Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Selecting Representative Objects Considering Coverage and Diversity

We say that an object o attracts a user u if o is one of the top-k objects according to the preference function defined by u. Given a set of objects (e.g., restaurants) and a set of users, in this paper, we study the problem of computing a set of representative objects considering two criteria: coverage and diversity. Coverage of a set S of objects is the distinct number of users that are attracted by the objects in S. Although a set of objects with high coverage attracts a large number of users, it is possible that all of these users have quite similar preferences. Consequently, the set of objects may be attractive only for a specific class of users with similar preference functions which may disappoint other users having widely different preferences. The diversity criterion addresses this issue by selecting a set S of objects such that the set of attracted users for each object in S is as different as possible from the sets of users attracted by the other objects in S. The existing work on representative objects considers only one of the coverage and diversity criteria. We are the first to consider both of the criteria where the importance of each criterion can be controlled using a parameter. Our algorithm has two phases. In the first phase, we prune the objects that cannot be among the representative objects and compute the set of attracted users (also called reverse top-k) for each of the remaining objects. In the second phase, the reverse top-k of these objects are used to compute the representative objects maximizing coverage and diversity. Since this problem is NP-hard, the second phase employs a greedy algorithm. For the sake of time and space efficiency, we adopt MinHash and KMV Synopses to assist the set operations. We prove that the proposed greedy algorithm is ϵ-approximate. Our extensive experimental study on real and synthetic data sets demonstrates the effectiveness of our proposed techniques.
Qualitative Research Part II: Participants, Analysis, and Quality Assurance.

This is the second of a two-part series on qualitative research. Part 1 in the December 2011 issue of Journal of Graduate Medical Education provided an introduction to the topic and compared characteristics of quantitative and qualitative research, identified common data collection approaches, and briefly described data analysis and quality assessment techniques. Part II describes in more detail specific techniques and methods used to select participants, analyze data, and ensure research quality and rigor. If you are relatively new to qualitative research, some references you may find especially helpful are provided below. The two texts by Creswell 2008 and 2009 are clear and practical.1,2 In 2008, the British Medical Journal offered a series of short essays on qualitative research; the references provided are easily read and digested.3–,8 For those wishing to pursue qualitative research in more detail, a suggestion is to start with the appropriate chapters in Creswell 2008,1 and then move to the other texts suggested.9–,11 To summarize the previous editorial, while quantitative research focuses predominantly on the impact of an intervention and generally answers questions like “did it work? ” and “what was the outcome? ”, qualitative research focuses on understanding the intervention or phenomenon and exploring questions like “why was this effective or not? ” and “how is this helpful for learning? ” The intent of qualitative research is to contribute to understanding. Hence, the research procedures for selecting participants, analyzing data, and ensuring research rigor differ from those for quantitative research. The following sections address these approaches. table 1 provides a comparative summary of methodological approaches for quantitative and qualitative research. TABLE 1 A Comparison of Qualitative and Quantitative Methodological Approaches Data collection methods most commonly used in qualitative research are individual or group interviews (including focus groups), observation, and document review. They can be used alone or in combination. While the following sections are written in the context of using interviews or focus groups to collect data, the principles described for sample selection, data analysis, and quality assurance are applicable across qualitative approaches.
Reproducibility, Construct Validity, and Responsiveness of the “How Are You?” (HAY), a Self-Report Quality of Life Questionnaire for Children with Asthma

This study assesses the reproducibility, construct validity, and responsiveness of a new self-report quality of life questionnaire, the “How Are You? ” (HAY), for 8-12-year-old children with asthma, which contains both a generic and a disease-specific part. Two hundred twenty-eight children with asthma completed the HAY and the Child Attitude Toward Illness Scale (CATIS), while their parents monitored the actual asthma status; 80 children were measured three times in order to assess reproducibility and responsiveness; 296 healthy children completed the generic section of the HAY. Significant differences were found between children with asthma and healthy children, and among asthmatic children differing in actual asthma status. Reproducibility was adequate and supportive evidence was found for construct validity. Responsiveness was demonstrated by significant score changes for most dimensions in clinically changed children. The HAY seems useful for both discriminative and evaluative research in children with asthma.
Experimental and Clinical Evidence for Loss of Effect (Tolerance) during Prolonged Treatment with Antiepileptic Drugs

Summary: Development of tolerance (i.e., the reduction in response to a drug after repeated administration) is an adaptive response of the body to prolonged exposure to the drug, and tolerance to antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) is no exception. Tolerance develops to some drug effects much more rapidly than to others. The extent of tolerance depends on the drug and individual (genetic? ) factors. Tolerance may lead to attenuation of side effects but also to loss of efficacy of AEDs and is reversible after discontinuation of drug treatment. Different experimental approaches are used to study tolerance in laboratory animals. Development of tolerance depends on the experimental model, drug, drug dosage, and duration of treatment, so that a battery of experimental protocols is needed to evaluate fully whether tolerance to effect occurs. Two major types of tolerance are known. Pharmacokinetic (metabolic) tolerance, due to induction of AED‐metabolizing enzymes has been shown for most first‐generation AEDs, and is easy to overcome by increasing dosage. Pharmacodynamic (functional) tolerance is due to “adaptation” of AED targets (e.g., by loss of receptor sensitivity) and has been shown experimentally for all AEDs that lose activity during prolonged treatment. Functional tolerance may lead to complete loss of AED activity and cross‐tolerance to other AEDs. Convincing experimental evidence indicates that almost all first‐, second‐, and third‐generation AEDs lose their antiepileptic activity during prolonged treatment, although to a different extent. Because of diverse confounding factors, detecting tolerance in patients with epilepsy is more difficult but can be done with careful assessment of decline during long‐term individual patient response. After excluding confounding factors, tolerance to antiepileptic effect for most modern and old AEDs can be shown in small subgroups of responders by assessing individual or group response. Development of tolerance to the antiepileptic activity of an AED may be an important reason for failure of drug treatment. Knowledge of tolerance to AED effects as a mechanism of drug resistance in previous responders is important for patients, physicians, and scientists.
Development of Constitutive Model of ECC Based on OpenSees Platform

Engineered cementitious composites (ECC) has good properties of energy absorption, crack control ability and excellent durability. So ECC has great potential and prospect in earthquake resistance of structures. However, theoretical research and application of ECC constitutive model are still developing. On the other hand, OpenSees with open source codes has powerful functions in seismic simulation and analyses of structures, which has been widely used in the world. The existing constitutive model ECC01 in the material library of OpenSees is relatively simple, which can be developed and improved in some degree. Therefore, existing ECC constitutive models were analyzed and summarized in the paper. Then an improved constitutive model ECC02 was proposed and the source codes were compiled and debugged based on Visual Studio and OpenSees so that it was able to be normally called in OpenSees. The two constitutive models, ECC01 and ECC02, were used to carry out the low cycle hysteresis simulation analysis of a bent pier as an example. The results show that the ECC02 constitutive model is more accurate and rational.
The relation between sweating and the innervation of sweat glands in the horse

In man and some other mammals the eccrine sweat glands are supplied with sympathetic but cholinergically operated secretory nerve fibres. In the horse the sweat glands are of the apocrine type and respond to adrenaline. Evidence has been advanced (Evans & Smith, 1956; Evans, Smith & Weil-Malherbe, 1956) to show that they are normally brought to function not by the action of sympathetic secretory nerve fibres, but by the presence, or increase, of adrenaline in the circulating blood. Noradrenaline does not have this action, though it causes piloerection, as in the eccrine species. One of the arguments in support of this opinion was provided by the confirmation of an observation made incidentally by Dupuy (1816), who showed that section of the vagosympathetic trunk in the neck or excision of the guttural (anterior cervical) ganglion was followed after an interval of about [ hr by sweating in the area so cut off from sympathetic impulses. Stimulation of the peripheral end of the divided vagosympathetic trunk gave complex results, though it caused lio sweating when applied at the time of, or a few minutes after, section of the nerve trunk. The purpose of the present experiments was to study further the effects of section and stimulation of the preganglionic cervical sympathetic, above its fusion with the vagus.
Invited Commentary Invited Commentary: Measuring Social Disparities in Health—What Was the Question Again?

Monitoring social disparities in health is not a straightforward project. Defining what constitutes a disparity is challenging, and multiple measures have been proposed to track changes in disparity over time. In this issue, Harper et al. (Am J Epidemiol 2008;167:889–899) present seven health disparity measures and apply them to US lung cancer incidence rates (1992–2004). They find that different summary measures provide different answers to the question ‘‘Has disparity increased or decreased? ’’ Their findings leave us uncertain how to use and interpret these measures to track changes in social disparities in health. In this invited commentary, the author proposes that increased attention to the scale at which disparities are measured, the interpretations attached to the various measures used, and the way in which these measures are assembled on the basis of conceptual models would benefit the field. Specifically, attention to these three areas would increase the capacity to communicate research findings to the public and policy-making consumers of disparity-related research.
Exploration of the Ability of Coleus blumei to Accumulate Aluminum

In this study, the capacity of an ornamental species (Coleus blumei) to extract and accumulate aluminum was evaluated. The analyzed parameters were amount of soluble aluminum, radical growth, tolerance rate, bioaccumulation factor, and tissues aluminum concentration. The main limiting factor for aluminum accumulation is the availability of the metal. However, Coleus blumei can grow and accumulate up to 1445.7 mg kg−1 of aluminum dry base. This plant can play an important role in the treatment of polluted water with metals, since it can grow in conditions with a pH of around 4.8. The aluminum tolerance rate showed for this plant ranged between 18.8% and 25%. Therefore, this species behaves as a non-accumulator, even though the bioaccumulation factor was 3098.5 L kg−1.
Entrepreneurial Inclination among Female Students Pursuing Management Studies- An Empirical Study

Entrepreneurship is a key element of growth and development for all countries and it is most relevant to transition countries. Entrepreneurship has been a male-dominated phenomenon from the very early age, but time has changed the situation and brought women as today's most memorable and inspirational entrepreneurs. In almost all the developed countries in the world women are putting their steps at par with the men in the field of business. Women are the nuclei of a nation. They are the real builder and moulder of a nation's destiny. The position and status of women in any society is an index of its civilization and progress. A role of modern women is not confined to the traditional role as a mother and housewife; it has and is undergoing changes. The hidden entrepreneurial potential of women is gradually being surfaced with the growing sensitivity to their role and economic status in the society; they are increasingly becoming conscious of their existence and their rights. In the prevailing scenario, Management Institutions often boost of near 100% job placement for their students and strive to create their identity around the same. But in the days to come the basis to identify an excellent institution will depend on how many entrepreneurs it created rather than how many students could find lucrative placements. A questionnaire was administered to around 100 post graduate students of Bharati Vidyapeeth Institute of Management, Kolhapur and Shahu Institute of Business Education and Research. The study aims at finding out the various motivating factors which make the women student select entrepreneurship as a career option as well as the various perceived difficulties which hinder the choice of the students in selecting entrepreneurship after their post graduate course.
A framework for analysing higher education performance: students' satisfaction, perceived learning outcomes, and dropout intentions

Drawing on Tinto's [1975. Dropout from higher education: A theoretical synthesis of recent research. Review of Educational Research, 45(1), 89–125] dropout-intentions model, Bean's [1985. Interaction effects based on class level in an explanatory model of college student dropout syndrome. American Educational Research Journal, 22(1), 35–64] socialisation model, Astin's [1999. Student involvement: A developmental theory for higher education. Journal of College Student Development, 40(5), 518–529] involvement theory, and the service marketing literature, this research presents a conceptual framework for analysing students' satisfaction, perceived learning outcomes, and dropout intentions. This framework allows for a better understanding of how students assess the university experience and how these perceptions affect future intentions. This article presents four studies testing fragments of the framework using data sets from three countries and various undergraduate programmes (business, economics, geography, and nursing). The models are tested using structural equation modelling with data collected using a questionnaire adapted to the specific contexts. The models have the ability to explain the studies' dependent variables and offer practical utility for decision-making. Applicability of the conceptual framework is evaluated in various contexts and with different student populations. One important finding is that student co-creation can be as important as perceived service quality in explaining students' cognitive learning outcomes, which in turn explain a high percentage of satisfaction and affective learning outcomes. The studies also shed light on the roles of variables such as emotional exhaustion and dropout intentions.
Cost Effectiveness in Insurance Distribution

This article explores the extent to which the independent and the exclusive agency systems of distribution of property and liability insurance differ in terms of cost effectiveness. Results of a survey of both types of insurance distributors were used to compare the two systems along several cost effectiveness dimensions. The conclusion of the study is that the exclusive agency system indicates greater effectiveness. It exhibits better performance as regards orchestration of activities of insurers and agents, and has achieved greater productivity at the agency level. The post-war growth of the direct writers and the exclusive agency systems' in the property and liability insurance industry has caused many to fear that the independent insurance agent may eventually disappear or occupy only a marginal role in the distribution of property and liability insurance. The alarm felt by many has been expressed by Kenney as follows: Unless major corrective measures are undertaken by those in position to do so, the presently waning agency system of insurance distribution faces complete disintegration in many areas of our business, and a perpetual state of agency impotence in those areas wherein we continue to operate.2 A major concern has been the ability of the stock and the mutual insurance companies and of the independent agents to compete effectively on the basis of costs with the direct writers and the exclusive agency companies. For example, Mehr suggested that: By means of central billing, lower commission scales, lower operating costs, these companies [the direct writers and the exclusive agency insurers] soon had made great inroads in the automobile insurance field. Their means of attack were classic: they offered a lower cost, comparable quality product. Michael Etgar, Ph.D., is Assistant Professor of Operations Analysis in the School of Management of State University of New York at Buffalo. He has contributed to the Journal of Industrial Economics, Journal of Retailing, Journal of Business Administration, and Industrial Organization Reviewv. 'The careful (as distinguished from common) designation for operations like those of State Farm is "exclusive agency" while CEICO and Factor Mutuals are "direct writers. " In this article the focus of analysis is on the former. 2 Roger Kenney, "Critique of American Agency System," In Wayne Snyder (ed.), Readings in Property and Casualty Insurance (Homewood, Ill.: Irwin, 1959), p. 266.
Detection of Bluetongue Group-Specific Antibody by Competitive ELISA

a2 that react with the major core protein VP7 5,7 to the reference Mab 3-17-A3 b in the cELISA. 3 Three hybridomas, 7D3A.2, 8A3B.6, and 8B1B.1, a2 were prepared against BTV17, and their Mab’s were found to be reactive with BT serotypes 1-20. The Mab’s bound to VP7 (designated VP9) 2 and did not react with epizootic hemorrhagic disease (EHD) virus. The BTV group antigen 5 was prepared using baby hamster kidney (BHK-21) cell cultures infected with BTV1 and used to coat an Immulon l c plate. Dilutions of the Mab’s were reacted on the coated plate, the plates were washed, and antimouse IgG conjugated to horseradish peroxidase d was added. After incubation, the plates were washed and the substrate and chromogen, hydrogen peroxide and 2-2’azino-di(3-ethyl benzthiazaline-6 sulfonic acid) e in a citrate buffer, were added. After 15 minutes, the optical densities (OD’s) at 405 nm were recorded. The dilution of Mab fluid to achieve an OD of 0.8-1.0 was determined. The test sera, diluted 1:2, 1:4, and 15, were used in the cELISA Mab system, adding them immediately before the Mab. Positive control antiserum from the bluetongue agar gel immunodiffusion (BT-AGID) test was further diluted 2-fold from 1:10 to 1:160. Results were reported as negative when the sample at a final dilution of 1:4 did not decrease the OD of the Mab by 60% or more. Titers were expressed as the reciprocal of the highest serum dilution giving a positive result. The BT-AGID test was conducted in accordance with the package insert in the licensed test kit. Results were reported as positive (+), weak positive (W+), negative (N), or question (? ) for samples of undetermined status. The microtiter virus neutralization (VN) test
Hippocampus segmentation using locally weighted prior based level set

Segmentation of hippocampus in the brain is one of a major challenge in medical image segmentation due to its’ imaging characteristics, with almost similar intensity between another adjacent gray matter structure, such as amygdala. The intensity similarity has causes the hippocampus to have weak or fuzzy boundaries. With this main challenge being demonstrated by hippocampus, a segmentation method that relies on image information alone may not produce accurate segmentation results. Therefore, it is needed an assimilation of prior information such as shape and spatial information into existing segmentation method to produce the expected segmentation. Previous studies has widely integrated prior information into segmentation methods. However, the prior information has been utilized through a global manner integration, and this does not reflect the real scenario during clinical delineation. Therefore, in this paper, a locally integrated prior information into a level set model is presented. This work utilizes a mean shape model to provide automatic initialization for level set evolution, and has been integrated as prior information into the level set model. The local integration of edge based information and prior information has been implemented through an edge weighting map that decides at voxel level which information need to be observed during a level set evolution. The edge weighting map shows which corresponding voxels having sufficient edge information. Experiments shows that the proposed integration of prior information locally into a conventional edge-based level set model, known as geodesic active contour has shown improvement of 9% in averaged Dice coefficient.