jimnoneill/paper-to-field-training huggingface dataset:
THE USE OF THE SOCIAL NETWORK 'VKONTAKTE' IN UNIVERSITY

Field: Social Sciences (Social Sciences)

Computerization of modern society requires new forms of interaction between the lecturer and the student, including the use of social networks. The article proposes 3 lines in using social networks in the teaching process: for education and methodological support in learning subjects; for consulting graduate-students; for technological support of project work. The author presents advantages of using the social network 'VKontakte' to resolve each of the mentioned above problems and shows possible difficulties connected with this technology and ways of their settlement. As a basis of the research the author uses the results of her work with students of the Russian Plekhanov University of Economics training in specialty 'Customs'.
Membrane Current Changes Induced by Acetylstrophanthidin in Cardiac Purkinje Fibers

Field: Neuroscience (Life Sciences)

Voltage clamp experiments were carried out with short Purkinje fibers exposed to acetylstrophanthidin. A consistent change in membrane current was an appearance of a transient inward current on repolarization to the resting potential from the preceding depolarization, when preparations were treated with sufficient concentration of acetylstrophanthidin to cause the transient depolarization. This transient inward current displayed voltage- and time-dependence on the preceding depolarization, of which kinetics were different from the pacemaker K+ current. The transient inward current was easily blocked by manganese ions. The results indicated that acetylstrophanthidin induced the transient inward current which was the basis of the transient depolarization and the current might represent an abnormal state of the slow inward current possibly related to the altered internal Na+ and Ca++ concentrations.
Usamaro Takakura (1867–1944), Japanese pioneer nemertean researcher

Field: Agricultural and Biological Sciences (Life Sciences)

Usamaro Takakura (1867–1944), a pioneer Japanese specialist on nemerteans (phylum Nemertea), established 14 new species and one new genus, Coeia. This paper gives a brief outline of his life and publications, together with the list of his new taxa, the type materials for which are all lost.
Development of New Analytical Microwave-Assisted Extraction Methods for Bioactive Compounds from Myrtle (Myrtus communis L.)

Field: Chemistry (Physical Sciences)

The phenolic compounds and anthocyanins present in myrtle berries are responsible for its beneficial health properties. In the present study, a new, microwave-assisted extraction for the analysis of both phenolic compounds and anthocyanins from myrtle pulp has been developed. Different extraction variables, including methanol composition, pH, temperature, and sample–solvent ratio were optimized by applying a Box–Behnken design and response surface methodology. Methanol composition and pH were the most influential variables for the total phenolic compounds (58.20% of the solvent in water at pH 2), and methanol composition and temperature for anthocyanins (50.4% of solvent at 50 °C). The methods developed showed high repeatability and intermediate precision (RSD < 5%). Both methods were applied to myrtle berries collected in two different areas of the province of Cadiz (Spain). Hierarchical clustering analysis results show that the concentration of bioactive compounds in myrtle is related to their geographical origin.
Medical negligence and the NHS: an economic analysis

Field: Economics, Econometrics and Finance (Social Sciences)

Medical negligence was estimated to cost the NHS in England £235m in 1996/1997, growing at rate of up to 25% per annum. Yet analysis of NHS accounts suggest that a change in accounting policy has led to growth rates and recurrent expenditure on medical negligence being over estimated. The main concern, however, is total societal cost, not the accounting cost to the NHS. The objective of policy should be to ensure that cost-effective investment in injury prevention takes place. Measures that simply shift cost to other social budgets or onto patients are not helpful. NHS arrangements changed in the 1990s with Trusts taking responsibility for claims against hospital doctors and a new NHS Litigation Authority providing insurance for Trusts. It is unclear, however, whether Trusts have had either the incentives or the ability to implement effect risk management policies. Estimates based on two US studies and one UK study suggest that negligence in the NHS in England may cause around 90 000 adverse events per year involving 13 500 deaths, but only resulting in around 7000 claims and 2000 payments. A priority must be the establishment of a comprehensive national database of claims information. Other policy measures are proposed to reinforce the incentives on Trusts and doctors to implement cost-effective risk management policies. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Problematising Participatory Research for Developing Semantic Web Technologies

Field: Computer Science (Physical Sciences)

This paper contributes to a symposium on ‘Designs for learning with the Semantic Web (Web 3.0)’ by presenting the outcomes of critical reflection on methodological issues relating to the design of semantic web technologies for networked learning. Semantic web technologies show great potential for supporting networked learning but are unsettled and under-researched in educational contexts, thus classed within this symposium as ‘emergent’. The design of this emergent and complex technology is considered in relation to empirical research data from an interdisciplinary, multi-institutional technology enhanced learning (TEL) research project. The research project explored the potential of semantic web technologies in Higher Education (HE) to support the use of cases in teaching and learning. Data was collected throughout the project including researcher's wiki-based reflective research logs, transcripts from project meetings and interviews and focus groups with participants and observation notes. Critical reflection on the research process was supported through engagement with this data, which allowed the recognition of nondeterministic constructs and fluidity and contingency in research practice. Therefore, this paper problematises participation by highlighting uncertainties and contingencies inherent in the enactment of participatory research methodology. Rather than viewing uncertainty and contingency as devaluing research, the case is made that this can allow for enrichment of the development process and subsequently the research outcomes. The flexible and emergent nature of semantic web technology matched with participatory approaches in the design of emergent technologies allows for reflection, adaptation and flexible action relating to pedagogy and practices which is essential in educational contexts that are rapidly changing. The findings highlight the uncertain and contingent nature of (1) the settings where design took place; (2) acceptance or rejection of research methods; and (3) the community groups that emerged as interested parties in our work. Vignettes from two different research settings are used to show how participation was enacted reflectively and responsively leading to some positive outcomes; including the development of new teaching practices and new technologies, which were fed back into the open source development of educational semantic web technologies. Therefore, researchers in the field of networked learning are encouraged to ‘design with participatory research’ to match the challenges posed by complex and emergent technologies and changeable educational contexts rather than attempting to apply standardised forms of design methodologies
PTX3 as a biomarker of lowered arterial stiffness due to weight loss in overweight and obese Japanese men

Field: Medicine (Health Sciences)

Background: Obesity, an independent cardiovascular disease risk factor, is the leading cause of death in the world. It has been previously shown that arterial stiffness,which is an index of cardiovascular disease, is significantly higher in Japanese overweight and obese men. Increased levels of pentraxin3 (PTX3), a novel anti-inflammatory substance mainly produced in the atherosclerotic region, due to weight reduction has been proposed to reflect an improvement in arterial stiffness. However, this has not been investigated. Methods: Here, we elucidate whether an individual who has significantly increased plasma PTX3 concentration result in a significantly decreased arterial stiffness compared to a smaller change in PTX3 level after a 12-week dietary modified weight reduction program in twenty overweight or obese Japanese men. A well-balanced dietary modification weight-loss program was implemented for overweight and obese men over a course of 12-week. Results: Prior to and after the program, we measured anthropometric variables, blood pressure, arterial stiffness, and circulating biochemistry, including plasma PTX3 concentrations. We then compared the differences in arterial stiffness between two groups, low or high ΔPTX3 groups, based on the median of delta of plasma PTX3 levels before and after weight reduction via modified diet habit in men with overweight and obesity. Carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (PWV) as index of central arterial stiifness and brachial-ankle PWV as index of whole body arterial stiffness were significantly decreased in the high ΔPTX3 group after dietary modification. Conclusions: Our present results suggest that PTX3 could be a clinically useful biochemical index for monitoring appropriate arterial function maintenance in obese weight control.
Hong Kongers and their languages: bordering, scale and identity

Field: Social Sciences (Social Sciences)

Abstract In this paper, we examine discourses about border and scale in the context of Hong Kong’s relationship with mainland China. We argue that, as the physical and political borders between Hong Kong and the mainland are eroding, other forms of bordering practices – such as linguistic borders – become more salient and contested. We draw on selected thematic analyses of a corpus of 70 articles from Hong Kong English media, as well as socio-historical analyses that have widely circulated since Hong Kong’s handover from Britain to China, in order to examine how the construction of “Cantonese” and “Mandarin” is managed against anxieties about Hong Kong’s potential loss of distinction and fears of becoming “just another Chinese city”. In this process, both borders and scales become key terrains of negotiation and function themselves as ideological resources in debates about Hong Kong’s identity and future, as certain distinctions take on reduced or pronounced meaning from particular scalar perspectives. Amid an ongoing reframing of what it means to be “Chinese”, examining language ideologies in Hong Kong contributes to our understanding of how national and linguistic categories achieve or reframe their social meanings.
Identifying cardiovascular disease risk and outcome: use of the plasma triglyceride/high‐density lipoprotein cholesterol concentration ratio versus metabolic syndrome criteria

Field: Medicine (Health Sciences)

Abstract Background Metabolic syndrome (MetS) has been shown to predict both risk and CVD events. We have identified sex‐specific values for the triglyceride/high‐density lipoprotein cholesterol ( TG / HDL ‐C) ratio associated with an unfavourable cardio‐metabolic risk profile, but it is not known whether it also predicts CVD outcome. Methods To quantify risk for CVD outcomes associated with a high TG/HDL‐C ratio and to compare this risk with that predicted using MetS, a population longitudinal prospective observational study was performed in Rauch City, Buenos Aires, Argentina. In 2003 surveys were performed on a population random sample of 926 inhabitants. In 2012, 527 women and 269 men were surveyed again in search of new CVD events. The first CVD event was the primary endpoint. Relative risks for CVD events between individuals above and below the TG/HDL‐C cut‐points, and with or without MetS, were estimated using Cox proportional hazard. Main Outcome The first CVD event was the primary endpoint. Relative risks for CVD events between individuals above and below the TG / HDL ‐C cut‐points, and with or without MetS, were estimated using Cox proportional hazard. Results The number of subjects deemed at ‘high’ CVD risk on the basis of an elevated TG / HDL ‐C ratio (30%) or having the MetS (35%) was relatively comparable. The unadjusted hazard risk was significantly increased when comparing ‘high’ versus ‘low’ risk groups no matter which criteria was used, although it was somewhat higher in those with the MetS ( HR = 3.17, 95% CI :1.79–5.60 vs. 2.16, 95% CI :1.24–3.75). However, this difference essentially disappeared when adjusted for sex and age ( HR = 2.09, 95% CI :1.18–3.72 vs. 2.01, 95% CI :1.14–3.50 for MetS and TG / HDL ‐C respectively). Conclusions An elevated TG / HDL ‐C ratio appears to be just as effective as the MetS diagnosis in predicting the development of CVD .
Evaluation, Selection and In vitro Propagation of Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum Marsh.)

Field: Agricultural and Biological Sciences (Life Sciences)

Sugar maple (Acer saccharum Marshall) tree is an important part of North American forest ecosystems as well as a source of sap for maple syrup production. The quality, yield, and productivity of syrup can be considerably improved while also reducing production costs and the carbon footprint of the process by developing elite germplasm with high sap sugar content. The current work aims to provide a basis to identify and propagate elite sugar maple trees. A 22-year old seed based population of trees of uniform age, planted in uniform spacing was evaluated for sap sugar content and tree morphology (height and trunk circumference) over a period of three years and statistical measures to correct spatial trends in productivity were assessed. Furthermore, clonal propagation of sugar maple through conventional and micropropagation techniques has been largely unsuccessful and the basis of this recalcitrance has remained unknown. Optimization of light intensity to improve in vitro multiplication was attempted by culturing plantlets under three intensities (4, 16 and 40 μmol m−2 s−1) of two spectra of light (red-blue and full-spectrum white) and quantifying stress using chlorophyll fluorometry. The salient findings of this research are: 1) The nutritionally important properties of maple syrup vary across its grades and light transmittance, indicating the advantages of selecting and propagating elite trees to produce specific grades of syrup, 2) nearest neighbour based spatial correction method was superior over thin plate spline in eliminating the spatial trends in the field, 3) the critical factor limiting sugar maple’s response to in vitro propagation was light intensity and a unique low light intensity is required to overcome its recalcitrance. Since several limitations of conventional in vitro lighting systems viz., non-uniform intensity, inability to modulate intensity and spectra, and tedious procedures for randomization and replication of light quality treatments were faced, 3D printing was employed to develop a novel culture vessel with independently controlled LED lighting. Overall, the present studies not only provide a basis to identify, and propagate elite sugar maple trees but also provide novel tools to evaluate the influence of light quality in in vitro studies.
Full Endoscopic Transforaminal Lumbar Discectomy: A Literature Review

Field: Medicine (Health Sciences)

Since its introduction in 1973, Kambin’s triangle had made endoscopic transforaminal lumbar discectomy (TELD) possible. Dr. Yeung further developed a complete spinal endoscope system and approach methods (the Yeung endoscopic spine system). With the advancement of endoscopic instruments such as the high‐speed burr, reamer, and trephine, Dr. Hoogland introduced foraminoplasty methods to extract herniated disks. Since then, the surgical field of TELD has been broadly widened. Many interesting and innovative surgical methods have been developed to overcome the limitations of TELD, such as managing the migrating disk or operation at the L5/S1 level. In this article, we describe the surgical steps of TELD and discuss relevant literatures associated with it.
Simulated Gastrointestinal Digestion and Fecal Fermentation Characteristics of Exopolysaccharides Synthesized by Schleiferilactobacillus harbinensis Z171

Field: Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology (Life Sciences)

Exopolysaccharides (EPSs) produced by Lactobacillus have important physiological activities and are commonly used as novel prebiotics. A strain of Lactobacillus with high EPS yield was identified as Schleiferilactobacillus harbinensis (S. harbinensis Z171), which was isolated from Chinese sauerkraut. The objective of this study was to investigate the in vitro simulated digestion and fecal fermentation behavior of the purified exopolysaccharide fraction F-EPS1A from S. harbinensis Z171 and its influence on the human intestinal flora composition. The in vitro digestion results showed that the primary structural characteristics of F-EPS1A, such as morphology, molecular weight, and monosaccharide composition remained stable after saliva and gastrointestinal digestion. Compared with the blank group, the fermentation of F-SPS1A by fecal microbiota decreased the diversity of the bacterial communities, significantly promoted the relative abundance of Bifidobacterium and Faecalibacterium, and decreased the relative abundance of Lachnospiraceae_Clostridium, Fusobacterium, and Oscillospira. Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analysis also showed that the population of Bifidobacterium markedly increased. Furthermore, the total short-chain fatty acid levels increased significantly, especially for butyric acid. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) results showed that F-EPS1A could be fermented by the human gut microbiota to synthesize organic acids and derivative metabolites that are beneficial to gut health. Therefore, these findings suggest that F-EPS1A could be exploited as a potential prebiotic.
Evidence concerning how neurons of the perirhinal cortex may effect familiarity discrimination

Field: Neuroscience (Life Sciences)

Many studies indicate that recognition memory involves at least two separable processes, familiarity discrimination and recollection. Aspects of what is known of potential neuronal substrates of familiarity discrimination are reviewed. Lesion studies have established that familiarity discrimination for individual visual stimuli is effected by a system centred on the perirhinal cortex of the temporal lobe. The fundamental change that encodes prior occurrence of such stimuli appears to be a reduction in the response of neurons in anterior inferior temporal (including perirhinal) cortex when a stimulus is repeated. The neuronal responses rapidly signal the presence of a novel stimulus, and are evidence of long–lasting learning after a single exposure. Computational modelling indicates that a neuronal network based on such a change in responsiveness is potentially highly efficient in information theoretic terms. Processes that occur in long–term depression within the perirhinal cortex provide candidate synaptic plastic mechanisms for that underlying the change, but such linkage remains to be experimentally established.
Transactional Leadership Style, Organizational Justice And Employee Empowerment to Employee Organizational Commitments in the Yogyakarta Social Service

Field: Business, Management and Accounting (Social Sciences)

This study aims to explain transactional leadership, organizational justice and employee empowerment towards employee organizational commitment in the Yogyakarta Social Service office. In this study, the research uses a quantitative approach because the analysis is based on existing theories and is related to the research topic. The theories used by researchers are Transactional leadership theory, Organizational Justice, Employee Empowerment and Organizational Commitment. The sample used was as many as 50 people who were determined by the saturated sample method. The data collection technique used was a questionnaire. The analysis technique used is simple regression with a significant level of 0.05. The results showed that (1) variable, transactional leadership has a positive and significant effect on organizational commitment (2) organizational justice has positive and significant impact on organizational commitment (3) employee empowerment has an effect positive and significant towards organizational commitment. Companies should pay attention to transactional leadership, organizational justice and employee empowerment to increase organizational commitment (4) taransactional leadership, organizational justice and employee empowerment simultaneously towards organizational commitment
Electron Microscopic Cochlear Observations in Bilateral Ménière's Disease

Field: Medicine (Health Sciences)

Electron microscopic study of the cochleas of an individual with bilateral Ménière's disease revealed the presence of many abnormal sensory cells in the apical regions of the cochleas. The pathological alterations were greater in the left ear with the greater hearing loss. There were some giant cilia, fusion of cilia, and loss of cilia. The outer hair cells contained diffuse cuticular bodies near or basal to the nuclei. Many outer hair cells were retracted away from the reticular membrane. The population of the nerve endings appeared normal. The inner hair cells of the apical turns appeared essentially normal. The spiral ganglia were normal in number and morphology at the apical turns, and a majority of their cell bodies were of the unmyelinated or partly myelinated types. The stria vascularis showed atrophy; however, the magnitude of this change was consistent with that known to occur in the aging ear. In the distended areas Reissner's membrane showed areas devoid of mesothelial cells, as well as atrophic epithelial cells. The blood vessels were no different from other human cochlear vessels. These abnormalities seen in the stereocilia, the outer hair cells, and Reissner's membrane are a matter of fact. We must admit, however, that not enough electron microscopic studies have been performed on ears from aging individuals or ears with other pathologies to state that these changes are unique to Ménière's disease. Furthermore, there is currently insufficient knowledge to predict whether these changes affect auditory function.
The Game of Heritage: Enhancing Virtual Museum Visits Through Gamification for Tourists

Field: Computer Science (Physical Sciences)

This study delves into the integration of gamification within virtual museum experiences, focusing on its effects on visitor engagement and knowledge acquisition. In today's digital cultural heritage landscape, virtual museums emerge as innovative platforms for the dissemination of educational and cultural content. This research specifically assesses the impact of gamified elements namely points, badges, and leaderboards on enhancing the visitor experience in a virtual environment dedicated to the Himmapan creatures, a crucial aspect of Thai mythology exhibited at the Roitawarabarn Baandhawalai Museum in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Utilizing a quantitative methodology that includes the user engagement scale and a knowledge acquisition questionnaire, this study compares visitor interactions between gamified and non-gamified approach of the virtual museum. The findings reveal that gamification substantially enhances visitor engagement, especially in aspects such as focused attention and rewards, and significantly boosts knowledge acquisition when compared to non-gamified experiences. These outcomes emphasize the crucial importance of integrating gamification strategies within virtual museums to cultivate an experience that is interactive, engaging, and educational for visitors.