshops and publications (e.g. FAO Technical Paper by lavens and Sorgeloos 1996), but in reality these techniques are being applied much less strictly in shrimp hatcheries than in fish hatcheries. For shrimp there is still scope for improvement in the field of cyst selection, hatching, hygiene and enrichment. On the other hand, artificial diets are becoming more efficient in Artemia replacement, and some insights are given into the role of improved feed digestibility and feed processing technology. In another section, the effect of nutrition on egg quality, postlarvae (Pl) quality and broodstock quality is illustrated with examples taken from recent publications. And finally, an overview is provided for developments in recirculation systems and intensive larviculture practices.
ECOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT OF GIANT HOGWEED (HERACLEUM MANTEGAZZIANUM) Edited by Petr Pyšek, Matthew J.W. Cock, Wolfgang Nentwig, and Hans Peter Ravn

Heracleum mantegazzianum Sommier & Levier (Apiaceae) is an unusually large invasive herbaceous species, able to grow up to 5 m tall, with 1m compound leaves and 50–150 rays of umbels per peduncle. Besides their obvious competitiveness, plants of this species contain furanocoumarins that make the human skin vulnerable to severe sunburn. The species, native to the Caucasus Mountains, has spread across Europe creating serious environmental and health problems. It has been reported as established in at least 10 of the U.S. states. So far, it is not established in California, but it is naturalized in Oregon, Washington and British Columbia (Boersma et al. 2006; Page et al. 2006). This volume represents the output of a threeyear European Union project involving almost 40 European experts. It is an authoritative compendium of current knowledge of Giant Hogweed taxonomy, biogeography, toxicity, genetics, reproduction, seed biology, population ecology, and invasion dynamics. The possibilities of mechanical, chemical, and biological control as well as model-assisted evaluations of control strategies are also summarized in separate chapters. There are only a very few invasive plant species to whom such well elaborated monographs have been dedicated. Because this species is becoming a serious problem in several U.S. states, knowledge concentrated in this volume will be invaluable. While many infestations in the United States are still rather small, we should learn from this volume that H. mantegazzianum exhibited in Europe a distinct lag phase of 60 to 70 yr. The following exponential phase of spread was associated with distinct broadening of habitat preferences. Watercourses and other riparian environments were initially the major dispersal routes, but once the species started to spread beyond the river corridors, other linear habitats such as roads and railways became important. Subsequently, the species became less confined to higher altitudes and invaded warmer areas. We may expect that several studies presented in this book will stand as model cases in plant invasion ecology and management. Petr Pyšek and his coworkers should be congratulated on this remarkable monograph on this spectacular but pernicious species!
Cannabis, the Endocannabinoid System and Immunity—the Journey from the Bedside to the Bench and Back

The Cannabis plant contains numerous components, including cannabinoids and other active molecules. The phyto-cannabinoid activity is mediated by the endocannabinoid system. Cannabinoids affect the nervous system and play significant roles in the regulation of the immune system. While Cannabis is not yet registered as a drug, the potential of cannabinoid-based medicines for the treatment of various conditions has led many countries to authorize their clinical use. However, the data from basic and medical research dedicated to medical Cannabis is currently limited. A variety of pathological conditions involve dysregulation of the immune system. For example, in cancer, immune surveillance and cancer immuno-editing result in immune tolerance. On the other hand, in autoimmune diseases increased immune activity causes tissue damage. Immuno-modulating therapies can regulate the immune system and therefore the immune-regulatory properties of cannabinoids, suggest their use in the therapy of immune related disorders. In this contemporary review, we discuss the roles of the endocannabinoid system in immunity and explore the emerging data about the effects of cannabinoids on the immune response in different pathologies. In addition, we discuss the complexities of using cannabinoid-based treatments in each of these conditions.