Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Genotype-specific persistence of genital human papillomavirus (HPV) infections in women followed for 6 years in the Finnish Family HPV Study.

BACKGROUND Persistent human papillomavirus (HPV) infection is the most important risk factor for cervical cancer, and understanding genotype-specific HPV persistence is essential for elucidating the natural history of HPV infections. METHODS In the Finnish Family HPV Study, 329 pregnant women (mean age, 25.5 years) were recruited during the third trimester of pregnancy and were followed up for 6 years. Multiplex HPV genotyping for 27 low- and high-risk HPV types was used to define genotype-specific prevalence at each visit. Generalized estimating equation models were constructed to estimate predictors of type-specific persistence (positive results at 2 consecutive visits) of species 7 and 9 HPV genotypes. RESULTS HPV16 was the most common type, followed by HPV types 18, 31, 35, 45, 58, 70, and 6. Prevalence of multiple infections ranged from 21% to 45%. Persistence was most prolonged for HPV types 35, 58, and 52, with durations of 38.7, 32.1, and 24.2 months, respectively, and was equal for multiple-type infections and HPV16, with durations of 21 and 24 months, respectively. Independent predictors of type-specific persistence of species 7 and 9 HPV genotypes were age (odds ratio, 1.13 [95% confidence interval, 1.02-1.25]; P=.017), oral sex (odds ratio, 0.37 [95% confidence interval, 0.17-0.81]; P=.013), and young age (<13 years) at initiation of smoking (odds ratio, 0.51 [95% confidence interval, 0.27-0.98]; P=.046). CONCLUSION HPV16 was the most frequent persisting HPV genotype followed by multiple infections. Early initiation of smoking, practicing oral sex and older age increase the risk for persistence of species 7 and 9 HPV genotypes.
Coverage of the Iraq War in the United States, Mainland China, Taiwan and Poland

Walter Lippmann's description in Public Opinion of the news media as the bridge between “the world outside and the pictures in our heads” is particularly apt for the two goals of this study: exploring a new perspective in agenda-setting theory grounded in network analysis, which, in turn, provides the setting for a comparative analysis of the Iraq War news coverage in newspapers of the United States, Mainland China, Taiwan and Poland. Exploring competing hypotheses about the globalization of news versus the influence of cultural and political stances in the construction of attribute agendas during the opening two years of the Iraq War, this study found some support for both factors, but with the preponderance of the evidence reflecting the political stance of each newspaper's government. In regard to the emerging perspective of network agenda setting, this study found that a focus on bundles of message attributes highlights the larger context of these individual attributes on the media agenda and presents a more nuanced measure of salience in contrast to the traditional focus on the frequency of discrete objects or attributes to define the media agenda.
Multischool, International Survey of Medical Students’ Attitudes toward “Holism”

Purpose Core and optional courses of study in complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) are being incorporated into medical curricula. The authors carried out this study to validate a tool to examine students’ attitudes toward holism and CAM and explore the relationships between their attitudes and other demographic and education-related characteristics in a large, multischool, international sample of medical students. Method In 2003 the authors used a modified version of the Integrated Medicine Attitude Questionnaire (IMAQ) to survey students at a total of six medical schools in the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Canada, the United States, and Hong Kong, China. A three-factor model was tested using confirmatory factor analysis, and the internal consistency of the factors were identified using Cronbach’s alpha coefficients. A multiple-indicator multiple-cause (MIMIC) analysis was carried out to determine the relationship between IMAQ factors and student characteristics. Results The authors validated a three-factor model for the IMAQ: (1) attitudes toward holism, (2) attitudes toward the effectiveness of CAM, and (3) attitudes toward introspection and the doctor–patient relationship. Cronbach’s α coefficients ranged from . 41 to . 71. The MIMIC model indicated that various background variables were associated with IMAQ factors (gender, race/ethnicity, and school), depending on whether students had previously visited a CAM practitioner and whether students were willing to undertake a special study module in CAM. Conclusions Further development work on the IMAQ is required and qualitative research to verify and examine the reasons behind the relationships found in this study between students’ attitudes to holism and their demographic and education-related characteristics.
Appraising through someone else’s words: The evaluative power of quotations in news reports

This article explores the inclusion of external voices in news reports, especially looking at the way these are exploited for appraising purposes. It is argued that attributions are not evaluation outlets for sources only, but indirect means of appraisal for the journalists as well, who support – and reinforce – the points they want to make through these voices. In this way, quotations help them imprint their personal views on the events and ultimately serve an ideological function in the text. The study compares the use of attributed material in various pieces of online news reporting on the announcement of the Nobel Peace Prize award to the Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo. Taking some elements of Appraisal Theory, the article examines the role of external sources in two corpora representing opposite ideological positions concerning this event – China and the Western world – in order to explore how such material is used by the writer to engage in an ideological–evaluative activity.
Performing Expatriate Mobilities in Kuala Lumpur

Abstract Research focusing upon expatriates in Asia has been geographically sporadic in nature and has typically centered upon those based in China, Hong Kong or Singapore. Focusing on Kuala Lumpur this research analyses the experiences of expatriates via the notion of automobilty by critically observing their preferred modes of travel and the importance their car journeys play in overcoming problems in Malaysia. While a growing body of research has centered on expatriates’ integration into new surroundings, these themes have predominantly observed career motivations and progression, coping mechanisms and the neocolonialism of space. The significance of the decisions made by expatriates regarding how they travel and commute in their new surroundings have been noticeably overlooked. Indeed, the findings of this paper reveal that particular modes of transport are often intrinsic tools in terms of mitigating negative environmental sensations and uncomfortable social encounters. Moreover, it is observed that transportation choices afford some expatriates exclusive opportunities to encounter Malaysia. For others however, transportation preferences lead to a new range of frustrations that were often alien to their experiences back home.
Realigning Religion and Power in Central Asia: Islam, Nation-State and (Post)Socialism

Abstract This article investigates the changing intersections between religion and politics in Muslim Central Asia. Adopting a long-term historical perspective, it shows how successive regimes meshed and clashed with Islam in their efforts to assert worldly power. Religion was uniformly marginalised in the era of Marxist–Leninist–Maoist socialism, but the cases of Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan and Xinjiang show that religion has been playing somewhat different roles across the region since 1991. For the secular authorities, Islam may be valued as a source of nation building or it may be feared as a potentially destabilising force. The resulting attempts to co-opt, channel and control religious expression provide insights into the nature of secular power and raise questions concerning the applicability to this region of influential theories in the sociology of religion.
Politicidal Violence and the Problematics of Localized Memory at Civilian Massacre Sites: The Cheju 4.3 Peace Park and the Kŏch’ang Incident Memorial Park

This article examines two South Korean sites dedicated to the remembrance of Korean War–era civilian massacres, the Cheju 4.3 Peace Park and the Kŏch’ang Incident Memorial Park. Specifically, the article explores the sites’ localized, victim-centric epistemology as one that counters nationalist discourses and narratives that privilege the state. While acknowledging that these sites offer a physical mnemonic space for challenging the hegemonic “June 25” (yugio) narrative, the author suggests that, in their narrow spatial and ideological orientation, these sites cumulatively fall short of offering a cohesive narrative of the politicidal, anti-Communist state-building project of which they are a consequence. Though of tremendous value in restoring victims’ honor, critiquing human rights abuses of the Republic of Korea, and giving a voice to marginalized groups, these spaces fail to provide historical clarity to a distorted era of South Korea’s past. In addressing this problematic, the article examines the role of family bereavement associations, narrative constructions, and the silencing of the National Guidance League Incident at these locations.
National identity (re)construction and negotiation and cosmopolitanism in the intercultural study-abroad context : student sojourners from Taiwan in the UK

This exploratory study investigates how national identity is possibly (re)constructed, negotiated, and expanded during sojourners’ study-abroad experience, focusing on the student sojourners from Taiwan in the United Kingdom. Situated within the framework of social constructionism, the study is based on an interdisciplinary foundation which draws on the fields of identities, nationalism, intercultural communication, study-abroad, education and cosmopolitanism. It involves 20 international students from Taiwan in qualitative interviews and thematic analysis guides the data analysis process. The findings revealed a number of important points. First, the factors of homeland Taiwan and its cultures, schooling, family education, family history and the study-abroad experience are found to be integral to the national identities (i.e., Taiwanese and Chinese, ROC, identities) of the sojourners from Taiwan. Secondly, in terms of identity conflict management, especially with the mainland Chinese (PRC) peers, the dominating style as a way of defending the self-face and Taiwanese identity, and the avoiding tendency (i.e., avoiding arguments over the Taiwan-China political dispute) have been reported. Overall, the boundaries of being Taiwanese are drawn and re-drawn in accordance with the on-going process of communication with Chinese (PRC) and non-Chinese (PRC) in the study-abroad context in the UK. Last, whereas Taiwanese identity becomes particularly salient, cosmopolitan belonging is also found to be strong among many participants due to the cultural diversity of the study-abroad environment, although it is also contested for some. The study contributes to the study-abroad literature in its discussion of national identities. Also, the findings offer insights for international educators to better understand the experience of students from Taiwan in the UK and for educators in Taiwan who handle pre-sojourn courses and/or training.
Dynamics of the Emergence and Establishment of a Newly Dominant Genotype of Japanese Encephalitis Virus throughout Asia

ABSTRACT In recent years, genotype I (GI) of Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) has displaced genotype III (GIII) as the dominant virus genotype throughout Asia. In this study, the largest collection of GIII and GI envelope gene-derived viral sequences assembled to date was used to reconstruct the spatiotemporal chronology of genotype displacement throughout Asia and to determine the evolutionary and epidemiological dynamics underlying this significant event. GI consists of two clades, GI-a and GI-b, with the latter being associated with displacement of GIII as the dominant JEV genotype throughout Asia in the 1990s. Phylogeographic analysis indicated that GI-a diverged in Thailand or Cambodia and has remained confined to tropical Asia, whereas GI-b diverged in Vietnam and then dispersed northwards to China, where it was subsequently dispersed to Japan, Korea, and Taiwan. Molecular adaptation was detected by more than one method at one site (residue 15), and coevolution was detected at two pairs of sites (residues 89 to 360 and 129 to 141) within the GI E gene protein alignment. Viral multiplication and temperature sensitivity analyses in avian and mosquito cells revealed that the GI-b isolate JE-91 had significantly higher infectivity titers in mosquito cells from 24 to 48 h postinfection than did the GI-a and GIII isolates. If the JE-91 isolate is indeed representative of GI-b, an increased multiplicative ability of GI-b viruses compared to that of GIII viruses early in mosquito infection may have resulted in a shortened extrinsic incubation period that led to an increased number of GI enzootic transmission cycles and the subsequent displacement of GIII. IMPORTANCE Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV), a mosquito-borne flavivirus, represents the most significant etiology of childhood viral neurological infection in Asia. Despite the existence of effective vaccines, JEV is responsible for an estimated 68,000 human cases and a reported 10,000 to 15,000 deaths annually. Phylogenetic studies divided JEV into five geographically and epidemiologically distinct genotypes (GI to GV). GIII has been the source of numerous JEV epidemics throughout history and was the most frequently isolated genotype throughout most of Asia from 1935 until the 1990s. In recent years, GI has displaced GIII as the most frequently isolated virus genotype. To date, the mechanism of this genotype replacement has remained unknown. In this study, we have identified genetic determinants underlying the genotype displacement as it unfolded across Asia. JEV provides a paradigm for other flaviviruses, including West Nile, yellow fever, and dengue viruses, and the critical role of the selective advantages in the mosquito vector.
Autoantibodies in Rheumatoid Arthritis Autoantibodies in Pregnancy Autoantibodies as Predictors of Disease

Although the incidence and prevalence of individual auto-immune diseases are not high (table), the population burden of the disease is large and underestimated. 1 Serum autoantibodies, which appear long before onset of clinical disease, are a characteristic feature, as recently emphasised by Markus Nielen and colleagues. 2 Studying patients with rheumatoid arthritis, these researchers found antibodies for IgM rheumatoid factor or anticyclic-citrullinated-peptide (anti-CCP) in serum samples taken a median of 4·5 (range 0·1–13·8) years before disease onset. The negative pre-dictive value of these tests was 75% and the positive predictive value was even higher (100%). Thus the presence of autoantibodies in otherwise healthy individuals might be a marker of future autoimmune disease or, alternatively, certain autoantibodies might predict the course in a person with established disease. In another recent study of individuals with stored serum who went on to develop rheumatoid arthritis, Rantapää-Dahlqvist et al 3 showed the predictive ability of anti-CCP, which is highly sensitive for rheumatoid arthritis. In a population-based survey of over 150 000 people in northern Sweden, these investigators found 83 who went on to be diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis. Anti-CCP was found in a third of these 83, on average several years before onset of disease. The negative predictive value of this test was high, and the positive predictive value in a population with joint symptoms was 62%. Autoantibodies associated with rheumatoid arthritis may also predict disease in healthy individuals in whom hormonal changes might be a trigger for autoimmune disease. In 401 healthy pregnant women followed up for a year, none with a negative rheumatoid factor developed rheum-atoid arthritis, whereas two of nine with rheumatoid factor developed the disease. 4 Similar data have been seen for postpartum autoimmune thyroid disease. 5 In 1594 consecutive pregnant women, antithyroid-peroxidase anti-bodies (anti-TPO) were found in 83 (5·2%) when studied within 3 days of delivery, and autoimmune thyroid disease developed in 38 (2·4%) in the year of follow-up. 5 Of the 38 who developed clinical disease, 37 had a titre over 1:1600, whereas of the 33 not developing clinical disease, 30 had a titre under 1:400. Anti-TPO at 1:1600 or higher at delivery had a 97% sensitivity and a 91% specificity for postpartum autoimmune thyroid disease. In another study, 6 291 pregnant women were tested for anti-TPO at 12 and 32 weeks' gestation and 4 weeks' postpartum. 15 developed autoimmune thyroid disease in the first year postpartum, and …
Genetic markers of rheumatoid arthritis susceptibility in anti-citrullinated peptide antibody negative patients

Introduction There are now over 30 confirmed loci predisposing to rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Studies have been largely undertaken in patients with anticyclic citrullinated peptide (anti-CCP) positive RA, and some genetic associations appear stronger in this subgroup than in anti-CCP negative disease, although few studies have had adequate power to address the question. The authors therefore investigated confirmed RA susceptibility loci in a large cohort of anti-CCP negative RA subjects. Methods RA patients and controls, with serological and genetic data, were available from UK Caucasian patients (n=4068 anti-CCP positive, 2040 anti-CCP negative RA) and 13,009 healthy controls. HLA-DRB1 genotypes and 36 single nucleotide polymorphisms were tested for association between controls and anti-CCP positive or negative RA. Results The shared epitope (SE) showed a strong association with anti-CCP positive and negative RA, although the effect size was significantly lower in the latter (effect size ratio=3.18, p<1.0E-96). A non-intronic marker at TNFAIP3, GIN1/C5orf30, STAT4, ANKRD55/IL6ST, BLK and PTPN22 showed association with RA susceptibility, irrespective of the serological status, the latter three markers remaining significantly associated with anti-CCP negative RA, after correction for multiple testing. No significant association with anti-CCP negative RA was detected for other markers (eg, AFF3, CD28, intronic marker at TNFAIP3), though the study power for those markers was over 80%. Discussion In the largest sample size studied to date, the authors have shown that the strength of association, the effect size and the number of known RA susceptibility loci associated with disease is different in the two disease serotypes, confirming the hypothesis that they might be two genetically different subsets.
Center for Economic Institutions Working Paper Series

This paper examines the determinants of board composition and firm valuation as a function of board composition in Taiwan — a country that features relatively weak protection for investors, firms with controlling shareholders, and pyramidal groups. The results suggest that there is poor governance when the board is dominated by members who are affiliated with the controlling family but good governance when the board is dominated by members who are not affiliated with the controlling family.
Incidence and relative risk for developing cancer among patients with COPD: a nationwide cohort study in Taiwan

Objectives This observational study aimed to examine the incidence of malignant diseases, including specific cancer types, after the diagnosis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in Taiwanese patients. Setting Taiwan's National Health Insurance Research Database. Participants The definition of a patient with COPD was a patient with a discharge diagnosis of COPD or at least 3 ambulatory visits for COPD. The index date was the date of the first COPD diagnosis. Patients with a history of malignancy disorders before the index date were excluded. After matching age and gender, 13 289 patients with COPD and 26 578 control participants without COPD were retrieved and analysed. They were followed from the index date to malignancy diagnosis, death or the end of study follow-up (31 December 2011), whichever came first. Primary outcome measures Patients were diagnosed with cancer (n=1681, 4.2%; 973 (7.3%) for patients with COPD and 728 (2.7%) for patients without COPD). The risk of 7 major cancer types, including lung, liver, colorectal, breast, prostate, stomach and oesophagus, between patients with COPD and patients without COPD was also estimated. Results The mean age of all study participants was 57.9±13.5 years. The average length of follow-up to cancer incidence was 3.9 years for patients with COPD and 5.0 years for patients without COPD (p<0.01). Patients with COPD were diagnosed with cancer (n=973, 73%) at a significantly higher rate than patients without COPD (n=708, 2.7%; p<0.01). The HR for developing cancer in patients with COPD was 2.8 (95% CI 2.6 to 3.1) compared with patients without COPD after adjusting for age, sex and comorbidities. The most common cancers in patients with COPD include lung, liver, colorectal, breast, prostate and stomach cancers. Conclusions The risk of developing cancer is higher in patients with COPD compared with patients without COPD. Cancer screening is warranted in patients with COPD.
On Teaching Methods: The Personal Experiences of Teachers of English

With the globalization and internationalization of education, many teachers from Asian countries pursue their professional development in English-speaking settings. However, there seems to be scarce research on these teachers’ expectations, lived experiences and identities in these contexts, and how their personal experiences influence their views and teaching when they return to their home countries. Using interviews and email correspondences, the current article examines the perceptions and personal experiences of three teachers of English (from Vietnam, China and Taiwan) who studied in Australia. Among others, findings suggest that the participants negotiated their expectations, lived experiences and sense of identity in different ways regardless of the degree to which their experiences in Australia matched their expectations. As teachers of English, they were constantly reflecting on the suitability of applying the teaching methods learned in their local teaching contexts. When they returned to their home countries, all of them found it useful to share their personal experiences of living and studying abroad with their students. Their strategic and practical application of what they had learned and/or experienced in Australia assisted them in having new options in dealing with teaching and learning issues in their home countries. This article hopes to shed light on aspects that may influence the growth of teachers of English.