mdpi-ai/citelens huggingface dataset:
Do you say uh or uhm? A cross-linguistic approach to filler particle use in heritage and majority speakers across three languages
Field: PSYCHOLOGY

Filler particles like uhm in English or ähm in German show subtle language-specific differences and their variation in form is related to socio-linguistic variables like gender. The use of fillers in a second language has been shown to differ from monolinguals' filler particle use in both frequency and form in different language contexts. This study investigates the language-specific use of filler particles by bilingual heritage speakers in both their languages, looking at the dominant majority language in the society and their minority heritage language spoken at home. This is done based on heritage Russian and German data and majority German and English data from the RUEG corpus. Language-specific fillers were extracted from the corpus and analyzed for their occurrence and segmental form. The frequency analysis suggests an influence of bilingualism, age group, and formality of the situation on the filler frequency across all languages. The number of filler particles is higher in formal, older, and bilingual speech. The form analysis reveals an effect of language and gender on the type of filler particle. The vocalic-nasal filler particles (e.g., uhm) are more frequently found in German and English and in female speech of these languages. Heritage speakers of Russian in contact with German and English show higher use of vocalic-nasal forms also in their Russian while producing similar gender related patterns to monolingual speakers in both their languages. The higher frequency of filler particles in formal situations, older speakers and in bilingual speech, is discussed related to cognitive load which is assumed to be higher in these contexts while speech style which differs between situations and social groups is also considered as explanation. The higher use of vocalic-nasal filler particles in German and English suggests language specific filler particle preferences also related to the socio-linguistic variable gender in these languages. The results from heritage speakers suggest and influence on filler particle form in their heritage language, while also revealing socio-linguistic usage patterns related to gender which are produced by heritage speakers similarly to monolinguals in their respective language.
An investigation of the effect of mindfulness-integrated cognitive behavior therapy on demoralization, body image, and sexual function in Iranian women with breast cancer: a randomized controlled trial
Field: ONCOLOGY

Background: Breast cancer is an extremely unpleasant and unbearable experience that can have a profound impact on a person’s life. Compared to other types of cancer, breast cancer has a more severe psychological impact on women. Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the effect of mindfulness-integrated cognitive behavior therapy on demoralization, body image, and sexual function in Iranian women with breast cancer. Method: A sample of 30 women with breast cancer were randomly divided into intervention and control groups. The research was conducted in the oncology division of Imam Reza Hospital in Kermanshah by the clinical trial method with a two-group pretest–posttest design and a 2 month follow-up. Participants in the intervention group received Mindfulness-integrated cognitive behavior therapy for eight sessions. The intervention was carried out individually in weekly 60 min sessions. While the control group received self-help treatment (through an educational book). A demographic questionnaire, Demoralization Scale (DS-II), Body Image Scale (BIS), and Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI) were used to collect data. For data analysis, means and standard deviations were calculated and repeated measures and the Bonferroni test was conducted using SPSS 26. Results: The results showed the effectiveness of mindfulness-integrated cognitive behavior therapy on demoralization, body image, and sexual function (p < 0.05). Concerning demoralization in the intervention group, the pre-test mean was 16.73 ± 3.33, and it reduced to 11.93 ± 1.49 in the post-test. The body image mean score showed a decreasing trend in the intervention group, from 12.47 ± 1.88 in the pre-test to 8.80 ± 3.21 in the post-test. The mean score for sexual function showed an increasing trend, increasing from 18.06 ± 2.29 in the pre-test to 23.07 ± 0.91 in the post-test. There was no significant difference in the mean score of the post-test compared to the pre-test and follow-up in the control group (p < 0.05). Conclusion: MICBT can be used in conjunction with pharmaceuticals and medical treatments to improve the psychological symptoms of women with breast cancer, according to this study’s results. Trial registration (IRCT20160103025817N6). 2022-04-06.
Diagnosis of Gallbladder Disease Using Artificial Intelligence: A Comparative Study
Field: AI

Gallbladder (GB) disease is a common pathology that needs correct and early diagnosis for the optimum medical treatment. Early diagnosis is crucial as any delay or misdiagnosis can worsen the patient situation. Incorrect diagnosis could also lead to an escalation in patient symptoms and poorer clinical outcomes. The use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) techniques, ranging from Machine Learning (ML) to Deep Learning (DL) to predict disease progression, identify abnormalities, and estimate mortality rates associated with GB disorders has increased over the past decade. To this end, this paper provides a comprehensive overview of the AI approaches used in the diagnosis of GB illnesses. This review compiles and compares relevant papers from the last decade to show how AI might enhance diagnostic precision, speed, and efficiency. Therefore, this survey gives researchers the opportunity to find out both the diagnosis of GB diseases and AI techniques in one place. The maximum accuracy rate by ML was when using SVM with 96.67%, whilst the maximum accuracy rate by DL was by utilising a unique structure of VGG, GoogleNet, ResNet, AlexNet and Inception with 98.77%. This could provide a clear path for further investigations and algorithm’s development to boost diagnostic results to improve the patient’s condition and choose the appropriate treatment.
Duration Perception and Reading in Typically Developing Adults and Adults with Developmental Dyslexia: Implications for Assessment and Intervention
Field: PSYCHOLOGY

While the link between beat perception and reading skills is attributed to a general improvement in neural entrainment to speech units, duration perception (DP) is primarily linked to a specific aspect of speech perception, specifially discriminating phonemes of varying lengths. Our previous study found a significant correlation between DP and pseudoword reading in both typically developing (TD) individuals and adults with dyslexia (DD). This suggests that, like beat, DP may also enhance overall speech perception. However, our previous study employed a composite measure that did not discriminate speed from accuracy. In this study, we sought to replicate the link between DP and pseudoword reading in a new sample and explore how it might vary depending on the reading parameter being measured. We analyzed the performance of 60 TD vs. 20 DD adults in DP, word reading and pseudoword reading tasks, analyzing the latter for both speed and accuracy. Indeed, duration skills correlated positively with pseudoword reading accuracy. In TD adults, there was no association between DP and reading speed, whereas DD individuals exhibited slower reading speed alongside improved duration skills. We emphasize the potential usefulness of DP tasks in assessment and early intervention and raise new questions about compensatory strategies adopted by DD adults.
Diffusion-weighted imaging-based radiomics model using automatic machine learning to differentiate cerebral cystic metastases from brain abscesses
Field: ONCOLOGY

Objectives: To develop a radiomics model based on diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) utilizing automated machine learning method to differentiate cerebral cystic metastases from brain abscesses. Materials and methods: A total of 186 patients with cerebral cystic metastases (n = 98) and brain abscesses (n = 88) from two clinical institutions were retrospectively included. The datasets (129 from institution A) were randomly portioned into separate 75% training and 25% internal testing sets. Radiomics features were extracted from DWI images using two subregions of the lesion (cystic core and solid wall). A thorough image preprocessing method was applied to DWI images to ensure the robustness of radiomics features before feature extraction. Then the Tree-based Pipeline Optimization Tool (TPOT) was utilized to search for the best optimized machine learning pipeline, using a fivefold cross-validation in the training set. The external test set (57 from institution B) was used to evaluate the model’s performance. Results: Seven distinct TPOT models were optimized to distinguish between cerebral cystic metastases and abscesses either based on different features combination or using wavelet transform. The optimal model demonstrated an AUC of 1.00, an accuracy of 0.97, sensitivity of 1.00, and specificity of 0.93 in the internal test set, based on the combination of cystic core and solid wall radiomics signature using wavelet transform. In the external test set, this model reached 1.00 AUC, 0.96 accuracy, 1.00 sensitivity, and 0.93 specificity. Conclusion: The DWI-based radiomics model established by TPOT exhibits a promising predictive capacity in distinguishing cerebral cystic metastases from abscesses.
Examining Students’ Acceptance and Use of ChatGPT in Saudi Arabian Higher Education
Field: PSYCHOLOGY

This study examines students’ acceptance and use of ChatGPT in Saudi Arabian (SA) higher education, where there is growing interest in the use of this tool since its inauguration in 2022. Quantitative research data, through a self-reporting survey drawing on the “Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology” (UTAUT2), were collected from 520 students in one of the public universities in SA at the start of the first semester of the study year 2023–2024. The findings of structural equation modeling partially supported the UTAUT and previous research in relation to the significant direct effect of performance expectancy (PE), social influence (SI), and effort expectancy (EE) on behavioral intention (BI) on the use of ChatGPT and the significant direct effect of PE, SI, and BI on actual use of ChatGPT. Nonetheless, the results did not support earlier research in relation to the direct relationship between facilitating conditions (FCs) and both BI and actual use of ChatGPT, which was found to be negative in the first relationship and insignificant in the second one. These findings were because of the absence of resources, support, and aid from external sources in relation to the use of ChatGPT. The results showed partial mediation of BI in the link between PE, SI, and FC and actual use of ChatGPT in education and a full mediation in the link of BI between EE and actual use of ChatGPT in education. The findings provide numerous implications for scholars and higher education institutions in SA, which are also of interest to other institutions in similar contexts.
Early Onset of Lung Cancer in Small Areas as a Signature of Point Pollution Sources
Field: ONCOLOGY

The impact of air pollution on lung cancer (LC) is difficult to detect in low-populated areas due to the potentially unfocused detection of pollutants and/or limited statistical power. This study identified and measured the harmful effect of pollution in small areas by considering the early onset of LC as a signature of pollution. This novel method requires a Bayesian standard curve calculated from the median age at LC onset and the corresponding median age of reference populations. Similar medians gathered from the area/s under investigation permits a probabilistic comparison with the standard curve. Statistically significant divergences can be interpreted as early or late LC onset. The method is exemplified in the Trieste municipality (northeast Italy) using data from the Friuli Venezia Giulia Cancer Registry (study population) and from the International Agency for Research on Cancer (reference population). Early LC onset has been observed near the pollution sources. Within 600 m of the iron foundry, onset ranged between 3.2 and 7.7 years earlier in men and between 11.7 and 16.8 years earlier in women. Near the shipyard, early onset was around 4 years in men and 7 years in women, while in the industrial area, early onset was 5 years in women only. Examining early LC onset may speed up the investigation of potential environmental hazards.
Promoting STEM learning perseverance through recognizing communal goals: understanding the impact of empathy and citizenship
Field: EDUCATION

Background: Previous research has indicated that placing emphasis on communal goals within the field of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education can yield beneficial learning outcomes. However, there remains a relative dearth of investigation into the factors that contribute to the success of STEM education programs integrating communal goals. In the present study, we sought to explore the roles of two constructs that prioritize the interests of others, namely empathy and citizenship, in promoting STEM learning perseverance within the context of a STEM-based community service learning (CSL) program. Specifically, we proposed that empathy would be associated with STEM learning perseverance through its relationship with citizenship, within a sample of 275 secondary school students from Hong Kong who participated in the said program. Results: Using structural equation modeling (SEM), the results revealed that empathy is significantly and positively associated with STEM learning perseverance, both directly and indirectly, through citizenship. The results held even after controlling for the demographic variables of school membership, gender, and age. Conclusions: This research highlights the association between understanding the needs of the community (empathy) and students' desire for community involvement (citizenship), which subsequently influences their perseverance in STEM learning. This relationship is particularly pronounced in educational settings where communal goals are emphasized.
Assessment of knowledge and perceptions of human papillomavirus vaccine and its determinants among women who have eligible daughters in Debre Berhan City, Ethiopia: a cross-sectional study
Field: ONCOLOGY

Introduction Globally, cervical cancer(CC) is the second most commonly diagnosed cancer and the fourth leading cause of cancer-related deaths in women. Human papillomavirus (HPV) infection is the leading cause of CC. Persistent infection with HPV accounts for 90% of all CC cases. The human papillomavirus vaccine has the great potential to prevent HPV-related infections for millions of women and men. The current study aimed to assess knowledge and perceptions towards the HPV vaccine and its determinants among women who have eligible daughters in Debre Berhan City, Ethiopia. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted from April 2, 2023, to May 15, 2023. A multistage sampling procedure was used to recruit 607 women participants. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize socio-demographic data. Univariable and multivariable binary logistic regression analyses were performed to measure the associations between the dependent and independent variables. A p-value of <0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results More than three-fourths of the participants, 479 individuals (80%) were currently married, and 243(40.1%) had a diploma or higher education level. Of 456(75.12) participants reported, they had information about cervical cancer. For 449(73.9%) of the participants, television was the main evidence. The majority of 352(59.99%) participants knew the HPV vaccine could be offered to a female child aged 9-14 years old. Only 215(35.4%) participants think the HPV vaccine was safe and effective. Women who had a degree and above educational level were about 9 times more likely to have good knowledge about the HPV vaccine than study participants who did not read and write (AOR=9.21; 95% CI=2.82-12.16; p=0.004). Women who did not have information about the HPV vaccine before this study were about 80% less likely to have a positive perception of the HPV vaccine than participants who had earlier information about the HPV vaccine (AOR=0.8; 95%CI=0.63-0.49; P=003). Conclusion Women had poor knowledge and perceptions about the HPV vaccine. Maternal marital status, age, and having information about the HPV vaccine were the only predictors of women’s knowledge of the HPV vaccine.
Validation of the Gaming Skills Questionnaire in Adolescence: Effects of Gaming Skills on Cognitive and Affective Functioning
Field: PSYCHOLOGY

Given the widespread popularity of videogames, research attempted to assess their effects on cognitive and affective abilities, especially in children and adolescents. Despite numerous correlational studies, robust evidence on the causal relationship between videogames and cognition remains scarce, hindered by the absence of a comprehensive assessment tool for gaming skills across various genres. In a sample of 347 adolescents, this study aimed to develop and validate the Gaming Skill Questionnaire (GSQ) and assess the impact of gaming skills in six different genres (sport, first-person shooters, role-playing games, action-adventure, strategy, and puzzle games) on cognitive and affective abilities of adolescents. The GSQ exhibited strong reliability and validity, highlighting its potential as a valuable tool. Gaming skills positively affected executive function, memory, overall cognition, cognitive flexibility, and emotion recognition, except for empathy. Various game genres had different effects on cognitive and affective abilities, with verbal fluency influenced mainly by sports, executive functions by action, strategy, and puzzle, and emotion recognition positively impacted by action and puzzle but negatively by sports and strategy games. Both age and gaming skills influenced cognitive flexibility, with gaming having a greater effect. These intriguing genre-specific effects on cognitive and affective functioning postulate further research with GSQ’s contribution.
Single Image Super Resolution Using Deep Residual Learning
Field: AI

Single Image Super Resolution (SSIR) is an intriguing research topic in computer vision where the goal is to create high-resolution images from low-resolution ones using innovative techniques. SSIR has numerous applications in fields such as medical/satellite imaging, remote target identification and autonomous vehicles. Compared to interpolation based traditional approaches, deep learning techniques have recently gained attention in SISR due to their superior performance and computational efficiency. This article proposes an Autoencoder based Deep Learning Model for SSIR. The down-sampling part of the Autoencoder mainly uses 3 by 3 convolution and has no subsampling layers. The up-sampling part uses transpose convolution and residual connections from the down sampling part. The model is trained using a subset of the VILRC ImageNet database as well as the RealSR database. Quantitative metrics such as PSNR and SSIM are found to be as high as 76.06 and 0.93 in our testing. We also used qualitative measures such as perceptual quality.
Trust-Aware Reflective Control for Fault-Resilient Dynamic Task Response in Human–Swarm Cooperation
Field: AI

Due to the complexity of real-world deployments, a robot swarm is required to dynamically respond to tasks such as tracking multiple vehicles and continuously searching for victims. Frequent task assignments eliminate the need for system calibration time, but they also introduce uncertainty from previous tasks, which can undermine swarm performance. Therefore, responding to dynamic tasks presents a significant challenge for a robot swarm compared to handling tasks one at a time. In human–human cooperation, trust plays a crucial role in understanding each other’s performance expectations and adjusting one’s behavior for better cooperation. Taking inspiration from human trust, this paper introduces a trust-aware reflective control method called “Trust-R”. Trust-R, based on a weighted mean subsequence reduced algorithm (WMSR) and human trust modeling, enables a swarm to self-reflect on its performance from a human perspective. It proactively corrects faulty behaviors at an early stage before human intervention, mitigating the negative influence of uncertainty accumulated from dynamic tasks. Three typical task scenarios {Scenario 1: flocking to the assigned destination; Scenario 2: a transition between destinations; and Scenario 3: emergent response} were designed in the real-gravity simulation environment, and a human user study with 145 volunteers was conducted. Trust-R significantly improves both swarm performance and trust in dynamic task scenarios, marking a pivotal step forward in integrating trust dynamics into swarm robotics.
Preoperative ultrasound-guided dual localization with titanium clips and carbon nanoparticles for predicting the surgical approach and guiding the resection of Siewert type II esophagogastric junction adenocarcinoma
Field: ONCOLOGY

Objective: To investigate the superiority of preoperative ultrasound-guided titanium clip and nanocarbon dual localization over traditional methods for determining the surgical approach and guiding resection of Siewert type II adenocarcinoma of the esophagogastric junction (AEG). Method: This study included 66 patients with Siewert type II AEG who were treated at the PLA Joint Logistics Support Force 900th Hospital between September 1, 2021, and September 1, 2023. They were randomly divided into an experimental group (n = 33), in which resection was guided by the dual localization technique, and the routine group (n = 33), in which the localization technique was not used. Surgical approach predictions, proximal esophageal resection lengths, pathological features, and the occurrence of complications were compared between the groups. Result: The use of the dual localization technique resulted in higher accuracy in predicting the surgical approach (96.8% vs. 75.9%, P = 0.02) and shorter proximal esophageal resection lengths (2.39 ± 0.28 cm vs. 2.86 ± 0.39 cm, P < 0.001) in the experimental group as compared to the routine group, while there was no significant difference in the incidence of postoperative complications (22.59% vs. 24.14%, P = 0.88). Conclusion: Preoperative dual localization with titanium clips and carbon nanoparticles is significantly superior to traditional methods and can reliably delineate the actual infiltration boundaries of Siewert type II AEG, guide the surgical approach, and avoid excessive esophageal resection.