Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Gastrointestinal concerns in children with autism spectrum disorder: A qualitative study of family experiences

Gastrointestinal distress is a prevalent issue in the autism spectrum disorder community, with implications for the person living with autism spectrum disorder and their families. However, the experiences of families caring for a child with co-occurring autism spectrum disorder and gastrointestinal symptoms have not been explored to date. We conducted one-on-one semi-structured interviews with 12 parents of children with co-occurring autism spectrum disorder and gastrointestinal symptoms. Using an inductive analysis approach, drawing on phenomenology, we identified four major themes across interviews. First, parents reported that their child had difficulty verbally communicating the presence of gastrointestinal symptoms, leading parents to rely on bodily signs and non-verbal behaviors to recognize when their child was experiencing gastrointestinal distress (Theme 1). Next, gastrointestinal issues impacted the child’s well-being and the ability to participate in and fully engage in activities (Theme 2), and the family’s well-being (Theme 3). Finally, parents often experienced challenges with seeking accessible and quality healthcare for their child’s gastrointestinal problems (Theme 4). These findings elucidate the incredible toll that gastrointestinal symptoms have on the overall wellness of children with autism spectrum disorder and their families. Lay abstract Gastrointestinal problems are common in the autism spectrum disorder community and may affect both the person with autism spectrum disorder and their families. However, little research is available on the experiences of families who have a child with both autism spectrum disorder and gastrointestinal symptoms. We held one-on-one interviews with 12 parents of children who had both autism spectrum disorder and gastrointestinal symptoms. We analyzed the raw text responses from these interviews and identified four main themes. First, parents shared that their children had trouble verbally communicating when they were experiencing gastrointestinal symptoms (Theme 1). This led parents to use bodily signs, such as changes in the stool, and non-verbal behaviors, such as irritability, to recognize when their child was having gastrointestinal symptoms. Next, gastrointestinal issues affected both the child’s well-being and their ability to attend class and extracurricular or social activities (Theme 2). The gastrointestinal issues also affected the family’s routines, overall well-being, and their ability to go out and do activities together as a family (Theme 3). Finally, parents often had challenges receiving accessible and quality healthcare for their child’s gastrointestinal problems (Theme 4). Together, these findings highlight the enormous burden that gastrointestinal symptoms have on the wellness of children with autism spectrum disorder and their families.
Clarifying the relationship between alexithymia and subjective interoception

The long-standing hypothesis that emotions rely on bodily states is back in the spotlight. This has led some researchers to suggest that alexithymia, a personality construct characterized by altered emotional awareness, reflects a general deficit in interoception. However, tests of this hypothesis have relied on heterogeneous assessment methods, leading to inconsistent results. To shed some light on this issue, we administered a battery of self-report questionnaires of interoception and alexithymia to three samples from Italy, the U.S., and Singapore (N = 814). Correlation and machine learning analyses showed that alexithymia was associated with deficits in both subjective interoceptive accuracy and attention. Alexithymics’ interoceptive deficits were primarily related to difficulty identifying and describing feelings. Interoception showed a weaker association with externally-oriented thinking as operationalized by the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) and no association with the affective dimension of alexithymia later introduced by the Bermond-Vorst Alexithymia Questionnaire (BVAQ). We discuss our results with reference to the theoretical and psychometric differences between these two measures of alexithymia and their shortcomings. Overall, our results support the view that interoceptive deficits are a core component of alexithymia, although the latter cannot be reduced to the former.
High-Dimensional Unbalanced Binary Classification by Genetic Programming with Multi-Criterion Fitness Evaluation and Selection

Abstract High-dimensional unbalanced classification is challenging because of the joint effects of high dimensionality and class imbalance. Genetic programming (GP) has the potential benefits for use in high-dimensional classification due to its built-in capability to select informative features. However, once data are not evenly distributed, GP tends to develop biased classifiers which achieve a high accuracy on the majority class but a low accuracy on the minority class. Unfortunately, the minority class is often at least as important as the majority class. It is of importance to investigate how GP can be effectively utilized for high-dimensional unbalanced classification. In this article, to address the performance bias issue of GP, a new two-criterion fitness function is developed, which considers two criteria, that is, the approximation of area under the curve (AUC) and the classification clarity (i.e., how well a program can separate two classes). The obtained values on the two criteria are combined in pairs, instead of summing them together. Furthermore, this article designs a three-criterion tournament selection to effectively identify and select good programs to be used by genetic operators for generating offspring during the evolutionary learning process. The experimental results show that the proposed method achieves better classification performance than other compared methods.
Relationship Between Self-Reported Concomitant Depressive and Anxiety Symptoms and the Post-Concussion Symptoms Scale (PCSS)

ABSTRACT Objectives: The current study explored how affective disturbances, particularly concomitant anxiety and depressive symptoms, impact baseline symptom self-reporting on the Post-Concussion Symptoms Scale (PCSS) in college athletes. Methods: Athletes were separated into four groups (Healthy Control (HC) (n = 581), Depression Only (n = 136), Anxiety Only (n = 54), Concomitant Depression/Anxiety (n = 62)) based on their anxiety and depression scores. Groups were compared on Total PCSS Score as well as 5 PCSS Symptom Cluster scores (Cognitive, Physical, Affective, Sleep, and Headache). Results: The three affective groups reported significantly greater symptomatology than HCs, with the Concomitant group showing the highest symptomatology scores across all clusters. The depressive symptoms only group also reported significantly elevated symptomatology, compared to HCs, on every symptom cluster except headache. The anxiety symptoms only group differed from HCs on only the cognitive symptoms cluster. Additionally, the Concomitant group reported significantly increased PCSS symptomatology, in terms of total scores and all 5 symptom clusters, compared to the depressive symptoms only and anxiety symptoms only groups. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that athletes experiencing concomitant depressive/anxiety symptoms report significantly greater levels of symptomatology across all 5 PCSS symptom clusters compared to HCs. Further, results suggest that athletes experiencing concomitant affective disturbance tend to report greater symptomatology than those with only one affective disturbance. These findings are important because, despite the absence of concussion, the concomitant group demonstrated significantly elevated symptomatology at baseline. Thus, future comparisons with post-concussion data should account for this increased symptomatology, as test results may be skewed by affective disturbances at baseline.
Transcranial direct current stimulation and sporting performance: A systematic review and meta‐analysis of transcranial direct current stimulation effects on physical endurance, muscular strength and visuomotor skills

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a non‐invasive brain stimulation technique that has been linked with a range of physiological and cognitive enhancements relevant to sporting performance. As a number of positive and null findings have been reported in the literature, the present meta‐analysis sought to synthesise results across endurance, strength and visuomotor skill domains to investigate if tDCS improves any aspect of sporting performance. Online database searches in August 2020 identified 43 full‐text studies which examined the acute effects of tDCS compared to sham/control conditions on physical endurance, muscular strength, and visuomotor skills in healthy adults. Meta‐analysis indicated a small overall effect favouring tDCS stimulation over sham/control (standardized mean difference (SMD) = 0.25, CI95%[. 14;. 36]). Effects on strength (SMD = 0.31, CI95%[.10;.51]) and visuomotor (SMD = 0.29, CI95%[.00;.57]) tasks were larger than endurance performance (SMD = 0.18, CI95%[.00;.37]). Meta‐regressions indicated effect sizes were not related to stimulation parameters, but other factors such as genetics, gender, and experience may modulate tDCS effects. The results suggest tDCS has the potential to be used as an ergogenic aid in conjunction with a specified training regime.
Preoperative optimization of diabetes

As of 2018, there were an estimated 34.2 million diabetic patients in the United States with 7.3 million of them remaining undiagnosed. Worldwide there are as many as 493 million people living with diabetes and this number is predicted to increase to 700million by 2045. Diabetes has a profound impact on quality of life and financial stress for patients as they incur medical costs, which are on average more than 2 times that of nondiabetic patients and are more likely to incur catastrophic health care expenditures. Diabetic patients require surgical interventions more frequently than their nondiabetic counterparts and often face a myriad of perioperative complications including increased risk of kidney injury, postoperative infection, thromboembolic events, and cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Hyperglycemia has been implicated in increased length of hospital stay and resource utilization in surgical patients and improved glycemic control may lead to mitigation of both cost and postoperative complications. Preoperative glycemic control is often challenging to achieve given the complexity of managing nil per os (NPO) guidelines, enhanced recovery after surgery protocols, and surgical stress, all of which can lead to fluctuating glucose levels in surgical patients. Outpatient diabetic management is becoming more complex with the introduction of newer oral antihyperglycemic agents such as sodium-glucose co-transport (SGLT-2) inhibitors and with the increasing use and sophistication of insulin pumps and continuous glucose monitors. The preoperative encounter provides a unique opportunity to identify undiagnosed diabetic patients, optimize glycemic control, and mitigate periprocedural risk.
Association of total cerebral small vessel disease burden with the cavitation of recent small subcortical infarcts

Background Recent small subcortical infarcts (RSSIs) could evolve into cavitation (lacunes) or non-cavitation (white matter hyperintensities or disappearance) during the chronic period, but the factors involved remain unclear. Purpose To explore the association between total cerebral small vessel disease (CSVD) burden and lesion cavitation. Material and Methods We retrospectively selected 202 inpatients with an isolated RSSI who underwent baseline and follow-up magnetic resonance imaging (median interval = 16.6 months; interquartile range [IQR]=8.2–30.1). Inpatients were divided into cavitation and non-cavitation groups depending on whether a fluid-filled cavity formed. Data including demographic, clinical, and radiological features were collected and analyzed. To determine total CSVD burden, four imaging markers, including lacunes, microbleeds, white matter hyperintensities, and enlarged perivascular spaces, were rated and summed as a final practical score between 0 and 4. Results Overall, 137 (67.8%) patients progressed to cavitation and 65 (32.2%) to non-cavitation. Binary multivariable regression analysis showed that the baseline total CSVD burden (P = 0.005) and infarct diameter (P = 0.002) were independent risk factors for cavitation. A severe total burden (scores of 3–4) at baseline was independently related to cavitation (P = 0.001). Moreover, the total CSVD burden score varied from 2 (IQR=1–3) at baseline to 3 (IQR=2–4) at follow-up. The extent of the increase in total burden was correlated with cavitation (r = 0.201; P = 0.004). Conclusion Total CSVD burden, both the baseline value and extent of increase, was positively associated with cavitation. RSSIs with severe total CSVD burden at baseline have a greater potential to become cavitated.
Therapeutic effects of carvacrol on beta‐amyloid‐induced impairments in in vitro and in vivo models of Alzheimer's disease

Due to the complex nature of Alzheimer's disease (AD), it is important to investigate agents with multiple effects in the treatment of AD. Carvacrol possesses anti‐acetylcholinesterase, anti‐oxidant, and neuroprotective properties. We therefore investigated therapeutic effects of carvacrol on cell viability, oxidative stress, and cognitive impairment in Aβ1–42‐induced in vitro and in vivo models of AD. SH‐SY5Y cells differentiated into neurons by retinoic acid were pretreated with carvacrol or galantamine before Aβ1–42 administration. For in vivo experiments, a rat model of AD was established by bilateral intrahippocampal injection of Aβ1–42. The groups received 1% DMSO, carvacrol, or galantamine intraperitoneally twice a day (morning and afternoon) for 6 days. Cell viability was determined using MTT and LDH tests. Learning and memory functions were assessed using a passive‐avoidance test. Oxidant–antioxidant parameters (MDA, H2O2, SOD, and CAT) and Tau, Aβ1–40, and Aβ1–42 peptide levels in in vitro supernatant or in vivo serum and hippocampal samples were measured using ELISA. Carvacrol increased cell viability and exhibited a protective effect against oxidative stress by preventing Aβ1–42‐induced cytotoxicity, LDH release, and increments in MDA and H2O2 levels in vitro. Additionally, it improved memory impairment by reversing Aβ1–42‐induced changes on passive‐avoidance test. Carvacrol ameliorated Aβ1–42‐induced increments in MDA and H2O2 levels in in vitro supernatant and in vivo hippocampal samples. However, none of the treatments changed in vitro SOD and Tau‐peptide levels, or in vivo serum levels of MDA, H2O2, SOD, CAT, Tau peptide, Aβ1–40, or Aβ1–42. Our results suggest that multi‐target pharmacological agent carvacrol may be promising in treatment of AD by preventing beta‐amyloid‐induced neurotoxicity, oxidative stress, and memory deficits.
Iron Pole Shape Optimization of IPM Motors Using an Integrated Method

Abstract An iron pole shape optimi zation method to reduce cogging torque in Interior Permanent Magnet (IPM) motors is developed by using the reduced basis technique coupled by finite element and design of experiments methods. Objective function is defined as the minimum cogging torque. The experimental design of Taguchi method is used to build the approximation model and to perform optimization. This method is demonstrated on the rotor pole sh ape optimization of a 4-poles/24-slots IPM motor. Index TermsIPM motor, Cogging torque reduction, iron pole shape optimization, reduced basis technique, FEA, Design of Experiments (DOE) I. I NTRODUCTION Brushless permanent motors have been widely used in industrial applications because of their efficiency and power density. In particular, the spoke-type motor, which can concentrate flux from permanent magnets, has a high torque density per unit volume resulting from its high reluctance torque and structure for concentrating flux from permanent magnet. However, cogging torque and torque ripple can be increased due to a distortion of air gap flux density distribution in the IPM motors. This drawback is due to its asymmetric magnetic reluctance on the edge of the permanent magnet. There have been some developments for rotor pole shape optimization. Table I summarizes the literature by showing the type of optimization approach. Cogging torque reduction in IPM motors was performed using a rotor with flux barriers [1][3]. Eccentric pole design was proposed to compensate the armature reaction for reducing torque ripple [4]. To obtain better performance, the rotor pole shape was varied and divided into three parts. These consist of two end parts of eccentric surfaces and one uniform surface. Response surface methodology (RSM) was used during the design process [5]. The continuum shape design sensitivity formula and the finite element method are employed to calculate the sensitivity of flux linkage to the design variables, which determine the shape of iron pole piece [6]. They used B-Spline parameterization to optimize the design variables in order to provide the back-EMF waveform as close as possible to a sinusoidal form. The main challenge of current optimization methods, especially for complex one, is the number of design variables required for rotor pole shape optimization and the generality of the procedure. The first method has poor performance due to the loss in flux barriers. The second method is only suitable for motor rotation in one direction. Also, the later method is not a general approach to achieve the optimum rotor pole shape profile.
Establishment of Angora rabbits’ whisker hair follicle model and optimal culture conditions

Abstract To establish the model of whisker hair follicle culture in vitro and explore the best culture conditions, the whisker hair follicles of Angora rabbits were separated with stereomicroscope and cultured in William’s E, DMEM, MEM media. The surface of the cultured whisker hair follicles was not damaged due to manual operation, resulting in the hair shaft’s growth. This indicated the success of the in vitro whisker hair follicle model. The hair shaft grew at the fastest rate in the William’s E culture (p < 0.05), which was significantly higher than that in the DMEM and MEM media. The hematoxylin-eosin results showed that compared to the William’s E group, the atrophy of whisker hair follicles in the DMEM and MEM media was evident, especially in the MEM medium. PCNA immunofluorescence staining was employed to detect the expression of whisker hair follicles. The results showed that the PCNA positive expression of the William’s E group was significantly stronger than that of the DMEM and MEM groups. Furthermore, CCK-8 and Annexin V-FITC/PI methods were used to detect the proliferation and apoptosis of the dermal papilla cells (DPCs). The results of this study provide a model for studying the hair growth of fur animals.
Bees Two-Hive Algorithm for Optimal Power Flow

This paper presents bees two-hive algorithm for solving the optimal power flow (OPF) problem with various constraints. The objective of the proposed technique is to improve the quality solution of the conventional bees algorithm that minimize the total fuel cost subject to operational and physical constraints i.e. energy balance, generation and transmission limits including security constraints. The proposed methodology is tested on the IEEE 30-bus test system. The results obtained using the proposed approach are compared to GA, PSO, BA and other conventional. The comparison of quality solution with other algorithms confirms performance of proposed technique. Simulation results demonstrate that bees two-hive algorithm provides better results than other heuristic techniques.
Evaluation of Medium Speed Diesel generator sets and energy storage technologies as alternatives for reducing fuel consumption and exhaust emissions in electric propulsion systems for PSVs

The use of electric propulsion systems in PSVs in Brazil has recently increased, leading to be the standard for most support vessels. In those ships, the common arrangement uses high speed Diesel generator sets for power generation and induction motors driving propellers, reporting significant reductions in the fuel consumption and exhaust emissions compared with mechanically propelled PSVs. However, further abatements in these parameters could be achieved by implementing other technologies for power production. In this work, the use of medium- speed Diesel generator sets and energy storage technologies in electrically propelled PSVs is evaluated. For the above, the fuel consumption, exhaust emissions, mass, volume and acquisition costs of four arrangements are estimated and compared. Two of the arrangements are equipped with medium-speed Diesel generator sets, two with energy storage units and one with high-speed Diesel generator sets. Energy storage appears as interesting alternative for decreasing fuel consumption and emissions by optimal loading of Diesel engines. Medium speed generators also showed reductions in fuel consumption, but highest emissions. The arrangements with high-speed generators presented the lowest mass, volume and acquisition costs.
Classified Quantization Research on Dot Gain Characteristic

Dot gain divides into physical and optical dot gain. These two parts constitute the comprehensive dot gain in the process of printing. Ink spreading on the surface of paper is used for the analysis of physical dot gain and light scattering function model is used for optical dot gain. Trace the dots on the CTP plate and offset printing proof to analyze the influence of image micro-parameters caused by dot gain. Physical and optical dot gain are quantized to research the correlation between dot gain and shape of dot. It shows that: optical dot gain of AM dot accounts for a larger proportion; dot gain of all types has no relation with shape of dot. Besides, physical dot gain of FM dot accounts for a larger proportion than optical dot gain.
Leanness: experiences from the journey to date

Purpose – Although leanness is certainly not a new concept it is doubtless still relevant. Interestingly, newly developed manufacturing paradigms and systems are always examined in relation to leanness. In other words, leanness serves in most cases as the landmark paradigm with which comparisons are being drawn between the latter and recently pioneered approaches. The purpose of this paper is to highlight the evolutional orbit that leanness has followed over the years and serve as a herald of the current state of this evolution, which will be discussed further, in a separate paper.Design/methodology/approach – A great part of this paper is devoted to highlighting the misconceptions surrounding issues such as what leanness really constitutes and what are the key concepts and practices that leanness encompasses. Two successful lean transition stories are presented showing how these lean tools and techniques were implemented in the cases of two UK‐based manufacturing companies.Findings – Because of its inher.
The Research of Immunity Intrusion Detector Model Based on Vaccine Independent Mechanism

This paper describes a model of immune intrusion detection in which an independent form is introduced in. Immune intrusion detection receives the vaccine signal to control the Vaccine Module in real-time signal processing. Vaccine extraction signal is that extract from one memory detector set with antibodies to mature vaccine set and vaccination signal is that vaccinated other mature detectors which need vaccination. The objective of this model is to share antibodies (detectors), establish communication links between different detectors increase the flexibility of detectors and improve the overall detection ability of detectors. Through the simulation by MATLBE, it proves this model has greater comprehensive detection performance.