1,720,962 research outputs found
Time-varying effective connectivity of the cortical neuroelectric activity associated with behavioural microsleeps
Get PDFAn episode of complete failure to respond during an attentive task accompanied by behavioural signs of sleep is called a behavioural microsleep. We proposed a combination of high-resolution EEG and an advanced method for time-varying effective connectivity estimation for reconstructing the temporal evolution of the causal relations between cortical regions when microsleeps occur during a continuous visuomotor task. We found connectivity patterns involving left-right frontal, left-right parietal, and left-frontal/right-parietal connections commencing in the interval [- 500; - 250] ms prior to the onset of microsleeps and disappearing at the end of the microsleeps. Our results from global graph indices derived from effective connectivity analysis have revealed EEG-based biomarkers of all stages of microsleeps (preceding, onset, pre-recovery, recovery). In particular, this raises the possibility of being able to predict microsleeps in real-world tasks and initiate a 'wake-up' intervention to avert the microsleeps and, hence, prevent injurious and even multi-fatality accidents. © 2015 Elsevier Inc
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Get PDFThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Get PDF“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Get PDFWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Should health-related quality of life and patient choice be incorporated into evidence-based guidelines in the treatment of cervical dysplasia?
No full textSTUDY 1: Health-related quality of life outcomes and patient preferences of follow-up, post treatment of CIN 2 and CIN 3.
OBJECTIVE: To identify patient preferences and investigate whether type of follow-up was associated with differences in Health-related Quality of Life (HrQOL), adherence to screening, or cost benefits in patients who have undergone large loop excision of the transformation zone (LLETZ) procedures for cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) stages two and three.
STUDY DESIGN: Three arm, parallel-group, open label randomised controlled trial of women aged 18 70, with a new diagnosis of CIN 2-3, at Christchurch Women’s Hospital. The control group (n= 69) had routine follow-up with colposcopy review at the hospital, six months post treatment (6). Two intervention groups were also examined: one having follow-up by high-risk human papilloma virus (HrHPV) and smear testing in the community (n = 66), and the second group who selected their follow-up regime (either hospital-based colposcopy or HrHPV and smear tests in the community, n = 65). Assessments were conducted at time of treatment and at 6 months by questionnaire. The two intervention groups were compared with the control group. Comparisons between the choice versus no-choice groups were also made. The primary outcome of the study was an analysis of HrQOL scores using the Short Form Health Survey 12 version 2 (SF12v2). Additional questions to investigate patient preferences, sexual function, anxiety, and insight into condition were also asked. Intention to treat analysis was performed. The secondary outcomes of the study include percentage of normal follow-up tests, detection of recurrent disease, patient preferences, adherence to screening recommendation, and cost analysis with comparison between the groups.
RESULTS: This study investigated 200 women who received LLETZ treatment at Christchurch Women’s Hospital between 2013 and 2015. The baseline characteristics of the groups were similar. Seventy-six women (38%) were randomised to the control group in the study, 63 (32%) were randomised to follow-up in the community with smear and HrHPV testing, and 61 (31%) were offered the choice to select their follow-up regime. Of those given a choice of follow-up, 22 (36%) chose to have their follow-up in the community and 39 (64%) chose to have follow-up in the colposcopy department. This illustrates a preference for follow-ups in the colposcopy department. Of the 200 women enrolled in the study, 196 (98%) completed their baseline questionnaires and 128 (65%) returned their questionnaires after 6 months. We found no significant difference in HrQOL between the follow-up regimes. At 6 months, the SF12v2 scores for HrQOL were not significantly different between the groups. There was, however, a four times greater likelihood that patients in the choice group would adhere to follow-up. There are cost benefits to both community and choice of follow-up (with savings of 33 dollars per person, respectively).
Of the participants, 122 women (61%) had no evidence of disease by 6 months (had normal smears and negative HrHPV tests). Although there were no significant correlations with smoking status or OCP use, the trends were in the expected direction. One patient experienced treatment failure and required a repeat LLETZ, while another was found to have a 1A1 squamous cell carcinoma and was referred for Gynaecology Oncology follow-up.
CONCLUSION: We found no statistically significant differences in HrQOL between the groups as measured by the SF12v2. A preference for follow-up in colposcopy was observed. Community follow-up was the most cost effective but was also associated with the highest non-adherence to follow-up. Choice of follow-up has a cost benefit of $33 per patient and was associated with the lowest non-adherence to follow-up. A larger randomised trial would help determine whether these results are representative of the diversity of women in the New Zealand population, notably among ethnic minorities and women living rurally, who are not well represented in this study. Within the limitations of the study there is evidence that women who were given choice in follow-up were less likely to miss future appointments. This, together with the economic benefit, suggests that even though there is no QOL difference between follow-up methods, changes should be made to the screening guidelines to accomodate patient preference.
STUDY 2: Does conservative management of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia reduce quality of life in young women?
OBJECTIVE: To assess health-related quality of life (HrQOL) in women under 25 years of age with cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) grade 2 receiving conservative management (colposcopy follow-up, with treatment if necessary) compared with those receiving immediate excisional treatment with large loop excision of the transformation zone (LLETZ).
STUDY DESIGN: A cross-sectional observational study evaluating HrQOL was conducted at Christchurch Women’s Hospital, New Zealand. Women undergoing conservative management for CIN 2 were compared with those undergoing immediate excisional treatment in an age-matched sample. The Short Form Health Survey 12 version 2 (SF-12v2) was used, measuring Physical Component Summary scores (PCS) and Mental Component Summary scores (MCS) to evaluate quality of life (QOL). Secondary outcomes of anxiety and sexual function were also assessed.
RESULTS: 104 women with CIN 2 participated in the study. Of these, 63 women (60%) received conservative management and 41 (40%) received immediate excisional treatment with LLETZ. The demographic features of the groups were similar. We found no significant difference in HrQOL between the groups in a multivariate regression analysis adjusted for parity, smoking, and socioeconomic status. There were also no significant differences in sexual function or anxiety.
CONCLUSION: We found no difference in HrQOL by management strategy. Conservative management of CIN 2 in women under 25 is unlikely to have an adverse impact on self-reported health-related quality of life, anxiety, or sexual functioning compared with conventional management
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
Get PDFWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
koamabayili/VECTRON-author-checklist: VECTRON author checklist
No full textWe have done our best to complete the author checklist relating to the use of animals in the hut study. Note that the objective for the hut study was to evaluate the IRS treatment applications for residual efficacy against Anopheles mosquitoes, including the local An. coluzzii mosquito population. Cows were only used to attract mosquitoes into the huts and no tests were carried out directly on the cows. The author checklist is intended for use with studies where experiments are carried out on animals, which is why we have had such difficulty in completing this for the hut study, as many of the questions do not relate to how the cows were used
Author-wise bibliometric analysis based on entropy.
No full textAuthor-wise bibliometric analysis based on entropy.</p
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