Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An introduction to multivariate adaptive regression splinesfor the cane industry

Industries strive to find the balance between increased productivity and future sustainability of production. To this end, the sugar cane industry maintains records from each farm about CCS (commercial cane sugar content (%)), total cane yield, cane varieties and growing conditions throughout each region. A challenge that the cane industry faces is how to accurately extract useful information from this vast array of data to better understand and improve the production system. Data mining methods have been developed to search large data sets for hidden patterns. This paper introduces a powerful data mining method known as Multivariate Adaptive Regression Splines (MARS). By applying the MARS methodology to model CCS production data from the Herbert district, a model was produced for the 2005 harvest period. This model produced a north-south geographic separation between low and high CCS producing farms in line with recorded CCS values. The model was also able to identify farm groupings which contributed to lower, modelled CCS values, relative to other farms. A brief investigation on the isolated effects of variety was also conducted.
Contenido y estructura de representaciones sociales sobre pedagogía y pedagogos en profesores de ciencias

Estudio que han investigado las actitudes y discursos de profesores brasilenos ante la Pedagogia y pedagogos, utilizando como marco teorico de analisis la Teoria de las Representaciones Sociales y la Teoria del Conflicto Intergrupo. Se utilizaron datos de cuatro muestras distintas de profesores, pedagogos y estudiantes de cursos de licenciatura, que respondieron voluntariamente a los cuestionarios y entrevistas elaborados. Los indicadores estadisticos calculados a partir de los datos recogidos sugieren que una parcela de los profesores presenta una tendencia actitudinal negativa con relacion a la pedagogia y a los pedagogos. Mientras que el analisis de las entrevistas sugiere la existencia de un posible sistema de representacion subyacente a las declaraciones, en forma de estereotipos negativos de la figura del pedagogo, y apoyados en la conviccion de la existencia de un distanciamiento entre teoria y practica - el nucleo central de la supuesta representacion social.
Effectiveness of a diagnostic algorithm combining clinical probability, D-dimer testing, and computed tomography in patients with suspected pulmonary embolism in an emergency department.

OBJECTIVE The aim of our study was to assess the clinical effectiveness of a simplified algorithm using the Wells clinical decision rule, D-dimer testing, and computed tomography (CT) in patients with suspected pulmonary embolism (PE) in an Emergency Department (ED). METHODS Patients with clinically suspected PE from the Emergency Department were included from May 2007 through December 2008. Clinical probability was assessed using the Wells clinical decision rule and a VIDAS D-dimer assay was used to measure D-dimer concentration. Patients were categorized as "pulmonary embolism unlikely" or "pulmonary embolism likely" using the dichotomized version of the Wells clinical decision rule. Pulmonary embolism was considered excluded in patients with unlikely probability and normal D-dimer test (< 500 ng/ml). All other patients underwent CT, and pulmonary embolism was considered present or excluded based on the results. Anticoagulants were withheld from patients classified as excluded, and all patients were followed up for 3 months. RESULTS 241 patients were included in the study. The prevalence of PE in the entire population was 23.6%. The combination of unlikely probability using the dichotomized Wells clinical decision rule and a normal D-dimer level occurred in 23.6%, thus making CT unnecessary. During the followup period, no thromboembolic events were recorded and there were no deaths related to venous thromboembolic disease (3-month thromboembolic risk 0% [95% CI, 0%-8%]). CONCLUSIONS In this study we have confirmed the effectiveness of a diagnostic management strategy using a simple clinical decision rule, D-dimer testing, and CT in the evaluation and management of patients with clinically suspected pulmonary embolism.
Defective cardiac parasympathetic control in patients with heart disease.

Abstract To define the state of the parasympathetic nervous system in heart failure, parasympathetic blockade with atropine was induced after adrenergic blockade with propranolol in 12 normal subjects and in nine patients with heart disease. Atropine elevated heart rate by 55 ± 9 per cent in normal subjects, but by only 23 ± 8 per cent in patients with heart disease (p less than 0.05). In 23 control subjects and 22 patients, transient elevations in arterial pressure were produced by intravenous injections of phenylephrine, and successive R-R intervals were plotted as a function of systolic pressure. The slowing of heart rate per unit rise in systolic arterial pressure averaged 16.0 ±1.8 msec per millimeter of mercury in normal subjects but only 3.70 ± 0.8 msec per millimeter of mercury in the patients (p less than 0.001). Baroreceptor-induced slowing of heart rate in normal subjects was shown to be mediated by the parasympathetic nervous system since it could be abolished with atropine. These findings poi.
Mouse Ae 1 E 699 Q mediates SO 4 2 i / aniono exchange with [ SO 4 2 ] i-dependent reversal of wild-type pHo sensitivity

Marina N. Chernova,* Andrew K. Stewart,* Parul N. Barry, Michael L. Jennings, and Seth L. Alper Molecular and Vascular Medicine Unit and the Renal Division, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts; Department of Psychology, Wellesley College, Wellesley, Massachusetts; and Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, Arkansas
Revisión: desarrollo y crecimiento de la musculatura axial de la lubina Dicentrarchus labrax L.

Se compendian en este trabajo los estudios realizados sobre el desarrollo y crecimiento de la musculatura axial de la lubina Dicentrarchus labrax L. , incluyendose tambien algunos resultados y conclusiones relevantes en otras especies. En el momento de la eclosion, la larva de lubina presenta dos estratos musculares: musculo rojo superfi cial y musculo blanco, ambos con un apreciable grado de inmadurez histologica. Desde la eclosion hasta el momento de la apertura de la boca las fi bras musculares rojas y blancas crecen unicamente por hipertrofi a. Sin embargo, con el inicio de la alimentacion externa, la larva de lubina inicia un periodo de intenso crecimiento muscular hipertrofi co e hiperplasico. Hasta el fi nal de la fase larvaria, ademas de importantes cambios estructurales y en las isoformas de miosina de las fi bras rojas y blancas, se diferencia progresivamente el musculo intermedio o rosa. Durante la fase postlarvaria, los procesos de maduracion histologica de la musculatura persisten hasta el comienzo de la edad juvenil (. 6 meses). En alevines y juveniles de lubina, la dinamica del crecimiento muscular esta infl uenciada por la epoca del ano, en funcion de factores medioambientales como la temperatura y el fotoperiodo. Esta infl uencia afecta de forma muy acentuada a la hiperplasia muscular, la cual describe una secuencia alternante con valores maximos durante el verano e inicio del otono.
Linearly Polarized and Dual-Polarized Magneto-Electric Dipole Antennas With Reconfigurable Beamwidth in the H-plane

Linearly polarized and dual-polarized magneto-electric (ME) dipole antennas with a dynamic beamwidth control in the H-plane are presented. The design methodology uses tunable parasitic dipoles placed on the sides of a driven ME dipole along its H-plane. Each parasitic dipole is loaded with a varactor diode to change the strength of the mutual coupling; therefore, the overall radiation pattern produced by the driven ME dipole and the two parasitic dipoles can be tuned. Two fully functional prototypes with more than 10% impedance bandwidths are developed and tested, demonstrating the H-plane beamwidth with a continuously tuning range from 80° to 160° for the linearly polarized antenna and from 72° to 133° for either polarization mode of the dual-polarized antenna. The radiation efficiencies are better than 80% in all states of operation for both antennas.
Thrombolysis at a Controlled Pressure Prolongs the Survival of Skin Flaps Treated with Superoxide Dismutase

The role of thrombolysis in reestablishing patency in the microcirculation following ischemia, and thereby improving the efficacy of agents attenuating reperfusion injury, such as the oxygen free radical scavenger, superoxide dismutase (SOD), was investigated in a rat model. Abdominal skin flaps were subjected to normothermic ischemia induced by complete occlusion of the pedicle for periods of 12, 13, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, and 24 hr. In Group 1 (n = 64), all animals received flap washout using 100,000U urokinase (manual injection) followed by 7,500 IU SOD given intra-arterially immediately prior to reperfusion. Animals in Group 2 received flap washout consisting of 100,000U urokinase given via a pressurized delivery system, followed by 7,500 IU SOD. Results demonstrated a statistically significant improvement in flap survival in Group 2. The authors concluded that thrombolytic therapy may be useful in improving the delivery of agents, such as SOD, which attenuate reperfusion injury in skin flaps.
Administration of Sulfonylureas Can Increase Glucose-Induced Insulin Secretion for Decades in Patients With Maturity-Onset Diabetes of the Young

Objective— To ascertain whether the effect of sulfonylureas on glucose-mediated insulin release persists for years to decades in patients with maturity-onset diabetes of the young. Research Design and Methods— The effect of sulfonylurea treatment on glucose-induced insulin secretion was ascertained prospectively for up to 33 yr in 12 diabetic patients of the maturity-onset diabetes of the young RW pedigree, who are genetically homogeneous because they share DNA markers on chromosome 20q. In 7 of these patients, paired glucose tolerance tests, given while the patients were on and off sulfonylureas, were performed after 7–31 yr. Results— Glucose-induced insulin secretion showed an average increase of 68% in diabetic patients who remained responsive to chlorpropamide after having been on and off the drug for decades. In most patients, however, glucose-induced insulin secretion declines over time (1–4%/yr). Some patients become unresponsive to sulfonylureas after 3–25 yr and then have very small or no increases in glucose-induced insulin secretion and require treatment with insulin to normalize fasting hyperglycemia. Conclusions— Increase in glucose-induced insulin secretion remains the most important mechanism of the action of sulfonylureas during long-term administration.
The Sense of Presence for the Suddenly Deafened Adult:Implications for Virtual Environments

Reports from adventitiously deafened individuals of a sense of unconnectedness with their surroundings, of a sense that the world seems dead, offer a compelling rationale for the argument that auditory cues are a crucial determinant of the sense of presence. Moreover, the crucial element of auditory stimulation for creating a sense of presence may be the auditory background, comprising the incidental sounds made by objects in the environment, rather than the communication and warning signals that typically capture our attention. Although designers of virtual environments have most often tried to maximize the sense of presence in the user by attempting to improve the fidelity of visual displays, the arguments presented here suggest that background auditory stimulation may be useful or even critical for achieving a full sense of presence.
Bayesian Mixture Modelling and Inference based Thompson Sampling in Monte-Carlo Tree Search

Monte-Carlo tree search (MCTS) has been drawing great interest in recent years for planning and learning under uncertainty. One of the key challenges is the trade-off between exploration and exploitation. To address this, we present a novel approach for MCTS using Bayesian mixture modeling and inference based Thompson sampling and apply it to the problem of online planning in MDPs. Our algorithm, named Dirichlet-NormalGamma MCTS (DNG-MCTS), models the uncertainty of the accumulated reward for actions in the search tree as a mixture of Normal distributions. We perform inferences on the mixture in Bayesian settings by choosing conjugate priors in the form of combinations of Dirichlet and NormalGamma distributions and select the best action at each decision node using Thompson sampling. Experimental results confirm that our algorithm advances the state-of-the-art UCT approach with better values on several benchmark problems.
Evidence that Melatonin Acts in the Pituitary Gland through a Dopamine‐independent Mechanism to Mediate Effects of Daylength on the Secretion of Prolactin in the Ram

A previous study provided evidence that melatonin acts in the pituitary gland to mediate the effects of daylength on the secretion of prolactin in sheep. This was based on the observation that hypothalamo‐pituitary disconnected (HPD) Soay rams showed normal patterns in the changes in the peripheral blood concentrations of prolactin in response to alterations in photoperiod (10‐fold higher concentrations under long than short days), and in response to exogenous melatonin (rapid decline following the administration of a constant‐release implant of melatonin). The purpose of this study was to establish whether dopamine (DA) might be involved in mediating the effects of melatonin on the secretion of prolactin. Groups of HPD (n = 7) and control Soay rams (n = 8) were treated with vehicle (control, 2.0 ml 0.1 M tartaric acid/saline sc), bromocriptine (DA agonist, 0.06 mg/kg sc) or sulpiride (DA antagonist, 0.6 mg/kg sc), and the acute prolactin responses were measured over the next 4 h. Treatments were carried out under short days (8L:16D, low prolactin), long days (16L:8D, high prolactin), and under long days in the presence of a constant‐release implant of melatonin (low prolactin). The prolactin response to TRH (1.25μg/kg iv) was also measured. Bromocriptine caused a decrease in the plasma concentrations of prolactin in both HPD and control rams under short and long days. Sulpiride had no effect in the HPD rams on any occasion, but caused a very marked increase in the plasma concentrations of prolactin in the control rams under short days, long days, and under long days + melatonin. TRH caused an acute increase in the plasma concentrations of prolactin in the HPD rams under both long and short days although the responses were notably reduced compared with the controls especially under long days + melatonin. Overall, the inhibitory response to the DA agonist in HPD rams indicates the presence of DA D2 receptors linked to functional lactotrophs in the isolated pituitary gland. However, the total lack of a response to the DA antagonist indicates the absence of endogenous DA mechanisms regulating the secretion of prolactin in the HPD rams. The conclusion is that melatonin acts directly on the pituitary gland to mediate effects of photoperiod through a DA‐independent mechanism.
Thimerosal, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and GlaxoSmithKline.

To the Editor . — I am the first author of a recent article on a study undertaken by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to screen for a potential link between thimerosal-containing vaccines and neurodevelopmental delays.1 The article has been subject to heavy criticism from antivaccine lobbyists. Their criticism basically comes down to the following two claims: the CDC has watered down the original findings of a link between thimerosal-containing vaccines and autism, and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has hired me away from the CDC so as to convince me to manipulate the data further before publication. Because I was responsible for nearly all aspects of this study, including study design, data gathering, data analysis, and writing of the article, I wish to give my opinion on these claims. These are my personal opinions and do not represent the opinion of the CDC or GSK. Did the CDC water down the original results? It did not. This misconception comes from an erroneous perception of this screening study and other epidemiological studies. The perception is that an epidemiological study can have only 1 of 2 outcomes: either an …
Engendering Health with Recommender Systems

The first Workshop on Engendering Health with Recommender Systems was organized in conjunction with ACM RecSys 2016. The focus of the workshop was on bringing together researchers and practitioners from diverse areas of health, well-being, decision support, and behavioral change. Health-related issues in recommender systems have been a growing research topic in the recent years and this was a initial attempt at bringing together academics and practitioners to share their experiences on working on related issues.
Avaliação do risco de extinção do veado-cambuta Mazama nana Hensel, 1872, no Brasil.

O estado de conservacao do veado cambuta, Mazama nana (Hensel, 1872), foi avaliado de acordo com os criterios da IUCN (2001), com base nos dados disponiveis ate 2010. Sintese do processo de avaliacao pode ser encontrada em Peres et al. (2011) e Beisiegel et al. (2012). A categoria proposta para o taxon e Vulneravel (VU) segundo os criterios A4cde, ou seja, ameacado, de acordo com informacoes sobre declinio populacional passado e projecao de declinio populacional futuro. Justificativa – Mazama nana , com no maximo 15 Kg de peso corporal, e a menor especie do genero. Sua distribuicao geografica atual, bastante fragmentada, restringe-se ao sul do Brasil Esta classificacao mantem o status da especie em relacao a lista oficial de fauna ameacada (MMA 2003). Justifica-se pela suspeita de reducao de populacao maior ou igual a 30%, sem perspectiva de cessar os impactos. Esta reducao e causada por efeito de borda nos pequenos fragmentos, caca, predacao por caes domesticos, agrotoxicos e enfermidades de ungulados domesticos. A extensao de ocorrencia da especie e maior que 20.000 km2 e sua area de ocupacao e maior que 2.000 km2; sua populacao total e maior do que 10.000 individuos maduros, portanto a especie nao esta ameacada sob os criterios B, C e D. Nao ha analise quantitativa de probabilidade de extincao para esta especie. Nao existem evidencias de emigracao ou imigracao diferencial de individuos desta especie entre o Brasil e os paises vizinhos, portanto a categoria da especie nao e alterada quando se aplica a avaliacao regional.
Mechanisms Underlying Rate-Dependent Remodeling of Transient Outward Potassium Current in Canine Ventricular Myocytes

Transient outward K+ current (Ito) downregulation following sustained tachycardia in vivo is usually attributed to tachycardiomyopathy. This study assessed potential direct rate regulation of cardiac Ito and underlying mechanisms. Cultured adult canine left ventricular cardiomyocytes (37°C) were paced continuously at 1 or 3 Hz for 24 hours. Ito was recorded with whole-cell patch clamp. The 3-Hz pacing reduced Ito by 44% (P<0.01). Kv4.3 mRNA and protein expression were significantly reduced (by ≈30% and ≈40%, respectively) in 3-Hz paced cells relative to 1-Hz cells, but KChIP2 expression was unchanged. Prevention of Ca2+ loading with nimodipine or calmodulin inhibition with W-7, A-7, or W-13 eliminated 3-Hz pacing-induced Ito downregulation, whereas downregulation was preserved in the presence of valsartan. Inhibition of Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase (CaMK)II with KN93, or calcineurin with cyclosporin A, also prevented Ito downregulation. CaMKII-mediated phospholamban phosphorylation at threonine 17 was increased in 3-Hz paced cells, compatible with enhanced CaMKII activity, with functional significance suggested by acceleration of the Ca2+i transient decay time constant (Indo 1-acetoxymethyl ester microfluorescence). Total phospholamban expression was unchanged, as was expression of Na+/Ca2+ exchange and sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+-ATPase proteins. Nuclear localization of the calcineurin-regulated nuclear factor of activated T cells (NFAT)c3 was increased in 3-Hz paced cells compared to 1-Hz (immunohistochemistry, immunoblot). INCA-6 inhibition of NFAT prevented Ito reduction in 3-Hz paced cells. Calcineurin activity increased after 6 hours of 3-Hz pacing. CaMKII inhibition prevented calcineurin activation and NFATc3 nuclear translocation with 3-Hz pacing. We conclude that tachycardia downregulates Ito expression, with the Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent CaMKII and calcineurin/NFAT systems playing key Ca2+-sensing and signal-transducing roles in rate-dependent Ito control.
Cutaneous toxicities of the multikinase inhibitors sorafenib and sunitinib

Multikinase inhibitors have become first‐line agents for treatment of multiple systemic cancers. These agents are very effective but can also cause a variety of toxicities affecting the skin, hair, and nails. One of the most common reactions is the hand–foot skin reaction, distinct from hand–foot syndrome caused by more traditional chemotherapy agents. All of these cutaneous reactions can negatively affect patients' quality of life and can lead to dose modifications and treatment interruptions. This article reviews the cutaneous toxicities from sorafenib and sunitinib with emphasis on treatment strategies.
Influence of the type of intracranial lesion on outcome from severe head injury.

✓ Recent studies attempting to define the outcome from severe head injury have implied, directly or indirectly, that the severity of injury (as determined by the Glasgow Coma Scale (GSC)) is the sole determinant of outcome. Little attention has been focused on the type of lesion that causes the low GCS score, and there exists an unstated hypothesis that the lesion type is not an important determinant of outcome. No attempt has been made to determine whether patients who have the same GCS score caused by different lesions have the same or different outcomes. Since this is impossible to test without a large number of cases, data were obtained from seven head-injury centers on patients who fulfilled the Glasgow criteria for severe head injury (GCS ≤ 8 for at least 6 hours). Patients were categorized according to a simple classification system comprising seven lesion types, each of which was further subdivided into two GCS score ranges (3 to 5 and 6 to 8). Of 1107 patients, the overall mortality was 41%, but .
Phylogenetic diversity of the Rickettsiae

Small subunit rRNA sequences have been determined for representative strains of six species of the family Rickettsiaceae: Rickettsia rickettsii, Rickettsia prowazekii, Rickettsia typhi, Coxiella burnetii, Ehrlichia risticii, and Wolbachia persica. The relationships among these sequences and those of other eubacteria show that all members of the family Rickettsiaceae belong to the so-called purple bacterial phylum. The three representatives of the genus Rickettsia form a tight monophyletic cluster within the alpha subdivision of the purple bacteria. E. risticii also belongs to the alpha subdivision and shows a distant yet specific relationship to the genus Rickettsia. However, the family as a whole is not monophyletic, in that C. burnetii and W. persica are members of the gamma subdivision. The former appears to show a specific, but rather distant, relationship to the genus Legionella.
Rosuvastatin treatment is associated with an increase in insulin resistance in hyperlipidaemic patients with impaired fasting glucose

Aim of the study: The increase in physician‐reported diabetes following rosuvastatin treatment in the Justification for the Use of Statins in Prevention: an Intervention Trial Evaluating Rosuvastatin study has raised concerns whether this statin exerts a detrimental effect on glucose metabolism. We assessed the effect of rosuvastatin treatment across dose range on glucose homeostasis in hyperlipidaemic patients with impaired fasting glucose (IFG), who are at high risk to develop diabetes mellitus.