Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of the association between inflammatory markers and the prognosis of Covid-19

Introduction: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) triggers the immune system and causes changes in the serum level of inflammatory markers such as erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), C-reactive protein, ferritin, interleukin-6, LDH, D-dimer, and procalcitonin (PCT); in this study, we investigate the association between the serum level of inflammatory markers and the prognosis of COVID-19, which included mortality and intensive care unit (ICU) admission of patients. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 200 COVID-19 patients hospitalized at Ayatollah Rouhani Hospital, Babol, from March 2020 to March 2021. Demographic indicators and inflammatory markers were recorded in the questionnaire and were investigated based on disease outcome, length of hospitalization, need for non-invasive ventilation (NIV), and need for hospitalization in the ICU and ventilator. Patients who died or were discharged within the first 24 hours of hospitalization (before the test) were excluded from the study. Finally, the data were recorded in SPSS Statistics 26.0 and then analyzed. Results: The average age of patients with COVID-19 hospitalized in the hospital was 57.92 ± 16.18. The prevalence of death due to coronavirus disease in hospitalized patients was 8.5%. Besides, 23.5% of patients were hospitalized in the ICU and 28.5% required NIV. Based on the disease's outcome, a significant difference was found in the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), so the NLR was significantly higher in patients who died due to coronavirus. Moreover, the levels of erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), D-dimer, LDH, and PCT in deceased individuals were considerably higher compared to those who recovered. Conclusion: NLR, ESR, D-dimer level, LDH, and PCT are among the markers that affect COVID-19 patient outcomes. The increment of any of these markers will lead to an increase in the risk of death and also the need for ICU admission.
An adaptive and enhanced framework for daily stock market prediction using feature selection and ensemble learning algorithms

ABSTRACT Even a slight increase in accuracy when predicting the direction of stock movements can have a significant impact on the rate of returns. However, determining the most suitable variables, methods, and parameters to predict price changes is extremely challenging due to the multitude of variables influencing these changes. This paper presents an innovative prediction framework that combines ensemble learning and feature selection algorithms to effectively capture daily stock movements. The study focuses on predicting the change between the opening and closing prices of the subsequent day and employs a daily sliding window cross-validation methodology. The framework comprises fourteen variable groups encompassing a range of financial and operational indicators. Experimental findings indicate that a competitive performance was achieved for stocks within the Borsa Istanbul 30 index. Light Gradient Boosting Machines and Shapley Additive Explanations emerges as the optimal model combination and exhibits superior performance compared to a buy-and-hold strategy.
Influence of organic farming on arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal populations in a Mediterranean agro-ecosystem

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) are key components of the soil microbiota, fundamental for soil fertility, plant nutrition and functioning of agroecosystems. Data on the interactions between organic practices and AMF populations are limited and inconsistent. Here we compared AM fungal communities and glomalin-related soil protein (GRSP) content occurring in a recently converted organically farmed soil with those occurring in a conventionally managed soil. The results show that the two farming systems did not significantly differ in AM fungal spore populations and glomalin-related soil protein. We hypothesize that in our experimental system, which was converted from conventional to organic farming only recently (5 years), there may not have been enough time to allow the establishment of differentiated AM fungal populations.
Regional spatio - temporal modeling of the ionospheric Vertical Total Electron Content (VTEC) using Multivariate Adaptive Regression B‒Splines (BMARS)

Spatio‒temporal Regional modeling of the ionosphere in terms of the vertical total electron content (VTEC) is accomplished using a non‒parametric Multivariate Adaptive Regression B‒ Spline (BMARS) algorithm on the basis of Global Positioning System (GPS) observations. The basis functions are constructed as compactly supported tensor products of quadratic B‒Splines which are derived from the observations automatically. A smooth approximation is achieved by scale‒by‒scale model building strategy which searches for best fitting B Spline to the data at each scale. The real data set processed is gathered from ground based GPS stations in Europe and falls within the time interval of the geomagnetic storm on 15 February, 2011. The result of BMARS modeling apparently demonstrates the efficiency and the potential of the method. It is also compared both numerically and visually with a well‒known global and regional VTEC modeling based on spherical harmonics and B‒Splines respectively.
Simultaneous HTDMA and HR‐ToF‐AMS measurements at the HKUST Supersite in Hong Kong in 2011

This paper presents the results of simultaneous aerosol hygroscopicity and composition measurements using a Humidified Tandem Differential Mobility Analyzer (HTDMA) and an Aerodyne High‐Resolution Time‐of‐Flight Aerosol Mass Spectrometer (HR‐ToF‐AMS) at the HKUST Supersite, located at a coastal suburban site in Hong Kong. Growth factors (GFs) at 90% relative humidity and the size‐resolved composition of ambient aerosols at dry electrical mobility diameters of 75, 100, 150, and 200 nm were measured in May, September, and November 2011. Bimodal GF distributions with a dominant more hygroscopic (MH) mode and a small fraction of the nonhygroscopic or less hygroscopic mode (number fraction < 0.2) were observed throughout the study. The average MH mode GF (1.44–1.52) over the second half of September was significantly lower than that in other periods (1.53–1.64) due to the high organic loading under the influence of the continental airstream. The average ensemble mean growth factor (GF*) of maritime aerosols was higher (1.53–1.59) than that of continental aerosols (1.45–1.48). Closure between the aerosol hygroscopicity and chemical composition was also evaluated. Over 90% of measured data and predictions based on Extended Aerosol Inorganics Model with a constant GF of the organic fraction (GForg) of 1.18 are within 10% closure. Approximations for GForg using the fraction of m/z 44 in organic mass spectra, the oxygen‐to‐carbon atomic ratio, and PMF‐resolved organic factors from HR‐ToF‐AMS measurements did not yield better closure results, likely because of the overall dominance of sulfate over the whole study period. Finally, GForg of 1 to 1.5 (with κorg up to 0.29) was found to best fit the additional water content unexplained by the inorganic species.
Sunset over the islands : the Caribbean in an age of global and regional challenges

Perplexities and uncertainities - paradigms, ideas and maps in the global world crisis of identity and recongfiguration of the Caribbean Basin the globalizing impact and regional reconfiguration the process of regionalization in the Greater Caribbean towards an agenda for the greater Caribbean - the exogenous and endogenous challenges.
Creep of Rocks

"Creep" is the name applied to the slow deformation of solids under small loads acting over long periods of time. Two types of apparatus have been developed for the purpose of investigating the creep of rocks in response to stresses below the "elastic limit," as ordinarily defined. The present paper describes results obtained with these instruments during runs of various duration, up to 550 days. It is found that in many cases there is measurable flow at stresses below the "elastic limit. " An empirical law has been derived which resolves this deformation into two types of flow, termed "elastic flow" and "pseudoviscous flow. " The creep characteristics of several materials at room temperature and atmospheric confining pressure are described. Preliminary experiments on creep at high pressure and on creep by recrystallization are reported.
Analysis of thermophysical properties of chicken eggshell an alternative phase change material

Phase change materials are substances that utilize their ability to change phases for latent heat storage. PCM for energy storage must meet the parameters of thermophysical properties. One commonly used material is calcium chloride hexahydrate, which can be applied to reduce electricity consumption associated with air conditioning regulation. Meanwhile, eggshell waste containing calcium has not been maximally utilized. In this study, calcium derived from eggshells was processed into calcium chloride hexahydrate, which could potentially be an alternative to PCM. The preliminary results to get the thermal analysis in the form of the T-History method were done using the heating and cooling process of PCM with reference liquid. Based on the experimental results, it was challenging to determine the phase change occurrence in the eggshell derived PCM due to its unique texture. Consequently, the T-history test could not provide conclusive findings. Although a thin liquid layer was observed at the top of the PCM, it remained uncertain whether it indicated the melting process. Therefore, this material needs to be explored for improved processing methods to establish its potential as a sustainable PCM candidate.
Fail-Safe Flight of a Fully-Actuated Quadrotor in a Single Motor Failure

In this letter, we introduce a new quadrotor fail-safe flight solution that can perform the same four controllable degrees-of-freedom flight as a standard multirotor even when a single thruster fails. The new solution employs a novel multirotor platform known as the $T^3$-Multirotor and utilizes a distinctive strategy of actively controlling the center of gravity position to restore the controllable degrees of freedom. A dedicated control structure is introduced, along with a detailed analysis of the dynamic characteristics of the platform that change during emergency flights. Experimental results are provided to validate the feasibility of the proposed solution.
Megacities: exploring a sustainable future

World cities are reaching previously inconceivable sizes and populations, and this escalation of urban quantities and scales has ignited a fascination for the phenomenon of megacities. For the last fifteen years, The Megacities Foundation has encouraged public debate on this development, uniting practitioners from the fields of architecture, economics, geography, sociology and urban planning. This book offers a compilation of the Foundation's best lectures, defining megacities and their processes and systems, and initiating an open-ended public discussion on the evolution, governance and design of these multifaceted, expanding urban territories.
Therapeutic dosing and targeting efficacy of Pt-Mal-LHRH towards triple negative breast cancer

Objective Pt-Mal-LHRH is a newly synthesized chemotherapeutic agent that was designed to selectively target the luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) receptor expressed by triple negative breast cancer (TNBC). The aim of this study was to evaluate the therapeutic dosing, tumor reduction efficacy, and selective distribution of Pt-Mal-LHRH in-vivo. Methods and results LHRH tissue expression levels in-vivo were investigated using western blotting and LHRH was found to be increased in reproductive tissues (mammary, ovary, uterus). Further, Pt-Mal-LHRH was found to have increased TNBC tumor tissue platinum accumulation compared to carboplatin by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry analysis. The platinum family, compound carboplatin, was selected for comparison due to its similar chemical structure and molar equivalent doses were evaluated. Moreover, in-vivo distribution data indicated selective targeting of Pt-Mal-LHRH by enhanced reproductive tissue accumulation compared to carboplatin. Further, TNBC tumor growth was found to be significantly attenuated by Pt-Mal-LHRH compared to carboplatin in both the 4T1 and MDA-MB-231 tumor models. There was a significant reduction in tumor volume in the 4T1 tumor across Pt-Mal-LHRH doses (2.5–20 mg/kg/wk) and in the MDA-MB-231 tumor at the dose of 10 mg/kg/wk in models conducted by an independent contract testing laboratory. Conclusion Our data indicates Pt-Mal-LHRH is a targeting chemotherapeutic agent towards the LHRH receptor and reduces TNBC tumor growth in-vivo. This study supports drug conjugation design models using the LHRH hormone for chemotherapeutic delivery as Pt-Mal-LHRH was found to be a more selective and efficacious than carboplatin. Further examination of Pt-Mal-LHRH is warranted for its clinical use in TNBCs, along with, other reproductive cancers overexpressing the LHRH receptor.
Contraceptive use among people with disabilities in sub-Sahara Africa: A systematic review and meta-analysis

In sub-Saharan Africa, there are different studies on contraceptive use and associated factors among people with disabilities. However, the findings are inconsistent and inconclusive. This study aimed to estimate the pooled prevalence of contraceptive use and associated factors among women with disabilities in sub-Saharan Africa. Comprehensive search was performed from different databases. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis guideline was followed to report the results. The data were analyzed by using STATA software. Heterogeneity and publication bias was checked. The pooled odds ratio (POR) with a 95% confidence interval (CI) was used to report the measures of associations. The pooled prevalence of contraceptive use was 25.61% (95% CI: 20.68, 30.54). Being married (POR = 2.96; 95% CI: 1.31, 4.62), high income (POR = 2.20; 95% CI: 1.42, 2.97), having media access (POR = 1.74; 95% CI: 1.24, 2.23), being in the age group of 25–34 (POR = 2.52; 95% CI: 1.01, 3.94), vision impairment (POR = 3.82; 95% CI: 2.05, 5.59), good contraceptive knowledge (POR = 2.09; 95% CI: 1.27, 2.91), primary education (POR = 1.82; 95% CI: 1.25, 2.39), secondary education (POR = 2.31; 95% CI: 1.03, 3.59) and tertiary educational status (POR = 3.37; 95% CI: 1.28, 5.46) were factors associated with contraceptive use. Contraceptive use among women with disabilities is considerably low in sub-Saharan Africa. The use of contraceptives is primarily dependent on socio-demographic and economic status.
Possible effect of mutations on serological detection of Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto ospC major groups: An in-silico study

The outer surface protein C (OspC) of the agent of Lyme disease, Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto, is a major lipoprotein surface-expressed during early-phase human infections. Antibodies to OspC are used in serological diagnoses. This study explored the hypothesis that serological test sensitivity decreases as genetic similarity of ospC major groups (MGs) of infecting strains, and ospC A (the MG in the strain B31 used to prepare antigen for serodiagnosis assays) decreases. We used a previously published microarray dataset to compare serological reactivity to ospC A (measured as pixel intensity) versus reactivity to 22 other ospC MGs, within a population of 55 patients diagnosed by two-tier serological testing using B. burgdorferi s.s. strain B31 as antigen, in which the ospC MG is OspC A. The difference in reactivity of sera to ospC A and reactivity to each of the other 22 ospC MGs (termed ‘reactivity difference’) was the outcome variable in regression analysis in which genetic distance of the ospC MGs from ospC A was the explanatory variable. Genetic distance was computed for the whole ospC sequence, and 9 subsections, from Neighbour Joining phylogenetic trees of the 23 ospC MGs. Regression analysis was conducted using genetic distance for the full ospC sequence, and the subsections individually. There was a significant association between the reactivity difference and genetic distance of ospC MGs from ospC A: increased genetic distance reduced reactivity to OspC A. No single ospC subsection sequence fully explained the relationship between genetic distance and reactivity difference. An analysis of single nucleotide polymorphisms supported a biological explanation via specific amino acid modifications likely to change protein binding affinity. This adds support to the hypothesis that genetic diversity of B. burgdorferi s.s. (here specifically OspC) may impact serological diagnostic test performance. Further prospective studies are necessary to explore the clinical implications of these findings.
Abstract perceptual choice signals during action-linked decisions in the human brain

Humans can make abstract choices independent of motor actions. However, in laboratory tasks, choices are typically reported with an associated action. Consequentially, knowledge about the neural representation of abstract choices is sparse, and choices are often thought to evolve as motor intentions. Here, we show that in the human brain, perceptual choices are represented in an abstract, motor-independent manner, even when they are directly linked to an action. We measured MEG signals while participants made choices with known or unknown motor response mapping. Using multivariate decoding, we quantified stimulus, perceptual choice, and motor response information with distinct cortical distributions. Choice representations were invariant to whether the response mapping was known during stimulus presentation, and they occupied a distinct representational space from motor signals. As expected from an internal decision variable, they were informed by the stimuli, and their strength predicted decision confidence and accuracy. Our results demonstrate abstract neural choice signals that generalize to action-linked decisions, suggesting a general role of an abstract choice stage in human decision-making.
Characteristics and risk factors for readmission in HIV-infected patients with Talaromyces marneffei infection

Objectives Talaromyces marneffei (T. marneffei) is an opportunistic fungal infection (talaromycosis), which is common in subtropical regions and is a leading cause of death in HIV-1-infected patients. This study aimed to determine the characteristics and risk factors associated with hospital readmissions in HIV patients with T. marneffei infection in order to reduce readmissions. Methods We conducted a retrospective study of admitted HIV-infected individuals at the Fourth People’s Hospital of Nanning, Guangxi, China, from 2012 to 2019. Kaplan-Meier analyses and Principal component analysis (PCA) were used to evaluate the effects of T. marneffei infection on patient readmissions. Additionally, univariate and multifactorial analyses, as well as Propensity score matching (PSM) were used to analyze the factors associated with patient readmissions. Results HIV/AIDS patients with T. marneffei-infected had shorter intervals between admissions and longer lengths of stay than non-T. marneffei-infected patients, despite lower readmission rates. Compared with non-T. marneffei-infected patients, the mortality rate for talaromycosis patients was higher at the first admission. Among HIV/AIDS patients with opportunistic infections, the mortality rate was highest for T. marneffei at 16.2%, followed by cryptococcus at 12.5%. However, the readmission rate was highest for cryptococcus infection (37.5%) and lowest for T. marneffei (10.8%). PSM and Logistic regression analysis identified leukopenia and elevated low-density lipoprotein (LDL) as key factors in T.marneffei-infected patients hospital readmissions. Conclusions The first admission represents a critical window to intervene in the prognosis of patients with T. marneffei infection. Leukopenia and elevated LDL may be potential risk factors impacting readmissions. Our findings provide scientific evidence to improve the long-term outcomes of HIV patients with T. marneffei infection.
Food access narratives as told by consumers and retailers engaging in a COVID-19-stricken urban food system: A brief report

Small food retail (“corner”) stores in many underserved urban settings face challenges to stocking healthy, affordable foods. The food supply chain is considered one of the most important sectors of the economy and has suffered recent negative impacts due to the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, from farm to consumer. As part of the larger Baltimore Urban food Distribution (BUD) Study, we examine corner store owner and consumer perceptions of the impact of COVID-19 on navigating an urban food environment using a brief, reflective, semi-structured oral interview framed as “storytelling. ” Open-ended responses are documented, transcribed, and analyzed for key themes. Presently, we discuss initial key findings in hopes of helping to ensure sufficient value added for corner store owners and consumers who will interact with the BUD mobile application as part of a full-scale trial being implemented in Baltimore, Maryland.
Attraction of female house mice to male ultrasonic courtship vocalizations depends on their social experience and estrous stage

Male house mice (Mus musculus) produce complex ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs), especially during courtship and mating. Playback experiments suggest that female attraction towards recordings of male USVs depends on their social experience, paternal exposure, and estrous stage. We conducted a playback experiment with wild-derived female house mice (M. musculus musculus) and compared their attraction to male USVs versus the same recording without USVs (background noise). We tested whether female attraction to USVs is influenced by the following factors: (1) social housing (two versus one female per cage); (2) neonatal paternal exposure (rearing females with versus without father); and (3) estrous stage. We found that females showed a significant attraction to male USVs but only when they were housed socially with another female. Individually housed females showed the opposite response. We found no evidence that pre-weaning exposure to a father influenced females’ preferences, whereas estrous stage influenced females’ attraction to male USVs: females not in estrus showed preferences towards male USVs, whereas estrous females did not. Finally, we found that individually housed females were more likely to be in sexually receptive estrous stages than those housed socially, and that attraction to male USVs was most pronounced amongst non-receptive females that were socially housed. Our findings indicate that the attraction of female mice to male USVs depends upon their social experience and estrous stage, though not paternal exposure. They contribute to the growing number of studies showing that social housing and estrous stage can influence the behavior of house mice and we show how such unreported variables can contribute to the replication crisis.
Rede urbana metropolitana: uma análise da estrutura terciária de Belo Horizonte*

Although in the past 70’s and 80’s the terciary sector from Belo Horizonte Metropolitan Region (RMBH) experienced a modernization without parallel in Brazil, with growth rates of the modern services higher than the other Brazilian metropolitan regions, in the 90’s this movement changes its way. Therefore, we shall try to specify the dynamics of the modifications experienced by the terciary sector from RMBH in the past decade, highlighting the specific dimensions of the service sectors — e.g. formality vs informality, modern services vs traditional services, differenced growth rates etc — identifying the territorial specializations and the characterization of the spatial structure and the urban network of Belo Horizonte and its metropolitan neighborhood, using the fuzzy cluster analysis.