nils-herrmann/clean_scirepeval huggingface dataset:
Identifying Mutations of the Tetratricopeptide Repeat Domain 37 (TTC37) Gene in Infants With Intractable Diarrhea and a Comparison of Asian and Non Asian Phenotype and Genotype
Venue: Medicine

AbstractSyndromic diarrhea/tricho hepato enteric syndrome (SD/THE) is a rare, autosomal recessive and severe bowel disorder mainly caused by mutations in the tetratricopeptide repeat domain 37 (TTC37) gene which act as heterotetrameric cofactors to enhance aberrant mRNAs decay. The phenotype and immune profiles of SD/THE overlap those of primary immunodeficiency diseases (PIDs).Neonates with intractable diarrhea underwent immunologic assessments including immunoglobulin levels, lymphocyte subsets, lymphocyte proliferation, superoxide production, and IL 10 signaling function. Candidate genes for PIDs predisposing to inflammatory bowel disease were sequencing in this study.Two neonates, born to nonconsanguineous parents, suffered from intractable diarrhea, recurrent infections, and massive hematemesis from esopharyngeal varices due to liver cirrhosis or accompanying Trichorrhexis nodosa that developed with age and thus guided the diagnosis of SD/THE compatible to TTC37 mutations (homozygous DelK1155H, Fs*2; heterozygous Y1169Ter and InsA1143, Fs*3) Their immunologic evaluation showed normal mitogen stimulated lymphocyte proliferation, superoxide production, and IL 10 signaling, but low IgG levels, undetectable antibody to hepatitis B surface antigen and decreased antigen stimulated lymphocyte proliferation. A PubMed search for bi allelic TTC37 mutations and phenotypes were recorded in 14 Asian and 12 non Asian cases. They had similar presentations of infantile onset refractory diarrhea, facial dysmorphism, hair anomalies, low IgG, low birth weight, and consanguinity. A higher incidence of heart anomalies (8/14 vs 2/12; P 0.0344, Chi square) nonsense mutations (19 in 28 alleles) and hot spot mutations (W936Ter, 2779 2G>A, and Y1169Ter) were found in the Asian compared with the non Asian patients. Despite immunoglobulin therapy in 20 of the patients, 4 died from liver cirrhosis and 1 died from sepsis.Patients of all ethnicities with SD/THE with the characteristic triad of T nodosa, hepatic cirrhosis, and intractable enteropathy have low IgG, poor vaccine response and/or decreased antigen stimulated lymphocyte proliferation. This is now better classified into the subgroup of "well defined syndromes with immunodeficiency" (the update termed as "combined immunodeficiencies with associated or syndromic features" than "predominantly antibody deficiencies" in the update PIDs classification, and requires optimal interventions.
Enabling high performance heterogeneous TFET/CMOS logic with novel circuits using TFET unidirectionality and low VDD operation
Venue: 2016 IEEE Symposium on VLSI Technology

Tunneling FETs (TFETs) offer better low VDD performance than CMOS but lack performance above 0.5V VDD due to low drive current and VDD dependent parasitic leakages. At low VDD, TFET's higher energy efficiency enables 2X parallel performance for power constrained systems. For applications less amenable to parallelization, newly proposed circuits improve energy/op, performance and area by not only using TFET's steep sub threshold swing, but also utilizing its asymmetric IDS VDS characteristic. Design synthesis with sub 5nm node TFETs, MOSFETs and interconnects is used to assess trade offs in industry logic blocks. In addition to a 44% energy reduction over CMOS circuits, novel TFET circuits improve dynamic energy by 32% and performance by 13% at logic cell level (4% and 10% respectively at synthesized logic block) Even with these benefits, single threaded CPUs require CMOS logic's high performance. In this case, heterogeneous TFET/CMOS logic with low overhead level shifters improves performance 50% while reducing energy 42% for non critical performance logic.
AMP! A Cross site Analysis of the Effects of a Theater based Intervention on Adolescent Awareness, Attitudes, and Knowledge about HIV
Venue: Prevention Science

AMP! (Arts based, Multiple component, Peer education) is an HIV intervention developed for high school adolescents. AMP! uses interactive theater based scenarios developed by trained college undergraduates to deliver messages addressing HIV/STI prevention strategies, healthy relationships, and stigma reduction towards people living with HIV/AIDS. We used a pre test/post test, control group study design to simultaneously assess intervention effect on ninth grade students in an urban county in California (N 159) and a suburban county in North Carolina (N 317) In each location, the control group received standard health education curricula delivered by teachers; the intervention group received AMP! in addition to standard health education curricula. Structural equation modeling was used to determine intervention effects. The post test sample was 46 male, 90 self identified as heterosexual, 32 reported receiving free or reduced lunch, and 49 White. Structural models indicated that participation in AMP! predicted higher scores on HIV knowledge (p 0.05) HIV awareness (p 0.01) and HIV attitudes (p 0.05) at the post test. Latent means comparison analyses revealed post test scores were significantly higher than pre test scores on HIV knowledge (p 0.001) HIV awareness (p 0.001) and HIV attitudes (p 0.001) Further analyses indicated that scores rose for both groups, but the post test scores of intervention participants were significantly higher than controls (HIV knowledge (p 0.01) HIV awareness (p 0.01) and HIV attitudes (p 0.05) Thus, AMP!'s theater based approach shows promise for addressing multiple adolescent risk factors and attitudes concerning HIV in school settings.
How teaching practices are connected to student intention to enrol in upper secondary school physics courses

In developed countries, it is challenging for teachers to select pedagogical practices that encourage students to enrol in science and technology courses in upper secondary school.  Aiming to understand the enrolment dynamics, this study analyses sample based data from Finland's National Assessment in Science to determine whether pedagogical approaches influence student intention to enrol in upper secondary school physics courses.  This study examined a clustered sample of 2949 Finnish students in the final year of comprehensive school (15 16 years old)  Through explorative factor analysis, we extracted several variables that were expected to influence student intention to enrol in physics courses. We applied partial correlation to determine the underlying interdependencies of the variables.  The analysis revealed that the main predictor of enrolment in upper secondary school physics courses is whether students feel that physics is important. Although statistically significant, partial correlations between variables were rather small. However, the analysis of partial correlations revealed that pedagogical practices influence inquiry and attitudinal factors. Pedagogical practices that emphasise science experimentation and the social construction of knowledge had the strongest influence.  The research implies that to increase student enrolment in physics courses, the way students interpret the subject's importance needs to be addressed, which can be done by the pedagogical practices of discussion, teacher demonstrations, and practical work.
Effects of sound exposure on the growth and intracellular macromolecular synthesis of E. coli k 12
Venue: PeerJ

Microbes, as one of the primary producers of the biosphere, play an important role in ecosystems. Exploring the mechanism of adaptation and resistance of microbial population to various environmental factors has come into focus in the fields of modern microbial ecology and molecular ecology. However, facing the increasingly serious problem of acoustic pollution, very few efforts have been put forth into studying the relation of single cell organisms and sound field exposure. Herein, we studied the biological effects of sound exposure on the growth of E. coli K 12 with different acoustic parameters. The effects of sound exposure on the intracellular macromolecular synthesis and cellular morphology of E. coli K 12 were also analyzed and discussed. Experimental results indicated that E. coli K 12 exposed to sound waves owned a higher biomass and a faster specific growth rate compared to the control group. Also, the average length of E. coli K 12 cells increased more than 27.26% The maximum biomass and maximum specific growth rate of the stimulation group by 8000 Hz, 80dB sound wave was about 1.7 times and 2.5 times that of the control group, respectively. Moreover, it was observed that E. coli K 12 can respond rapidly to sound stress at both the transcriptional and posttranscriptional levels by promoting the synthesis of intracellular RNA and total protein. Some potential mechanisms may be involved in the responses of bacterial cells to sound stress.
Effect of sonic stimulation on Bacillus endospore germination.
Venue: FEMS microbiology letters

This study investigates the effect of sonic stimulation on Bacillus endospore germination. Germinating endospores in a microtiter plate were exposed to audible sound wave generated by an array of piezoelectric transducers. In situ germination kinetics was measured by terbium dipicolinate fluorescence assay, optical density measurement and phase contrast microscopy. Fluorescence results revealed that sonic stimulation (5 kHz at 90 dB) promoted the germination speed by 43.7% 11.3% and final germination level by 61.7% 11.9% of Bacillus atrophaeus. This acoustic energy absorbed by endospores is postulated to change membrane permeability and increase enzyme activities; thereby, expediting the germination process. This also raises the likelihood of dormant endospores undergoing germination because of a rapid release of unidentified chemical mediators for quorum sensing. On the other hand, acoustic effect was not observed in B. subtilis endospores. This may be attributed to the different spore aspect ratio, 1.43 0.05 for B. atrophaeus and 2.02 0.08 for B. subtilis, which results in a difference in specific absorption rates towards audible sound waves. Our results demonstrate the modulation of endospore germination by an external field to shed light on germination mechanism and cell wave interaction.
Synthesis and size dependent magnetostrictive response of ferrite nanoparticles and their application in magnetoelectric polymer based multiferroic sensors

This work shows that it is possible to synthesize, chemically tailor and optimize the magnetostriction of ferrite nanoparticles and improve the magnetoelectric (ME) response of their multiferroic composites. Thus, Fe3O4 nanoparticles with different sizes have been synthesized by a solvothermal procedure and an oxidative hydrolysis method. The first method results in nanoparticles with 9 nm average size and 167 ppm magnetostriction; the second one in nanoparticles with average sizes of 30 nm and 50 nm and magnetostriction of 17 ppm and 26 ppm, respectively. Furthermore, Fe3O4/P(VDF TrFE) multiferroic nanocomposites were produced with those nanoparticles, showing ME voltage coefficients (a31) of 920 mV cm 1 Oe 1, 100 mV cm 1 Oe 1 and 150 mV cm 1 Oe 1, respectively, for samples fabricated with nanoparticles with 9 nm, 30 nm and 50 nm average size. The high magnetostrictive response and the biocompatibility of ferrite nanoparticles, together with their anhysteretic magnetic response, enhance their application potential for biomedical applications as well as their use in high performance ME materials for sensors and actuators.
Improved magnetodielectric coefficient on polymer based composites through enhanced indirect magnetoelectric coupling

Flexible particulate composites with general formula [xCoFe2O4](1 x) (Polyvinylidene fluoride) were prepared for x 0, 3, 11, and 20 wt. The dielectric constant, dielectric loss, and saturation magnetization of the composites increase with the increasing CoFe2O4 content, being 13, 0.13, and 13 emu g 1, respectively, for x 20. The change in the dielectric response (magnetodielectric effect is the highest among all the reported polymer based composites for the x 20 sample (4.2% and on the contrary, the highest value of the magnetodielectric coefficient (g) is higher on the x 3 sample (0.015 emu 2 g2) Such features have large application potential in areas such as filters, magnetic field sensors and actuators, among others.
Penentuan Lokasi DG dan Kapasitor Bank dengan Rekonfigurasi Jaringan Untuk Memperoleh Rugi Daya Minimal Pada Sistem Distribusi Radial Menggunakan Algoritma Genetika

Jaringan distribusi yang paling umum digunakan ialah sistem dengan bentuk radial. Sistem ini memiliki bentuk yang sederhana serta biaya investasinya yang terbilang murah. Namun, kualitas pelayanan dayanya relatif buruk yang terjadi akibat adanya rugi daya pada saluran yang cukup besar. Hal itu terjadi karena jaringan distribusi yang merupakan ujung dari saluran transmisi memiliki perbandingan rasio R/X yang tinggi sehingga mengakibatkan rugi daya yang besar. Terdapat beberapa cara untuk mengurangi rugi daya pada jaringan distribusi yakni dengan menggunakan rekonfigurasi jaringan, pemasangan kapasitor bank dan pemasangan unit distributed generation (DG) pada sistem distribusi. Pada tugas akhir ini, algoritma genetika merupakan metode yang digunakan untuk memecahkan suatu pencarian nilai dalam masalah optimasi penentuan lokasi DG dan kapasitor bank serta rekonfigurasi jaringan yang tepat untuk mendapatkan rugi daya yang paling minimal. Dari hasil pengujian yang telah dilakukan pada penelitian ini, diperoleh perbaikan rugi daya nyata paling optimal sebesar 94,92 terhadap kondisi awal sistem distribusi radial 33 bus standart IEEE melalui penggabungan pemasangan DG dan kapasitor bank serta rekonfigurasi jaringan.
Germany's Energiewende: A Tale of Increasing Costs and Decreasing Willingness To Pay

This paper presents evidence that the accumulating cost of Germany's ambitious plan to transform its system of energy provision the so called Energiewende is butting up against consumers' willingness to pay (WTP) for it. Following a descriptive presentation that traces the German promotion of renewable energy technologies since 2000, we draw on two stated preference surveys conducted in 2013 and 2015 that elicit the households' WTP for green electricity. Two models are estimated, one based on a closed ended question framed around Germany's target of 35% renewable energy in electricity provision by 2020, and the other on an open ended format that captures changes in WTP over time. To deal with the bias that typifies hypothetical responses, both models distinguish respondents according to whether they express definite certainty in their reported WTP. The results from both models reveal a strong contrast between the households' general acceptance of supporting renewable energy technologies and their own WTP for green electricity.
The Welfare Cost of Homicides in Brazil: Accounting for Heterogeneity in the Willingness to Pay for Mortality Reductions.
Venue: Health economics

This paper estimates the health dimension of the welfare cost of homicides in Brazil incorporating age, gender, educational, and regional heterogeneities. We use a marginal willingness to pay approach to assign monetary values to the welfare cost of increased mortality due to violence. Results indicate that the present discounted value of the welfare cost of homicides in Brazil corresponds to roughly 78% of the GDP or, in terms of yearly flow, 2.3% The analysis also shows that reliance on aggregate data to perform such calculations can lead to biases of around 20% in the estimated social cost of violence.
On consumer preferences and the willingness to pay for term life insurance
Venue: Eur. J. Oper. Res.

We run a choice based conjoint (CBC) analysis for term life insurance on a sample of 2017 German consumers using data from web based experiments. Individual level part worth profiles are estimated by means of a hierarchical Bayes model. Drawing on the elicited preference structures, we then compute relative attribute importances and different willingness to pay measures. In addition, we present comprehensive simulation results for a realistic competitive setting that allows us to assess product switching as well as market expansion effects. On average, brand, critical illness cover, and underwriting procedure turn out to be the most important nonprice product attributes. Hence, if a policy comprises their favored specifications, customers accept substantial markups in the monthly premium. Furthermore, preferences vary considerably across the sample. While some individuals are prepared to pay relatively high monthly premiums, a large fraction exhibits no willingness to pay for term life insurance at all, presumably due to the absence of a need for mortality risk coverage. We also illustrate that utility driven product optimization is well suited to gain market shares, avoid competitive price pressure, and access additional profit potential. Finally, based on estimated demand sensitivities and a set of cost assumptions, it is shown that insurers require an in depth understanding of preferences to identify the profit maximizing price.
Estimation of social value of statistical life using willingness to pay method in Nanjing, China.
Venue: Accident; analysis and prevention

Rational decision making regarding the safety related investment programs greatly depends on the economic valuation of traffic crashes. The primary objective of this study was to estimate the social value of statistical life in the city of Nanjing in China. A stated preference survey was conducted to investigate travelers' willingness to pay for traffic risk reduction. Face to face interviews were conducted at stations, shopping centers, schools, and parks in different districts in the urban area of Nanjing. The respondents were categorized into two groups, including motorists and non motorists. Both the binary logit model and mixed logit model were developed for the two groups of people. The results revealed that the mixed logit model is superior to the fixed coefficient binary logit model. The factors that significantly affect people's willingness to pay for risk reduction include income, education, gender, age, drive age (for motorists) occupation, whether the charged fees were used to improve private vehicle equipment (for motorists) reduction in fatality rate, and change in travel cost. The Monte Carlo simulation method was used to generate the distribution of value of statistical life (VSL) Based on the mixed logit model, the VSL had a mean value of 3,729,493 RMB $586,610) with a standard deviation of 2,181,592 RMB $343,142) for motorists; and a mean of 3,281,283 RMB $505,318) with a standard deviation of 2,376,975 RMB $366,054) for non motorists. Using the tax system to illustrate the contribution of different income groups to social funds, the social value of statistical life was estimated. The average social value of statistical life was found to be 7,184,406 RMB $1,130,032)
Measuring rural consumers' willingness to pay for quality labels using experimental auctions: the case of aflatoxin free maize in Kenya

Aflatoxins are a common health hazard in tropical countries, especially in rural areas. New methods to reduce aflatoxin levels in food staples, as well as cheaper test methods, are being developed, but consumers' willingness to pay (WTP) for these improvements is unknown. A survey was conducted with a representative sample of rural consumers (1,344 in total, 63% women) in all major maize production zones of Kenya. The survey included an experimental auction with maize products of different qualities. The results showed that many rural consumers were aware of aflatoxins, but few understood their health risks. Respondents were willing to pay a premium for maize tested for aflatoxins and labeled, but asked a high discount for maize that was visibly contaminated with moldy grain. The premium was higher for respondents with education and in regions with aflatoxicosis outbreaks. Knowledge of aflatoxins substantially reduced the overall WTP, but did not increase the WTP for tested maize. Welfare analysis indicates that mandatory testing would result in substantial benefits if the cost of testing can be lowered to below the premium.
The Impact of User Review Volume on Consumers' Willingness to Pay: A Consumer Uncertainty Perspective

Numerous studies have investigated the impact of review volume and review variance on product price, but their findings are mixed. The perspective of mismatch cost framework (e.g. Sun 2012) argues that, at the market level, the impact of review variance on product price varies with review valence due to diverse product tastes across individuals. The perspective of classic expected utility framework (e.g. Wu and Ayala Gaytan 2013; Wu et al. 2013) further argues that heterogeneous risk attitudes across individuals directly drives the varying impact of both review volume and variance on willingness to pay, regardless of review valence. Although both frameworks have gained good empirical support, neither of them probed whether the impact of review volume or review variance varies within an individual. We extend the current research by focusing on the varying impact of review volume on consumers' willingness to pay. Combining economic and behavioral theories of decisions under uncertainty, we argue that consumers' preferences of uncertainty can vary both across and within individuals. The extended framework thus concludes that the impact of review volume on consumers' willingness to pay not only varies across individuals with different types of uncertainty preferences, but may also change with review valence within an individual of some types of uncertainty preferences. The framework is tested using an experimental study and an empirical study. Results from both studies provide good support for this broader framework.
The Importance of Water Clarity to Great Barrier Reef Tourists and Their Willingness to Pay to Improve it

Using the Great Barrier Reef as a case study area, the authors investigate visitors' willingness to pay (WTP) to improve water clarity (WC) They also explore the extent to which people's objective and subjective measures of WC influence WTP. The results suggest that people's stated perceptions (importance and satisfaction) and the interaction between them have a significant influence on WTP. Those for whom WC was very important and who were very satisfied with WC were willing to pay more to preserve it. The importance variable interacts with subjective perceptions that drive behaviour. Thus one needs to consider not only satisfaction, but also the importance of the environment rather than using only subjective (or objective) measures when trying to explain behaviour. Further deterioration in WC could adversely affect the tourism industry and the average visitor would be willing to pay up to A$14.5 per visit to help improve it (although this amount varies for different visitors)