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The SoccerNet 2023 challenges were the third annual video understanding challenges organized by the SoccerNet team. For this third edition, the challenges were composed of seven vision-based tasks split into three main themes. The first theme, broadcast video understanding, is composed of three high-level tasks related to describing events occurring in the video broadcasts: (1) action spotting, focusing on retrieving all timestamps related to global actions in soccer, (2) ball action spotting, focusing on retrieving all timestamps related to the soccer ball change of state, and (3) dense video captioning, focusing on describing the broadcast with natural language and anchored timestamps. The second theme, field understanding, relates to the single task of (4) camera calibration, focusing on retrieving the intrinsic and extrinsic camera parameters from images. The third and last theme, player understanding, is composed of three low-level tasks related to extracting information about the players: (5) re-identification, focusing on retrieving the same players across multiple views, (6) multiple object tracking, focusing on tracking players and the ball through unedited video streams, and (7) jersey number recognition, focusing on recognizing the jersey number of players from tracklets. Compared to the previous editions of the SoccerNet challenges, tasks (2-3-7) are novel, including new annotations and data, task (4) was enhanced with more data and annotations, and task (6) now focuses on end-to-end approaches. Our report indicates performance trends across tasks: (1) Action spotting is nearing saturation, while (2) ball action spotting improved significantly with advanced end-to-end models. (3) Dense video captioning also saw substantial enhancements aligned with Large Language Models advancements. (4) Camera calibration, redefined end-to-end, demonstrated a significant performance boost. In contrast, (5) player re-identification showed only minor improvements, reflecting decreasing interest. The new (6) multiple object tracking task exhibited notable advances, underscoring the maturity of current techniques. (7) Jersey number recognition received the most focus, achieving impressive results. More information on the tasks, challenges, and leaderboards are available on https://www.soccer-net.org. Baselines and development kits can be found on https://github.com/SoccerNet. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: UVA‐1 phototherapy was first used to treat atopic dermatitis and afterwards to several other skin diseases. The contribution of UVA‐1 in human photocarcinogenesis, skin photoaging, immune suppression, and hyperpigmentation is now well established. The actual contribution of UVA‐1 radiation to the development of malignant melanoma (MM) in humans cannot be excluded. Purpose: The aim of the study is to evaluate the risk of developing skin cancers (non‐melanoma skin cancers (NMSCs) and MM) in patients treated with UVA‐1 phototherapy with a 5‐year dermatological follow‐up. Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study with 31 patients with morphea and atopic dermatitis treated with medium dose UVA‐1 phototherapy (34 J/cm2). All enrolled patients underwent an oncologic prevention visit annually with a 5‐year follow‐up with clinical evaluation of the entire skin surface. Results: During the 5‐year follow‐up, we recorded a case of basal cell carcinoma (BCC) in the cervical region and one case of MM on the back (pT1a). In both cases, the patients were female and affected by morphea. The Glogau 3 group is prevalent (42%), which is consistent with moderate to severe aging; the data appear to be compatible with the age. Conclusions: This study attests that medium‐dose UVA‐1 phototherapy does not increase the risk of developing skin tumors and that UVA‐1 phototherapy is not a worsening factor of facial photoaging. The main limitation of the study is the small sample size, avoiding to obtain statistically significant values. It was not possible to analyze individually the actual daily sun exposure during the 5‐year observation period and to correlate it in terms of time and tumor development. Further studies with large sample sizes will be needed to confirm our data. Our study reaffirms how the dermatological examination performed annually is essential in the follow‐up of patients undergoing this type of therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Super-high (×400) magnification dermoscopy (D400) is a new non-invasive imaging technique that has been shown to add information for the differential diagnosis of melanocytic lesions in a pilot study. Our study aimed to confirm if D400 can add details for the discrimination of clinically atypical nevus and melanoma. This is a retrospective observational, multicentric study enrolling patients who received ×20 (D20) and ×400 (D400) magnification dermoscopic examinations of pigmented skin lesions. Dermoscopic images were retrospectively evaluated by three observers for the presence/absence of nine D20 and twenty D400 dermoscopic features defined in the previous pilot study. Univariate and multivariate analyses were carried out to find predictors of benign and malignant behaviors. At D20, an atypical pigment network, blue-whitish veil, atypical vascular pattern, regression, and homogenous pattern were more frequent in melanoma than in nevi (p < 0.001). At D400, melanoma showed more frequently than benign lesions, melanocytes with an irregular arrangement and irregular in shape and size (p < 0.001). A network with edged papillae was more frequent in benign lesions than melanomas (p < 0.001). Our study confirms that D400 can identify melanocytes with an irregular arrangement, and irregularities in shape and size in melanomas, adding information to the conventional D20 examination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we propose an innovative Federated Learning-inspired evolutionary framework. Its main novelty is that this is the first time that an Evolutionary Algorithm is employed on its own to directly perform Federated Learning activity. A further novelty resides in the fact that, differently from the other Federated Learning frameworks in the literature, ours can efficiently deal at the same time with two relevant issues in Machine Learning, i.e., data privacy and interpretability of the solutions. Our framework consists of a master/slave approach in which each slave contains local data, protecting sensible private data, and exploits an evolutionary algorithm to generate prediction models. The master shares through the slaves the locally learned models that emerge on each slave. Sharing these local models results in global models. Being that data privacy and interpretability are very significant in the medical domain, the algorithm is tested to forecast future glucose values for diabetic patients by exploiting a Grammatical Evolution algorithm. The effectiveness of this knowledge-sharing process is assessed experimentally by comparing the proposed framework with another where no exchange of local models occurs. The results show that the performance of the proposed approach is better and demonstrate the validity of its sharing process for the emergence of local models for personal diabetes management, usable as efficient global models. When further subjects not involved in the learning process are considered, the models discovered by our framework show higher generalization capability than those achieved without knowledge sharing: the improvement provided by knowledge sharing is equal to about 3.03% for precision, 1.56% for recall, 3.17% for F 1 , and 1.56% for accuracy. Moreover, statistical analysis reveals the statistical superiority of model exchange with respect to the case of no exchange taking place. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In particular, the tinnitus symptoms were still present after I T. pallidum i clearing and resolved only after resolution of platelets' alteration.[[3]] In conclusion, physicians should be aware of such a rare presentation of secondary syphilis with mucocutaneous and sensorineural findings. A case of polycythemia vera accompaning hearing loss, tinnitus and dizziness. [Extracted from the article]

This article, published in Dermatology Reports, discusses a case of a 91-year-old woman with a recurrent cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (CSCC) on her lower eyelid and cheek. The article describes the surgical procedure used to reconstruct the defects, including Mohs Micrographic Surgery (MMS) with frozen sections and the use of flaps for eyelid and cheek reconstruction. The outcome of the surgery was successful, with no complications and the correction of the ectropion maintained two years after the procedure. The article highlights the importance of MMS in treating CSCC and discusses the specific surgical techniques used in this case. [Extracted from the article]

Abstract Bullying is a relationship problem that most often occurs in the presence of peers. Peers who witness bullying play a critical role in intervening. Peer intervention, or defending, is a complex behavior. Defending a victimized peer can occur offline and online, with many similarities between the two contexts. This paper, guided by the Social Ecological Model, systematically reviewed the correlates associated with defending at different levels including: individual, peer, family, and school. Inclusion criteria retrieved a final sample of 130 original, peer-reviewed research articles on offline defending, and 25 articles for online defending. Consistent results across both contexts reveal that individuals who defend tend to be girls, have high empathy and low moral disengagement, are popular and well-liked by their peers, and perceive supportive relationships with their parents, teachers, and schools. More research is needed to understand interactions that may occur between levels of the model, as defending is a complex behavior that cannot be characterized by isolated correlates. Highlights • Both offline and online defending are associated with individual, peer, family, and school correlates. • Empathy was the most researched individual correlate, with all significant findings (75%) positively related to defending. • For offline defending, sociometric status was the most researched correlate, and its association may be bidirectional. • The bystander model was the most studied correlate of online defending, with most research (84%) noting a positive link. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To identify the Doppler echocardiographic criteria able to predict clinical deterioration of mild-to- moderate chronic heart failure (CHF) as well as, whenever possible, to evaluate the features of chronological relation of cavitary remodelling in left chambers during follow-up (FU). Methods: A retrospective, case-controlled study, including a number of CHF II NYHA class patients, was carried out, to evaluate, by means of univariate and multivariable logistic regression analyses, the role as predictor of CHF worsening of some Doppler echocardiographic parameters, listed as follows: left ventricular mass index, analyzed both as continuous and as dichotomous (>130 g/m2) variable; left ventricular end-systolic volume (LVESV) >57 ml; left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), divided into 2 classes: a) LVEF>45%, i.e. normal or mildly impaired LVEF, and 2) reduced (45%-30%) LVEF; restrictive left ventricular filling pattern (RFP); antero-posterior left atrial diameter (LADi) >50 mm; ratio of early mitral inflow to early myocardial velocity>8. Results: Of 173 patients enrolled, 60 patients (15 cases of transition to III NYHA class and 45 controls) were included in retrospective analysis. At univariate analysis, RFP and LADi>50 mm were shown to be associated with worsening of CHF. At multivariate analysis, the role of prognostic indicator of poor outcome was maintained by RFP (OR=17.0, 95%CI: 2.5-116.5) as well as by LADi>50 mm (OR=7.95, 95%CI: 1.27.0-49.6). On the other hand, in the subset of CHF with LVEF >45%, increased LADi was not associated with occurrence of increase in LVESV or left ventricular progressive dilation during the subsequent follow-up. Conclusions: In mild-to-moderate CHF, RFP and LADi>50 mm are predictors of adverse outcome, independently of the presence or severity of left ventricular systolic dysfunction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study evaluates the use of magnetic susceptibility and magnetic parameter measurements in assessing spatial and temporal variations of pollutants that emanated from mining industries in and around Sudbury, Ontario, Canada. For this purpose, in situ magnetic susceptibility (κin situ) was measured at 106 sites on a grid of 10 km × 10 km and 5 km × 5 km. The κin situ values ranged from 2 × 10−5 to 149 × 10−5 SI, and the highest κin situ values were observed near the active (Copper Cliff) and inactive (Coniston) mining sites. The lowest κin situ values were measured at increased distances from possible pollution sources; therefore, mapping of in situ magnetic susceptibility values is a proxy to polluted areas in and around Sudbury. To evaluate potential anthropogenic and (or) lithogenic input to κin situ, low-frequency mass specific magnetic susceptibility (χlf) variations with depth were classified into four different types of profiles. For further investigation of magnetic minerals in the samples, laboratory measurements of magnetic susceptibility, frequency dependence of magnetic susceptibility, hysteresis properties, thermosusceptibility curves, anhysteretic and isothermal magnetizations, and scanning electron microscopy - energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) were also conducted on the soil samples. Laboratory measurements indicated that ferrimagnetic minerals (e.g., magnetite) of variable grain size were the dominant magnetic minerals, with the exception of one site that contained an iron sulfide (greigite) phase near a mine waste site. Magnetic spherules observed in SEM micrographs are of variable sizes (6-60 μm), suggesting that suspended particulate matter (PM10) is present, and may be a health concern. At some sites, EDS analysis showed that heavy metals (Co, Al, and Ni), which threaten human health, are also present in the study area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The dynamical reconfiguration of photovoltaic panels is a useful approach for fighting the detrimental effects of mismatching on their power production. The practical implementation of the method has been recently optimized by means of efficient and reliable relays. However, two problems remain still open. The first is to determine the optimal electrical connection among the panels that ensures the maximum power produced at the actual irradiance conditions, while the latter is to constrain the computation time of such optimal configuration to fit the need of real time applications. We present an evolutionary approach to the first problem. It is designed for allowing a straightforward porting to an embedded system and it is aimed at reconfiguring photovoltaic panels, thus not modules like some other approaches do in literature. Simulation results confirm the reliability and convergence capabilities of the proposed method and encourage further work for the adoption of the algorithm in real time applications. The problem of minimizing the computation time is also addressed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to conduct a systematic review of cyberbullying intervention programs that are either in current practice and/or have been well documented. There are negative effects associated with cyberbullying including, poor academic, social, and mental health outcomes. Consequently, there is a need to develop evidence-based interventions. Critical content and evaluation elements of traditional bullying interventions provided a framework, due to the limited evidence on effective features for addressing cyberbullying. The review is based on a set of criteria for traditional bullying by Craig, Pepler, and Shelley (2004), which emphasizes scientific merit and ease of implementation. Results suggest that most studies are lacking in scientific merit, with most studies meeting less than half of the criteria. The average ease of implementation score was higher than that of scientific merit, however only 3 programs provided maintenance after implementation. Recommendations are made for best practices for cyberbullying interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Background: N-acetylcysteine (NAC) is considered a promising radio-protector for its antioxidant and anticarcinogenic properties. We examined the ability of NAC to confer protection against radiation-induced chromosomal DNA damage during cardiac catheterization procedures. Methods: Sixty-five patients (52 males, age 64.4±11.9years) undergoing invasive cardiovascular procedures (peripheral transluminal angioplasty, n =45; cardiac resynchronization therapy, n =15 and ablation therapy n =5) were enrolled: 35 patients (26 males, age 63.4±11.1years) received the standard hydration protocol consisting of intravenous isotonic saline for 12h after catheterization (Group I), and 30 patients (26 males, age 65.5±12.9years) received a clinically driven double intravenous dose of NAC (6mg/kg/h diluted in 250mL of NaCl 0.9%) for 1h before and a standard dose (6mg/kg/h diluted in 500mL of NaCl 0.9%) for 12h following catheterization (Group II). Micronucleus assay (MN) was performed as biomarker of chromosomal DNA damage before, 2 and 24h after the radiation exposure. Dose-area product (DAP; Gy cm2) was assessed as physical measure of radiation load. Results: DAP was higher in NAC-treated patients (I=54.7±23.6 vs II=126.2±79.2Gy cm2, p =0.0001). MN frequency was 13.7±4.7‰ at baseline and showed a significant rise at 2h (18.0±6.8 p =0.01) and 24h (17.6±5.9, p =0.03) in the Group I. There was no significant increase of MN in the Group II (13.7±7.0, 15.5±6.0 and 14.9±6.3 for baseline, 2h and 24h respectively, p =0.4). Conclusion: NAC treatment given to prevent contrast-induced nephropathy may also reduce DNA damage induced by ionizing radiation exposure during cardiac catheterization procedures. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Background: The use of Directional Atherectomy (DA) for the treatment of calcified femoro-popliteal lesions seems to improve the acute procedural success, however without reducing the long term restenosis rate. Drug coated balloons (DCB) reduced restenosis rate in non heavy calcified lesions. Aim of this study was to demonstrate safety and efficacy of a combined endovascular approach using DA and DCB for the treatment of heavy calcified lesions of the femoro-popliteal tract. Methods: From January 2010 to November 2010, 240 patients underwent PTA of the femoro-popliteal tract in our institution. Within this cohort a total of 30 patients had Life Limiting Claudication (LLC) (n=18) and 12 a Critical Limb Ischemia (CLI) with baseline Rutherford class 4.2±1.2 underwent PTA of heavy calcified lesions with intravascular ultrasound guided DA and DCB. All procedures have been performed using a distal protection device. Stent implantation was allowed only in case of flow limiting dissections or suboptimal result (residual stenosis>50%) by visual estimation. After the intervention patients were followed up to 12months. Results: Procedural and clinical success, was achieved in all cases. Bail-out stenting was necessary in only two (6.5%). At twelve month follow up median Rutherford class was 2.2±1.2, ABI was 0.8±0.1 and Limb salvage rate was 100%. Two minor, foot finger or forefoot amputations, were performed to reach complete wound healing and/or preserve deambulation. Duplex control was performed in all the cases (n=30). In three cases duplex scan showed a significant target lesion restenosis requiring a reintervention (TLR=10%) leading a total one-year secondary patency rate of 100%. All the three restenosed patients were insulin dependent diabetics and none of them were stented during the procedure. Conclusion: The data suggest that combined use of DA and DCB may represent a potential alternative strategy for the treatment of femoro-popliteal severely calcified lesions. These very promising data and the considered hypothesis have to be confirmed in a multicentre randomised trial. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Young children are at increased risk for influenza infections and related complications. The protection offered to children by conventional trivalent inactivated influenza vaccines (TIV) is suboptimal, due to poor immunogenicity and a higher exposure to infection and complications in this age group, particularly from influenza B strains. In this dose-ranging, factorial design trial, we report the safety and immunogenicity of different combinations of adjuvanted (ATIV) and non-adjuvanted trivalent (TIV) and quadrivalent (QIV) influenza vaccines in 480 healthy children 6 to <36 months of age. The results show that the second B strain added to TIV was immunogenic and did not affect immunogenicity of the other strains. The addition of the MF59® adjuvant promoted robust immune responses with notable elevations in antibodies observed even after one dose. A dose–response relationship was observed between the antibody response and MF59 adjuvant. No patterns in safety and tolerability emerged with different adjuvant and antigen doses nor with the addition of a second B strain. MF59-adjuvanted QIV offers potential advantages to young children. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This study examined spatial variations in the concentration, grain size and heavy mineral assemblages on Cedar Beach (Lake Erie, Canada). Magnetic studies of heavy mineral-enriched, dark-reddish sands present on the beach showed that magnetite (~150 μm) is the dominant magnetic mineral. Surficial magnetic susceptibility values defined three zones: a lakeward region close to the water line (Zone 1), the upper swash zone (Zone 2) and the region landwards of the upper swash zone (Zone 3). Zone 2 showed the highest bulk and mass susceptibility (κ, χ) and the highest mass percentage of smaller grain-size (<250 μm) fractions in the bulk sand sample. Susceptibility (i.e. κ and χ) values decreased and grain size coarsened from Zone 2 lakewards (into Zone 1) and landwards (into Zone 3), and correlated with the distribution of the heavy mineral assemblage, most probably reflecting preferential separation of large, less dense particles by waves and currents both along and across the beach. The eroded western section of Cedar Beach showed much higher concentrations of heavy minerals including magnetite, and finer sand grain sizes than the accreting eastern section, suggesting that magnetic techniques could be used as a rapid, cost-effective way of examining erosion along sensitive coastline areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In-situ and laboratory-based magnetic measurements were made on sand samples from the beach on the eastern side of Point Pelee National Park (PPNP) in northwestern Lake Erie, in order to examine both the composition and spatial distribution of magnetic minerals. Magnetic remanence measurements on bulk and particle size fractions showed that the magnetic properties were dominated by multidomain ferrimagnetic grains, probably magnetite and/or maghemite. Particle size-specific measurements on different grain size fractions showed that the <250μm fraction of the beach sands was responsible for the majority of the bulk magnetic signal and that these magnetic grains, and other dense minerals, were concentrated into the finer fractions by sorting processes. Selective entrainment and erosion of lighter quartz minerals lead to concentration of heavy magnetic minerals as placer deposits in the finer fractions. Highest in-situ magnetic susceptibility values were observed in the mid-back beach sands where the beach was the narrowest and had experienced significant erosion in the past. Lowest magnetic susceptibility values were in beach areas which were wider and appeared to be less sensitive to erosion; therefore magnetic susceptibility provided a useful proxy for mapping erosion along the PPNP beaches. Mapping in-situ magnetic susceptibility along the 8.9km length of eastern PPNP identified 2.4km (31%) of the beach where erosion was high and where efforts to minimize erosion should be directed. This technique can be applied to a wide range of sedimentary settings and permits quantitative identification of areas of erosion and better targeting of mitigation measures aimed at reducing the impacts of erosion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: We reviewed the safety of MF59-adjuvanted versus non-adjuvanted influenza vaccines in children and adolescents (aged 6 months–18 years) in an integrated analysis of all pediatric trials evaluating MF59-containing influenza vaccines completed to date (5 trials). In the MF59-adjuvanted group (n =1181) versus the non-adjuvanted group (n =545) there was no increase in the incidence of unsolicited adverse events and serious adverse events. As expected, solicited local or systemic reactions occurred more frequently in MF59-adjuvanted subjects; however, a majority of reactions were mild and transient. These data support the safety of MF59-adjuvanted influenza vaccines in the pediatric population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Paleomagnetic and geochemical data obtained from six wells in southwestern Manitoba indicate that the Lower Amaranth redbeds were deposited earlier than Jurassic or Triassic, the most commonly cited depositional ages for this formation in the Williston Basin. The magnetization is carried primarily by detrital specular and pigmentary hematite and occasionally magnetite. Inclination-only analysis of paleomagnetic data (83 specimens from 60 plugs) indicates two possible depositional magnetization ages: Devonian–Pennsylvanian (D, found in very few samples) or Carboniferous to Permian, as suggested by the inclination and the polarity of the most predominant magnetization (B). An isolated magnetization (C) could be a mid-Jurassic to Neogene localized fluid flow remagnetization event. The oxygen and carbon isotope values of dolomite (–6.45‰ to 0.30‰ Vienna PeeDee Belemnite (VPDB) δ18O, –1.57‰ to 5.44‰ VPDB δ13C; n = 18) indicate that dolomitization could have occurred anytime between Carboniferous and Jurassic. However, the distribution of these values is a function of the three types of dolomite present in the Lower Amaranth strata: detrital, cement, and matrix replacive and reflects both the primary values and diagenetic overprints. Detrital and cement dolomite show depleted values in both oxygen and carbon isotopes, most likely inherited from the original values of the detrital dolomite, with superimposed effects of recrystallization. The matrix replacive dolomite has no detrital content, and its oxygen isotope values are similar to the expected values for primary or early diagenetic dolomite from Carboniferous to Jurassic times. Mixtures of detrital and replacive matrix dolomite give intermediate oxygen and carbon isotope values. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To identify the Doppler echocardiographic criteria able to predict clinical deterioration of mild-to- moderate chronic heart failure (CHF) as well as, whenever possible, to evaluate the features of chronological relation of cavitary remodelling in left chambers during follow-up (FU). Methods: A retrospective, case-controlled study , including a number of CHF II NYHA class patients, was carried out, to evaluate, by means of univariate and multivariable logistic regression analyses, the role as predictor of CHF worsening of some Doppler echocardiographic parameters, listed as follows: left ventricular mass index, analyzed both as continuous and as dichotomous (>130 g/m²) variable; left ventricular end-systolic volume (LVESV)>57 ml; left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), divided into 2 classes: a) LVEF>45%, i.e. normal or mildly impaired LVEF, and 2) reduced (45%-30%) LVEF; restrictive left ventricular filling pattern (RFP); antero-posterior left atrial diameter (LADi) >50 mm; ratio of early mitral inflow to early myocardial velocity>8. Results: Of 173 patients enrolled, 60 patients (15 cases of transition to III NYHA class and 45 controls) were included in retrospective analysis. At univariate analysis, RFP and LADi>50 mm were shown to be associated with worsening of CHF. At multivariate analysis, the role of prognostic indicator of poor outcome was maintained by RFP (OR=17.0, 95%CI: 2.5-116.5) as well as by LADi>50 mm (OR=7.95, 95%CI: 1.27.0-49.6). On the other hand, in the subset of CHF with LVEF >45%, increased LADi was not associated with occurrence of increase in LVESV or left ventricular progressive dilation during the subsequent follow-up. Conclusions: In mild-to-moderate CHF, RFP and LADi>50 mm are predictors of adverse outcome, independently of the presence or severity of left ventricular systolic dysfunction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Background: Pulsed-wave ultraviolet excimer laser light at 308 nm can vaporise thrombus, suppress platelet aggregation, and, unlike other thrombectomy devices, ablates the underlying plaque. Aim: To evaluate both safety and efficacy of laser ablation in patients presenting with Acute Myocardial Infarction (AMI) complicated by persistent thrombotic occlusion. Methods: From May 2003 to October 2006, we enrolled 66 AMI patients (age 59±11 years; 57 men) presenting complete thrombotic occlusion of the infarct related vessel. All patients were treated with laser. Primary acute angiographic end-points was corrected TIMI frame count. Secondary echocardiographic end-point was left ventricular remodeling defined as an increase in end-diastolic volume ≥20% 6 months after infarction. Tertiary clinical endpoint was event-free survival at 6 months follow-up. Results: There were no intra-procedural death or coronary perforation. One primary angiographic failure was observed during lasing. Major dissection occurred in 1 (1.5%) and distal embolization in 4 patients (6%). Corrected TIMI frame count was 100 at baseline, 29±0.6 after lasing and 22±3 after stenting. At 6-months follow-up, left ventricular remodeling occurred in 8% patients. Event-free survival was 95% at 6-months follow-up. Conclusion: Laser angioplasty is feasible, safe and effective for the challenging treatment of patients with AMI and thrombus-laden lesions. The acute effects on coronary epicardial and myocardial reperfusion are excellent. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Primary small-cell carcinoma (SmCC) of the stomach is a rare neoplasm with a poor prognosis and unclear histogenesis: to date, only 50 cases, including ours, have been reported in the literature. In the World Health Organization gastrointestinal tumours’ classification, SmCC of the stomach has been recognized as an ‘independent entity affecting the stomach’. In this paper, the authors present a clinical case and the surgical treatment of an adult with a SmCC of the stomach associated with gastric adenocarcinoma. After laparotomy, a large neoplasm with locoregional extension and multiple liver metastases were found. A palliative resection, subtotal gastrectomy, was performed, followed by systemic and intra-hepatic chemotherapy: computed tomography scan demonstrated a marked response, but the patient died 15 months after the operation. A review of the literature showed that the diagnosis of gastric SmCC is based on immunohistochemical findings. Our experience confirmed the high aggressiveness of this neoplasm, which is generally diagnosed in advanced stage and is unresponsive to chemotherapy, but the combined use of systemic and intra-hepatic chemotherapy shows an acceptable result in a palliative care perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents an algorithm for constructing orthogonal Latin hypercubes, given a fixed sample size, in more dimensions than previous approaches. In addition, we detail a method that dramatically improves the space-filling properties of the resultant Latin hypercubes at the expense of inducing small correlations between the columns in the design matrix. Although the designs are applicable to many situations, they were developed to provide Department of Defense analysts flexibility in fitting models when exploring high-dimensional computer simulations where there is considerable a priori uncertainty about the forms of the response surfaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Windsor–Essex County is a major cross-border truck and transportation route, with significant localized industrialization as well as rural and farming areas. Magnetic property measurements (in-field and laboratory susceptibility, frequency-dependent susceptibility, hysteresis properties, thermomagnetic and thermosusceptibility curves, anhysteretic and isothermal magnetizations) were made in order to determine the potential for using such variables to distinguish between natural and anthropogenic pollutants. In-field magnetic susceptibility measured on 324 soil sampling sites on a 0.5–2 km grid spacing through Windsor–Essex County ranged from 3.7×10−6 to 305.2×10−6 SI (average 36.2±35.8×10−6 SI), and showed that high magnetic susceptibility values were obtained on soil sampling sites in and around the cities/towns of Windsor, Harrow, Olinda and Oakland and near the beaches of Point Pelee National Park (PPNP) and Deerbrook, whereas lower susceptibility values were observed in near the towns of Lakeshore and Essex. On this grid spacing, Highway 401 (the major truck route) did not show anomalous susceptibility values; however, closer (1–3 m) sampling on other roads did show anomalously high values, suggesting that the coarser grid spacing may have missed anomalies. Laboratory measurements indicated that the dominant magnetic mineral in the Windsor–Essex County soils is magnetite; however, the grain size is variable. Pseudo-single domain (PSD)–multidomain (MD) magnetite is generally found on beaches and in PPNP, whereas single domain (SD)–PSD magnetite has been found near the City of Windsor and other towns. While certain correlations exist between some anthropogenic activities and the measured magnetic susceptibility and magnetic property values, no overall correlation can be made. A variety of geologic and anthropogenic factors must be considered when interpreting the origin of the magnetic signal in a particular area. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The effects of periodic environmental fluctuations on the adaptive behavior and on the survival chance of a population of individuals are investigated as a function of both the genotypes carried, i.e., haploid or diploid. Only extreme and exogenous changes have been taken into account in order not to complicate the model under investigation. Moreover, different rates of both environmental changes and mutation have been considered. The analysis has been performed by discussing the evolutionary dynamics exhibited by the population in terms of adaptation, density and, finally, survival probability. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Samples collected from the Upper Ordovician Red River carbonates in a well at the centre of the Williston Basin revealed two paleomagnetic components with different inclinations, 60.3±3.9° (k =70.7, N =12) and 20.4±3.3° (k =141.2, N =8), but similar declination values in individual specimens. Inclination-only analysis indicates two possible scenarios for the age of these two magnetizations: in scenario (a) the timing of magnetization happened sometime between Late Ordovician to Devonian; and in scenario (b) there are two different remagnetizations, one that overlaps Pennsylvanian to Permian time while the other can have either a Late Jurassic or a Tertiary age. Whereas dolomitization and some isotopic data tend to support scenario (a), previous paleomagnetic data from the Williston Basin and from younger units in the same well, the tectonic evolution of the basin, and the hydrocarbon maturation pattern in the Red River carbonates all favour chemical remagnetization(s) driven by orogenic fluids during the Alleghenian and Laramide orogenies. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A paleomagnetic study of subsurface core samples from dolomitized carbonates of two producing reservoirs in the Upper Ordovician Trenton Formation, collected from four wells in southwestern Ontario yielded a paleomagnetic direction of D =152.3°, I =−12.3° (N =49, α 95 =8.7). This characteristic remanent magnetization (ChRM) direction was azimuth-corrected by aligning the viscous remanence magnetization (VRM) with the present Earth''s magnetic field direction. A drilling-induced magnetization (VRMdi) was present in less than half the specimens sampled in this study. In addition, where the VRM correction could not be made, a paleolatitudinal arc calculated from the inclination-only mean of I =−9.0° (N =34, α 95 =3.0°) intersected the apparent polar wander path in the Late Permian–Early Triassic. These paleodirections are similar to the paleomagnetic directions observed in Ordovician Trenton carbonates from the Michigan Basin and New York State, U.S.A., suggesting a related regional late Paleozoic remagnetization. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The Devonian Winnepegosis and Duperow Formations were examined in well 4-27-11-22W1, located in at the eastern edge of the Williston Basin in Manitoba. The variation in characteristic remanent magnetization (ChRM) direction and magnetic mineral carrier is obvious: the older Winnepegosis Formation has a primary or early post-depositional magnetization held in magnetite or pyrrhotite (n =15; D =324.1°, I =−27.3°, α 95 =10.4°, k =15.7), whereas the younger Duperow Formation magnetizations are carried by hematite and could be as late as Early Jurassic. The variability may be attributable to the intervening Prairie Evaporite acting as an aquitard to fluid migration. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This paper presents a learning system that uses genetic programming as a tool for automatically inferring the set of classification rules to be used during a preclassification stage by a hierarchical handwritten character recognition system. Starting from a structural description of the character shape, the aim of the learning system is that of producing a set of classification rules able to capture the similarities among those shapes, independently of whether they represent characters belonging to the same class or to different ones. In particular, the paper illustrates the structure of the classification rules, the grammar used to generate them and the genetic operators devised to manipulate the set of rules, as well as the fitness function used to drive the inference process. The experimental results obtained by using a set of 10,000 digits extracted from the NIST database show that the proposed preclassification is efficient and accurate, because it provides at most 6 classes for more than 87% of the samples, and the error rate almost equals the intrinsic confusion found in the data set. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Paleomagnetic analysis demonstrates that the mean inclination, and therefore the age of the magnetization, in the organic-rich shales of the “Nordegg Member” of the Jurassic Fernie Formation correlates with thermal maturity indices. In the immature wells, the magnetization is probably Early to Middle Jurassic (I=60°±5°), in the mature wells, Late Jurassic (I=70°±3°) and in the overmature wells, Late Cretaceous (I=77°+7/-5°). The change in inclination with time, which reflects varying ages of magnetization, also allows the possibility that the inclination can be used as a proxy for the maturity level in the “Nordegg Member” and thereby aid in petroleum exploration. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The laboratory unblocking temperature of a magnetic component (TUB) is dependent on the time duration and temperature of its acquisition and thus is similar in concept to the conodont color alteration index (CAI). The CAI provides an independent determination of the past thermal history that can be related to the observed TUB. We present simple CAI versus TUB plots that can be used to determine the possibility of a thermal remagnetization in specific magnetic minerals, given the measured TUB, or alternatively, to estimate the minimum TUB necessary for a magnetization component to have been unaffected, given a specific CAI value. Failure to correctly correlate CAI values in the Cordillera on the western side of the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin may have led to secondary uplift remagnetizations being interpreted as primary remanent magnetizations in earlier paleomagnetic studies. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

In this paper we propose a method for evaluating the performance of an evolutionary learning system aimed at producing the optimal set of prototypes to be used by a handwriting recognition system. The trade-off between generalization and specialization embedded into any learning process is managed by iteratively estimating both consistency and completeness of the prototypes, and by using such an estimate for tuning the learning parameters in order to achieve the best performance with the smallest set of prototypes. Such estimation is based on a characterization of the behavior of the learning system, and is accomplished by means of three performance indices. Both the characterization and the indices do not depend on either the system implementation or the application, and therefore allow for a truly black–box approach to the performance evaluation of any evolutionary learning system. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The laboratory unblocking temperature of a magnetic component (TUB) is dependent on the time duration and temperature of its acquisition and thus is similar in concept to the conodont color alteration index (CAI). The CAI provides an independent determination of the past thermal history that can be related to the observed TUB. We present simple CAI versus TUB plots that can be used to determine the possibility of a thermal remagnetization in specific magnetic minerals, given the measured TUB, or alternatively, to estimate the minimum TUB necessary for a magnetization component to have been unaffected, given a specific CAI value. Failure to correctly correlate CAI values in the Cordillera on the western side of the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin may have led to secondary uplift remagnetizations being interpreted as primary remanent magnetizations in earlier paleomagnetic studies. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Paleomagnetic analysis demonstrates that the mean inclination, and therefore the age of the magnetization, in the organic-rich shales of the “Nordegg Member” of the Jurassic Fernie Formation correlates with thermal maturity indices. In the immature wells, the magnetization is probably Early to Middle Jurassic (I=60°±5°), in the mature wells, Late Jurassic (I=70°±3°) and in the overmature wells, Late Cretaceous (I=77°+7/−5°). The change in inclination with time, which reflects varying ages of magnetization, also allows the possibility that the inclination can be used as a proxy for the maturity level in the “Nordegg Member” and thereby aid in petroleum exploration. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The physical and chemical changes associated with the thermal maturation of organic-rich shale have affected the paleomagnetic and rock magnetic characteristics of the Devonian Duvernay Formation in the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin. This formation has several lithofacies that correspond to deposition in platform, slope and deeper water settings under varied redox conditions. Shale, laminated mudstone and some massive mudstone facies show evidence of magnetic changes associated with maturation but wackestone, packstone and some massive mudstone facies appear to be unaffected by the process. Rock magnetic evidence suggests that thermal maturation induces a change in the magnetization carrier from magnetite and hematite to solely magnetite.The packstone and wackestone facies commonly show a reversed characteristic magnetization with a paleopole at 194°E, 70°N (A95=13.2) of Late Cretaceous-age. Shale and laminated mudstone facies in immature areas of the basin have inclination-only characteristic remanent magnetization (ChRM) means that range from 55 to 67 °C, requiring a pre-Cretaceous magnetization age. Shale and laminated mudstone facies in mature areas of the basin have a much steeper ChRM in direction ranging from 77 to 83 °C. Their very steep nature suggests that step demagnetization has not completely removed a drilling-induced remanence in some wells. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Diabetes is a heterogeneous group of diseases that share a common trait of elevated blood glucose levels. Insulin lowers this level by promoting glucose utilization, thus avoiding short- and long-term organ damage due to the elevated blood glucose level. A patient with diabetes uses an insulin pump to dose insulin. The pump uses a controller to compute and dose the correct amount of insulin to keep blood glucose levels in a safe range. Insulin-pump controller development is an ongoing process aiming at fully closed-loop control. Controllers entering the market must be evaluated for safety. We propose an evaluation method that exploits an FDA-approved diabetic patient simulator. The method evaluates a Cartesian product of individual insulin-pump parameters with a fine degree of granularity. As this is a computationally intensive task, the simulator executes on a distributed cluster. We identify safe and risky combinations of insulin-pump parameter settings by applying the binomial model and decision tree to this product. As a result, we obtain a tool for insulin-pump settings and controller safety assessment. In this paper, we demonstrate the tool with the Low-Glucose Suspend and OpenAPS controllers. For average ± standard deviation, LGS and OpenAPS exhibited 1.7 ± 0.6% and 3.2 ± 1.8% of local extrema (i.e., good insulin-pump settings) out of all the entire Cartesian products, respectively. A continuous region around the best-discovered settings (i.e., the global extremum) of the insulin-pump settings spread across 4.0 ± 1.1% and 4.1 ± 1.3% of the Cartesian products, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Determinants of health are important drivers of health states, yet there is little work examining their role in the relationship between HIV stigma and health. This study uses moderation analysis to examine how determinants of health affect the relationship between enacted, internalized, and anticipated stigma and mental health. Quantitative data was collected on 337 participants in Ontario, Canada at baseline (t1) between August 2018 and September 2019 and at follow-up (t2) between February 2021 and October 2021. Separate moderation models were created with each determinant of health (age, gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, geographic region, education, employment, and basic needs) acting as the moderator between types of stigma at t1 and mental health at t2. Age was a significant moderator for the relationship between internalized and enacted stigma at t1 and mental health at t2. Region was a moderator for enacted and anticipated stigma and mental health. Sexual orientation was a moderator for anticipated stigma and mental health. Lastly, having basic needs was a moderator for enacted and anticipated stigma and mental health. Our findings suggest that intervention strategies may be more effective by incorporating supports for these determinants of health in addition to stigma reduction to improve mental health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Granular hydrogels have emerged as a promising class of biomaterials in medical research, enabling independent control of matrix stiffness within a porous biomaterial. Such microgel packings comprise interconnected pores and high surface‐to‐volume ratios. These features facilitate cell viability and nutrient diffusion, which are critical in enabling tissue regeneration. Despite the current interest in granular hydrogels for tissue engineering applications, only a few in vitro platforms are used to investigate cell interactions, limiting their design, and translation. In this study, microfluidic platforms able to reproducibly confine and immobilize microgels without the need for secondary cross‐linking are developed. Protocols are established for the generation of human bone marrow‐derived mesenchymal stem/stromal cells (hBM‐MSC)‐infiltrated microporous substrates and early‐time responses of cells to their environment are studied. Further, a tissue invasion assay is established, where cells infiltrate granular materials at different rates depending on growth factor presence or material properties. This platform is compatible with a range of different granular materials, and it is envisioned to have significant utility as a pre‐clinical tool for the rational design of materials for tissue healing applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article, published in Dermatology Reports, discusses a case study of a 55-year-old male with a recurrent infiltrative basal cell carcinoma of the right nasal ala. The patient had previously undergone incomplete excision, resulting in a contracted ala with columellar deviation and nostril asymmetry. After three stages of Mohs surgery, a full-thickness defect was present. The authors performed a Spear flap surgical revision, which involved incising the flap, elevating it, and suturing it to the mucosal aspect of the defect. However, after two months, an unnatural lateral alar base insertion occurred, leading to a surgical revision through an alar rotation flap. The outcome of the procedure was successful, with corrections maintained after two years of follow-up. The article also discusses the potential pitfalls and techniques for achieving satisfactory results in similar cases. [Extracted from the article]

A 55-year-old male presented with a recurrent infiltrative basal cell carcinoma of the right nasal ala. Previous incomplete excision was repaired with second intention healing resulting in a contracted ala with columellar deviation and nostril asymmetry. [...] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems for automatic diagnoses is increasingly in the clinical field, being a useful support for the identification of several diseases. Nonetheless, the acceptance of AI-based diagnoses by the physicians is hampered by the black-box approach implemented by most performing systems, which do not clearly state the classification rules adopted. Methods: In this framework we propose a classification method based on a Cartesian Genetic Programming (CGP) approach, which allows for the automatic identification of the presence of the disease, and concurrently, provides the explicit classification model used by the system. Results: The proposed approach has been evaluated on the publicly available HandPD dataset, which contains handwriting samples drawn by Parkinson's disease patients and healthy controls. We show that our approach compares favorably with state-of-the-art methods, and more importantly, allows the physician to identify an explicit model relevant for the diagnosis based on the most informative subset of features. Conclusion: The obtained results suggest that the proposed approach is particularly appealing in that, starting from the explicit model, it allows the physicians to derive a set of guidelines for defining novel testing protocols and intervention strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Within this paper a general-purpose distributed evolutionary algorithm is presented, and is applied to the pair-wise registration of range images. Registration is carried out by utilizing the Grid Closest Point (GCP) for the graphical registration operations and the distributed algorithm to search for the best possible transformation of a scene image that, merged with the model image, yields a 3D reconstruction of the original object. The evolutionary algorithm is a distributed Differential Evolution algorithm that exploits an asynchronous migration mechanism and a multi-population recombination information exchange. Such an algorithm is provided with an adaptive updating scheme based on chaotic features for dynamically updating the control parameters. The scope of the paper is to speed up the registration process by using processor specialized to handle graphical operations and multi-core platforms. On the one hand, we investigate the use of either Graphic Processing Units (GPUs) or multi-core architectures to lower the execution time of the GCP procedure. On the other hand, we evaluate the performance of the distributed evolutionary algorithm in terms of solution quality by examining different multi-core architectures. Experimental results on a set of publicly available images show that, to perform the GCP, reductions in the execution times by one order of magnitude are obtained by harnessing the computational power of GPU and multi-core platforms with respect to the execution on a CPU-based framework. Furthermore, a comparison with the state-of-the-art sequential evolutionary algorithm for range image registration reveals that the adaptive distributed Differential Evolution algorithm allows attaining integral 3D models from 3D scan datasets that are better in terms of both quality and robustness. • GPU and multi-core Differential Evolution are used for range image registration. • The proposed algorithm is endowed with features of adaptivity and chaos. • The approach has been compared against the best performing algorithm. • The results show one order of magnitude reductions in terms of execution time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A high-resolution environmental magnetic records from a sediment profile in Mountain Ganhai Lake, has provided new insights into modulation of the East Asian summer monsoon (EASM) on climatic changes in North China from the final period of last deglacial stage to Holocene. Large pseudo-single-domain (PSD) to multidomain (MD) detrital magnetite grains are identified in the lake samples. The upwards decreasing magnetic susceptibility (χ) and anhysteretic remanent magnetic susceptibility (χ ARM ) are consistent with the dominant vegetation changes: grassland (~13.0–10.5 ka) under dry and cold conditions, shrub-forest-grassland (~10.5–5.8 ka) in a warm and humid climate, and forest where the Pinus trees increase rapidly to be the dominant taxa, indicating the climate changes from warm and humid to cooler but drier between ~5.8 ka and ~4.0 ka. The lower S -100mT and S -300mT ratios coincide with the higher degree of soil stability and a stable lake stage at ~11.8–6.5 ka. Changes in magnetic anisotropy are also linked to environmental and climatic changes, with T parameters showing higher values during warm/interglacial periods. The anisotropy patterns indicate three different stages of the lake evolution: (1) an early stage of the lake, accompanied by a disturbed high-energy flow, a coarse average mineral particle diameter (MPD) distribution (>16.28 μm) and scattered subvertical minimum direction ( K 3 ) at ~13.0–11.8 ka; (2) a fairly stable lake environment between ~11.8 ka and 6.5 ka, indicated by a low-energy flow, finer MPD (~9.69 μm) and subvertical K 3 axes; (3) an unstable, high-energy flow and coarse MPD (~20.03 μm) with tilted K 3 axes, thus indicating a transition from lake-center to lakeside (~6.5–4.0 ka). These multi-proxy records reveal a weak EASM activity in the final period of the last deglaciation (~13.0–11.8 ka), a high EASM intensity in the early-mid Holocene (~11.8–4.8 ka), an EASM maxima in the mid-Holocene (~8.0–5.8 ka), which then generally weakens at ~4.3–4.2 ka. Overall, this study suggests the anisotropy and climatic changes in the alpine lake are significantly affected by the insolation-driven EASM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Background: Ionising radiation carries an oncogenic risk which is linearly related to the dose. An estimation of the effective dose can be obtained from the measurements of the dose–area product (DAP), which is a measure of stochastic risk and a potential quality indicator. Aim: To assess radiation exposure of patients in a large volume cardiac cath-lab. Methods: A retrospective analysis of adult cardiac and peripheral percutaneous procedures (April to December 2004) was carried out to determine the DAP and estimated risk of malignancy. We identified 6 groups: Group 1 (n =100, coronary angiography and ventriculography); Group 2 (n =50, carotid stenting); Group 3 (n =50, aortography+coronary angiography+ventriculography); Group 4 (n =100, inferior extremities angiography+predilatation and stenting); Group 5 (n =100, coronary angiography+ventriculography+direct coronary stenting); Group 6 (n =100, coronary angiography+ventriculography+coronary predilation and stenting). Dose–area product meter attached on the X-ray unit was used for the estimation of the radiation dose received by the patient during the procedures. Results: DAP values (mean±S.D.) ranged from 41±30 Gy cm2 in Group 1 (lowest) to 118±89 Gy cm2 in Group 6 (highest). Within each group, individual radiation exposure varies substantially: from 11 to 200 Gy cm2 in Group 1, and from 30 to 733 Gy cm2 in Group 6 patients. Average exposure in a Group 6 patient corresponds to a risk of mortality from a malignancy of about 1 in 1000. Conclusion: The radiation dose varies substantially across different types of procedures and up to tenfold within the same procedure. The enhanced knowledge of radiation dose might help the cardiologist to implement radiation sparing procedures eventually minimizing patient and operator radiation hazards in invasive cardiology. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]