Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Randomized Controlled Study on the Effects of Gargling with Tea Catechin Extracts on the Prevention of Influenza Infection in Healthy Adults

Experimental studies have revealed that tea catechins prevent influenza virus infection ; however, the clinical effects have been inconclusive. At the onset of the influenza season, a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study was conducted from December 2005 to March 2006 in Japan. A total of 404 healthy volunteers, 20-65 years of age, were enrolled and randomly assigned to two groups : the catechin group gargling with tea catechin extract solution (approximately 400 μg/mL catechins) or the placebo group gargling without tea catechin extracts. In both groups, gargling was performed three times daily for 90 days. All participants were inoculated with the influenza vaccine before participating in the study. The primary outcome measure was the incidence rate of influenza infection during the study identified by a rapid assay for influenza virus antigens. On an intention to treat basis, 195 participants in the catechin group and 200 in the placebo group who started the intervention were included in the analysis. Of the participants, 6 (1.5%) were infected with influenza. The incidence rate of influenza infection in the catechin group (1.0%, 2 participants) was half that in the control group (2.0%, 4 participants), but not significant between the two groups. We could not find significant effects of gargling with tea catechin on prevention of influenza in the healthy adults inoculated with the influenza vaccine of the 2005-2006 season. However, the effects in more susceptible groups, i.e., those not vaccinated against the influenza virus, children, elderly or immunosuppressed people remain inconclusive.
Enhancing quantitative precipitation estimation of NWP model with fundamental meteorological variables and Transformer based deep learning model

Quantitative precipitation forecasting in numerical weather prediction (NWP) models rely on physical parameterization schemes. However, these schemes involve considerable uncertainties due to limited knowledge of the mechanisms involved in the precipitating process, ultimately leading to degraded precipitation forecasting skills. To address this issue, our study proposes using a Swin-Transformer based deep learning (DL) model to quantitatively map fundamental variables solved by NWP models to precipitation maps. Our results show that the DL model eﬀectively extracts features over meteorological variables, leading to improved precipitation skill scores of 21.7%, 60.5%, and 45.5% for light rain, moderate rain, and heavy rain, respectively, on an hourly basis. We also evaluate two case studies under diﬀerent driven synoptic conditions and show promising results in estimating heavy precipitation during strong convective precipitation events. Overall, the proposed DL model can provide a vital reference for capturing precipitation-triggering mechanisms and enhancing precipitation forecasting skills. Additionally, we discuss the sensitivities of the fundamental meteorological variables used in this study, training strategies, and performance limitations.
Corporate Attributes and Sustainability Reporting: A Study of Nigerian Listed Companies

Sustainability has become a global concern in recent years. Academics, organizations and governmental agencies worldwide are making concerted efforts in finding solutions toissues confronting this menace.This paper examines the corporate factors influencing sustainability reporting of listed companies in Nigeria. Four dimensions of the corporate attributes were investigated, namely: firm size, profitability, board size and board diversity. The methodology adopted was ex post facto and content analysis.Data was collected from secondary sources in particular, annual reports of companieslisted on the Nigerian Stock exchange as at April 2022. From a total population of 163, a sample of 137 companies were drawn using purposive sampling technique. Eligibility was based on online presence and availability of data. Regression model was used in analyzing the data with sustainability reporting as the dependent variable and corporate attributesas independent variables. Sector, a dichotomous variable was used to control the model, with 1 representing banking and 0 otherwise. The results revealedthat firm size, board size, board diversity and sector have positive and significant relationship with sustainability reporting, whereas profitability has negative and insignificant relationship. In conclusion, firm size, board size, board diversity and sector are the important determinants of sustainability reporting in Nigeria. It is hereby recommended that adequate legislations should be put in place to mandate the listed Nigerian companies to adopt sustainability reporting practices.
PARAMEDIAN EPIDURAL WITH MIDLINE SPINAL IN THE SAME INTERVERTEBRAL SPACE: AN ALTERNATIVE TECHNIQUE FOR COMBINED SPINAL & EPIDURAL ANAESTHESIA

Background: Combined spinal epidural anesthesia has a wide range of application in surgery, obstetrics, acute and postoperative pain management. It can reduce cardiovascular and pulmonary morbidity and mortality in high-risk patients. An attempt to resolve the controversy regarding the best CSE technique this study was undertaken where epidural catheterisation was performed by paramedian approach and subarachnoid block in midline, both at the same intervertebral space and was compared with the standard double segment technique (DST) and needle through needle technique. Materials and Methods: 90 patients scheduled for elective lower limb orthopedic surgery were randomly divided into three groups of 30 each. In Group I (SST), spinal and epidural anesthesia was given in midline by needle through needle technique, in Group II (SDT) standard epidural needle was used for epidural block by the paramedian route and spinal needle was used for SAB through the midline route at the same intervertebral space, in Group III (DST), epidural anesthesia was administered in the midline followed by the subarachnoid block done in the midline at the lower intervertebral space. Appreciation of dural puncture, delay in reflux of CSF and dry tap were observed while performing spinal block and while performing the epidural block, presence of fluid (blood/cerebrospinal fluid) at the tip of Tuohy’s needle or epidural catheter, difficulty or failure in advancement of epidural catheter, malposition of catheter, paraesthesias during the catheter insertion were recorded. Time taken from part preparation to epidural catheter fixation was noted as t1 (technique performance time) and time taken from part preparation to achievement of analgesic level of T10 was noted as t2 (time to surgical readiness). Result: SDT was comparable with SST and DST in time for technique performance (12.27±1.76 min, 11.06±3.43 min, 11.48±1.86 min respectively; p=0.164), time to surgical readiness (19.
Interannual climate variability in the Tropical Indian Ocean: A study with a hierarchy of coupled general circulation models

5 Zusammenfassung . 6
The information and communication technologies productivity impact on the UK hotel sector

Despite the great investments in information and communication technologies (ICT), research has not persuasively established corresponding productivity increases, while many studies have also found no significant relationships between productivity and ICT. However, several shortcomings have been identified in past studies, e.g. measurement errors, redistribution of impacts, ICT mismanagement. This study proposes a methodology for assessing the ICT productivity impact that overcomes these shortcomings. The methodology is tested in a dataset of three star hotels in the UK by using data envelopment analysis, a non‐parametric technique. Findings revealed that productivity gains do not accrue from ICT investments per se, but rather from the full exploitation of ICT networking and informalization capabilities. Suggestions regarding the effective and productive configuration and management of ICT applications are provided.
Clinical repercussions of game therapy in the management of individuals with cystic fibrosis

Game therapy (GT) has been used as a method to encourage the practice of physical activity in individuals with cystic fibrosis (CF), which may provide improvement in the cardiorespiratory system and treatment adherence. Objective: analyze the clinical repercussions of game therapy in the management of patients with CF. Methods: A systematic review of the literature was carried out in the following databases: PubMed, Embase, Scopus and MEDLINE via Ovid, using the descriptors: “Cystic fibrosis”, “video games” and their cognates, through which they included Studies describing the repercussions of the use of GT in individuals with CF were sought. Results: 293 studies were identified, seven of which were selected at the end. In six studies, the heart rate reached during the TG was within the recommended standards for training. The assessment of maximum oxygen consumption (VO2max) was performed in three publications, and this parameter showed higher levels compared to that identified in the six-minute walk test. The most used consoles were Nintendo WiiTM and Xbox 360™and the intensity in carrying out the exercises with the TG was moderate and intense. The individuals’ adherence to this resource was also verified, and the GT was more acceptable than others and was considered playful. Conclusion: TG proves to be an intervention capable of generating physiological responses that correspond to training needs and greater adherence and satisfaction of individuals with CF in its performance.
UvA-DARE ( Digital Academic Repository ) Synthesizing greenhouse gas fluxes across nine European peatlands and shrublands-responses to climatic and environmental changes

In this study, we compare annual fluxes of methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O) and soil respiratory carbon dioxide (CO2) measured at nine European peatlands ( n = 4) and shrublands ( n = 5). The sites range from northern Sweden to Spain, covering a span in mean annual air temperature from 0 to 16C, and in annual precipitation from 300 to 1300 mm yr −1. The effects of climate change, including temperature increase and prolonged drought, were tested at five shrubland sites. At one peatland site, the long-term ( > 30 yr) effect of drainage was assessed, while increased nitrogen deposition was investigated at three peatland sites. The shrublands were generally sinks for atmospheric CH 4, whereas the peatlands were CH 4 sources, with fluxes ranging from −519 to +6890 mg CH4-C m−2 yr−1 across the studied ecosystems. At the peatland sites, annual CH 4 emission increased with mean annual air temperature, while a negative relationship was found between net CH 4 uptake and the soil carbon stock at the shrubland sites. Annual N2O fluxes were generally small ranging from −14 to 42 mg N2O-N m−2 yr−1. Highest N2O emission occurred at the sites that had highest nitrate (NO −3 ) concentration in the soil water. Furthermore, experimentally increased NO−3 deposition led to increased N 2O efflux, whereas prolonged drought and long-term drainage reduced the N 2O efflux. Soil CO2 emissions in control plots ranged from 310 to 732 g CO2-C m−2 yr−1. Drought and long-term drainage Published by Copernicus Publications on behalf of the European Geosciences Union. 3740 M. S. Carter et al.: Synthesizing greenhouse gas fluxes generally reduced the soil CO 2 efflux, except at a hydric shrubland where drought tended to increase soil respiration. In terms of fractional importance of each greenhouse gas to the total numerical global warming response, the change in CO2 efflux dominated the response in all treatments (ranging 71–96 %), except for NO−3 addition where 89 % was due to change in CH4 emissions. Thus, in European peatlands and shrublands the effect on global warming induced by the investigated anthropogenic disturbances will be dominated by variations in soil CO2 fluxes.
EVALUATION OF HISTOPATHOLOGICAL SPECTRUM OF VARIOUS GASTRODUODENAL LESIONS

Background: To determine histopathological spectrum of various gastroduodenal lesions. Materials and Methods: Eighty patients with upper GI symptoms referred for endoscopy of both genders were studied and mucosal findings in the stomach, and duodenum were observed. Endoscopic mucosal biopsies of suspicious lesions were taken. Results: Age group 11-20 years had 7, 21-30 years had 12, 31-40 years had 38 and 41-50 years had 23 patients. The difference was significant (P< 0.05). Gastroduodenal lesions were benign gastric ulcer + chronic gastritis in 14, chronic gastritis in 36, duodenitis + chronic gastritis in 8, benign duodenal ulcer + chronic gastritis in 12, MAL Toma in 6 and gastric carcinoma in 4 patients. The difference was significant (P< 0.05). H. pylori positivity in gastroduodenal lesions was seen in benign gastric ulcer + chronic gastritis in 6, chronic gastritis in 18, duodenitis + chronic gastritis in 2, benign duodenal ulcer + chronic gastritis in 3, MAL Toma in 2 and gastric carcinoma in 4 patients. The difference was significant (P< 0.05). Conclusion: It was observed that the most often identified gastroduodenal lesion was chronic gastritis, which was followed by duodenitis, duodenal ulcers, and gastric cancer.
Data tools:Participatory RuralAppraisal Techniques

Institutions of all types have long been relied on questionnaire surveys and quick rural visits to gather information on rural people and rural resources. Samples of people selected from a large population are asked the same set of questions, and so it is assumed that the interviewers do not influence the process. Many informants are selected to ac count tor all variations, and the requesting data are statistically analyzed. Surely these survey methods are generally accepted for data collection and are used.
Many-body Fredholm index for ground-state spaces and Abelian anyons

We describe a resource-ef ﬁ cient approach to studying many-body quantum states on noisy, intermediate-scale quantum devices. We employ a sequential generation model that allows us to bound the range of correlations in the resulting many-body quantum states. From this, we characterize situations where the estimation of local observables does not require the preparation of the entire state. Instead smaller patches of the state can be generated from which the observables can be estimated. This can potentially reduce circuit size and number of qubits for the computation of physical properties of the states. Moreover, we show that the effect of noise decreases along the computation. Our results apply to a broad class of widely studied tensor network states and can be directly applied to near-term implementations of variational quantum algorithms.
A Scoping Review of the Literature on Homoeopathy in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

Background : Emotional and behavioural disorders are very common in childhood and adolescence. Homoeopathy is an alternative system of medicine which has a potential role in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (CAP). Objectives : To identify, summarize and disseminate research findings that could assess the role of Homoeopathy in CAP. Materials and Methods: Three electronic databases PubMed, Cochrane and Google scholar are searched for publications on childhood behavioural disorders in peer-reviewed, indexed journals. Articles published on Homoeopathy and CAP from 2000 to 2022 are included. An explicit systematic search strategy included web-based keyword searches. The collected information has been collated, summarized, and the results are presented in tables and charts according to key themes. Results : The research studies varied widely in all aspects such as design, conduct, intervention and outcome reporting. 56 eligible publications, (Both quantitative or qualitative) are identified on different clinical conditions in CAP. Individual sources of data are critically appraised and findings are discussed in terms of implications for gaps in research. Conclusions : There is a limited evidence base for the utility of Homoeopathy in CAP, although existing evidence shows positive findings. Our review emphasizes the paucity of studies in other CAP disorders such as Intellectual disability, Learning disability
Size distribution of convective thermals in the unstable stratified layer

An ensemble of convective thermals is considered in the layer of penetr ative turbulent convection over a homogeneous heated horizontal surface. A model of a n unsteady spontaneous jet is proposed to describe the dynamics of an isolated convective element. The model has an exact self -similar solution, which is used to derive a dynamic invariant that relates the velocity, temper ature, and radius of the jet. The size distribution of spontaneous convective jets is deri ved, which agrees with the description of the fine structure of the atmospheric surface layer. The sta tistical size distribution of thermals is su bstantiated using the Fokker -Planck kinetic equation. Key-words: convective thermals; unsteady spontaneous jets; gamma distribution
Computerized Clinical Decision Support in a Hospital Information System

Since the big potential of medical decision making was first realized, hundreds of articles introducing Clinical Decision Support Systems (CDSSs) have been published in the last three decades. But even today, only few systems are in clinical use. Even fewer are in use outside their site of origin, and their full potential for optimizing the healthcare system is far from realized. Clinician’s acceptance and utilization of CDSSs depends on its workflow-oriented, context-sensitive accessibility, and availability at the point of care, integrated into a Hospital Information System (HIS). Commercially available HIS often focus on administrative tasks and mostly do not provide additional knowledge based functionality. This paper works out advantages and disadvantages of several approaches and compares them against possible alternatives. Finally, experiences, gained by clinical use of two introduced systems, integrated in the HIS of the Vienna General Hospital, to analyze the little use of CDSSs in today’s clinical routine
Setting the scene: E-learning and the evolution of roles and practices

The purpose of this chapter is to provide an account of the development of e-learning in post-compulsory education, focusing primarily on Higher Education and formal in-service learning, which is historically where the majority of interprofessional education has taken place (Freeth et al., 2002). This is considered in relation to pedagogy, and its relationship to interprofessional education, as introduced in the preceding chapters, is considered. To provide focus, the chapter then concentrates on research into curriculum design and practice, illustrating how these ideas fit with research into new technologies. This is then discussed in terms of implications for various roles, before conclusions are drawn about the kinds of issues that remain important within this area.
The Bright Side of Lower Quality: Evidence from Restaurant Exploration

The value derived from hedonic goods is affected by reference effects at the time of consumption, usually in the form of quality standards. Consumption typically involves two steps: first, the consumer chooses a given good, among a pool of available choices; then, the consumer experiences the good and derives a satisfaction from it. We investigate the role of references in these two phases, taking into account potential selection bias in the satisfaction outcome. We develop a flexible framework for quality references, that can include one’s own past experiences, as well as that of others, and can give salience to more recent or more distant experiences. Using novel longitudinal data from restaurant reviews, we find evidence of quality loss aversion in the choice decision, in accordance with prospect theory. Surprisingly, for those choices of lower quality, satisfaction is not negatively affected as much as one would expect. This is consistent with consumers adjusting their expectations downward and suggests that expectation adjustment protects consumers when they experience a lower-than-reference quality. Our results imply that it may be better to visit restaurants in a zigzag that alternates between highand low-quality choices, compared to in crescendo or U-shaped ordering.
Importance sampling techniques for the multidimensional ruin problem for general Markov additive sequences of random vectors

Citation for published version (APA): Collamore, J. F. (2002). Importance sampling techniques for the multidimensional ruin problem for general Markov additive sequences of random vectors. open and the mean drift of {Sn I is away from A. Our main objective is to study the simulation of P{Sn E A/s, some n} using the Monte Carlo technique of importance sampling. If the set A is convex, then we establish (i) the precise dependence (as s-> 0) of the estimator variance on the choice of the simulation distribution and (ii) the existence of a unique simulation distribution which is efficient and optimal in the asymptotic sense of D. Siegmund [Ann. Statist. 4 (1976) 673-684]. We then extend our techniques to the case where A is not convex. Our results lead to positive conclusions which complement the multidimensional counterexamples of
EVALUATION OF URIC ACID LEVELS IN PREGNANCY INDUCED HYPERTENSION (PIH) IN RELATION TO MATERNAL AND PERINATAL OUTCOMES: A TEACHING HOSPITAL BASED STUDY

Background: Preeclampsia is one of the frequent disorders, with an unclear origin, that raise the risk of maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality. Some studies claim that blood uric acid lacks the sensitivity and specificity needed to be an effective diagnostic tool, while other studies claim that uricemia can be used to predict Preeclampsia in pregnant women. Materials and Methods: Out of the 659 pregnant women hospitalized during a 12-month period, 86 women with an average systolic blood pressure more than 140 mm Hg and/or diastolic blood pressure more than 90 mm Hg were enrolled for this study. 56 normotensive pregnant women were also included as controls. Maternal serum uric acid levels were assessed to find out the relation to the incidence of Preeclampsia and it’s complications. Result: 86 of the 659 pregnant women have been identified as having pregnancy-related hypertension (PIH) with an incidence of 13.05%. Out of the 86 cases, there were 53 (61.63%) cases of moderate Preeclampsia, 21 (24.42%) cases of severe Preeclampsia, and 12 (13.95%) cases of Eclampsia. Maternal death was a complication in 4 (4.65%) cases with PIH. Conclusion: Elevated Serum uric acid levels might be used as a biochemical indicator of maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality in Preeclampsia and Eclampsia.