Comparing Motivations and Intentions of Potential Cruise Passengers from Different Demographic Groups: The Case of China

The cruise industry is the fastest growing leisure market in the world. As an essential component, the cruise market in China is growing rapidly over the recent years with the introduction of favorable government policies, new cruise terminals, and increased cruise awareness of customers. Unfortunately, only few studies have investigated the perceptions of Mainland Chinese consumers toward such industry. Hence, by adopting qualitative and quantitative research methods, this study explored how the motivation and intention of potential cruise consumers differed in terms of their demographic background. Travelers from different age, income, and marital status groups demonstrated varying cruise motivations and intentions. The influences of motivation factors on the cruise intention of consumers were also explored. Both the theoretical and practical contributions of the study were put forward accordingly

Fibroblast growth factor-23 and calcium phosphate product in young chronic kidney disease patients: A cross-sectional study

Background: Fibroblast growth factor-23 (FGF-23), a novel marker of bone disease in chronic kidney disease (CKD) has been shown to correlate with vascular calcifications. We aimed to describe the effect of the calcium phosphate product (Ca*P) on FGF-23 concentrations in children and young adults without confounding cardiovascular disease. Methods. Pediatric and young adult patients with CKD stages I-V were recruited in this cross sectional study to measure FGF-23, cystatin C, vitamin D-metabolites and other serum markers of bone metabolism. FGF-23 levels were determined with an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The association between FGF-23 and (Ca*P) was assessed using non-parametric methods. Patients were divided into two age groups, less than 13 years of age and greater than 13 years of age. Results: This cross-sectional study measured serum FGF-23, in 81 patients (42 females, 51.9%) at London Health Sciences Centre, aged 2 to 25 years, with various stages of CKD (Cystatin C estimated glomerular filtration rate, eGFR=10.7-213.0 ml/min). For the whole entire group of patients, FGF-23 levels were found to correlate significantly with age (Spearman r= 0.26, p=0.0198), Cystatin C eGFR (Spearman r=-0.40 p=0.0002), CKD stage (Spearman r=0.457, p\u3c0.0001), PTH (Spearman r=0.330, p=0.0039), ionized calcium (Spearman r=-0.330, p=0.0049), CysC (Spearman r= 0.404, p=0.0002) and 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D (Spearman r=-0.345, p=0.0034) concentrations. No significant correlation was found between FGF-23 levels and calcium phosphate product (Spearman r= 0.164, p=0.142). Upon classification of patients into two age groups, less than 13 years of age and more than 13 years of age, correlational results differed significantly. FGF-23 correlated with CysC eGFR(Spearman r= -0.633, p\u3c0.0001), CKD stage (Spearman r=0.731, p\u3c0.0001), phosphate (Spearman r= 0.557, p\u3c0.0001), calcium phosphate product (Spearman r=0.534, p\u3c0.0001), 125(OH)2 Vit D (Spearman r=-0.631, p\u3c0.0001), PTH (Spearman r= 0.475, p=0.0017) and ionized calcium (Spearman r= -0.503, p=0.0015) only in the older group. The relationship between FGF-23 and Ca*P for the older group could be expressed by the exponential model FGF-23= 38.15 e§ssup§0.4625Ca*P§esup§. Conclusion: Abnormal values of FGF-23 in adolescents and young adults with CKD correlate with Ca* P in the absence of vascular calcifications, and may serve as a biomarker for the risk of cardiovascular calcifications. © 2013 Yasin et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd

Fibroblast growth factor-23 and calcium phosphate product in young chronic kidney disease patients: A cross-sectional study

Background: Fibroblast growth factor-23 (FGF-23), a novel marker of bone disease in chronic kidney disease (CKD) has been shown to correlate with vascular calcifications. We aimed to describe the effect of the calcium phosphate product (Ca*P) on FGF-23 concentrations in children and young adults without confounding cardiovascular disease. Methods. Pediatric and young adult patients with CKD stages I-V were recruited in this cross sectional study to measure FGF-23, cystatin C, vitamin D-metabolites and other serum markers of bone metabolism. FGF-23 levels were determined with an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The association between FGF-23 and (Ca*P) was assessed using non-parametric methods. Patients were divided into two age groups, less than 13 years of age and greater than 13 years of age. Results: This cross-sectional study measured serum FGF-23, in 81 patients (42 females, 51.9%) at London Health Sciences Centre, aged 2 to 25 years, with various stages of CKD (Cystatin C estimated glomerular filtration rate, eGFR=10.7-213.0 ml/min). For the whole entire group of patients, FGF-23 levels were found to correlate significantly with age (Spearman r= 0.26, p=0.0198), Cystatin C eGFR (Spearman r=-0.40 p=0.0002), CKD stage (Spearman r=0.457, p\u3c0.0001), PTH (Spearman r=0.330, p=0.0039), ionized calcium (Spearman r=-0.330, p=0.0049), CysC (Spearman r= 0.404, p=0.0002) and 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D (Spearman r=-0.345, p=0.0034) concentrations. No significant correlation was found between FGF-23 levels and calcium phosphate product (Spearman r= 0.164, p=0.142). Upon classification of patients into two age groups, less than 13 years of age and more than 13 years of age, correlational results differed significantly. FGF-23 correlated with CysC eGFR(Spearman r= -0.633, p\u3c0.0001), CKD stage (Spearman r=0.731, p\u3c0.0001), phosphate (Spearman r= 0.557, p\u3c0.0001), calcium phosphate product (Spearman r=0.534, p\u3c0.0001), 125(OH)2 Vit D (Spearman r=-0.631, p\u3c0.0001), PTH (Spearman r= 0.475, p=0.0017) and ionized calcium (Spearman r= -0.503, p=0.0015) only in the older group. The relationship between FGF-23 and Ca*P for the older group could be expressed by the exponential model FGF-23= 38.15 e§ssup§0.4625Ca*P§esup§. Conclusion: Abnormal values of FGF-23 in adolescents and young adults with CKD correlate with Ca* P in the absence of vascular calcifications, and may serve as a biomarker for the risk of cardiovascular calcifications. © 2013 Yasin et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd

Coefficient of intrinsic dependence: a new measure of association

To detect dependence among variables is an essential task in many scientific investigations. In this study we propose a new measure of association, the coefficient of intrinsic dependence (CID), which takes value in [0,1] and faithfully reflects the full range of dependence for two random variables. The CID is free of distributional and functional assumptions. It can be easily implemented and extended to multivariate situations. Traditionally, the correlation coefficient is the preferred measure of association. However, it's effectiveness is considerably compromised when the random variables are not normally distributed. Besides, the interpretation of the correlation coefficient is difficult when the data are categorical. By contrast, the CID is free of these problems. In our simulation studies, we find that the ability of the CID in differentiating different levels of dependence remains robust across different data types (categorical or continuous) and model features (linear or curvilinear). Also, the CID is particularly effective when the dependence is strong, making it a powerful tool for variable selection. As an illustration, the CID is applied to variable selection in two aspects: classification and prediction. The analysis of actual data from a study of breast cancer gene expression is included. For the classification problem, we identify a pair of genes that best classify a patient's prognosis signature, and for the prediction problem, we identify a pair of genes that best relates to the expression of a specific gene

The fecal resistome of dairy cattle is associated with diet during nursing.

Antimicrobial resistance is a global public health concern, and livestock play a significant role in selecting for resistance and maintaining such reservoirs. Here we study the succession of dairy cattle resistome during early life using metagenomic sequencing, as well as the relationship between resistome, gut microbiota, and diet. In our dataset, the gut of dairy calves serves as a reservoir of 329 antimicrobial resistance genes (ARGs) presumably conferring resistance to 17 classes of antibiotics, and the abundance of ARGs declines gradually during nursing. ARGs appear to co-occur with antibacterial biocide or metal resistance genes. Colostrum is a potential source of ARGs observed in calves at day 2. The dynamic changes in the resistome are likely a result of gut microbiota assembly, which is closely associated with diet transition in dairy calves. Modifications in the resistome may be possible via early-life dietary interventions to reduce overall antimicrobial resistance

Deviations from the Expected Relationship Between Serum FGF23 and Other Markers in Children with CKD: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: High levels of fibroblast growth factor-23 (FGF23) are associated with mortality. In chronic kidney disease (CKD), FGF23 levels rise as renal function declines. We analyzed the contribution of laboratory values to the variance of FGF23 levels in relationship to a curve of expected FGF23 levels for a given GFR. METHODS: Following approval by the research ethics boards, we measured FGF23, CysC eGFR, creatinine, urea, albumin, calcium, phosphate, vitamin D metabolites, PTH, alkaline phosphatase, CRP, and venous gases in 141 pediatric CKD patients (45, 37, 32, 13 and 14 CKD stages I, II, III, IV, and V, respectively). Data were expressed as median (25th, 75th percentile). RESULTS: FGF23 correlated significantly with CysC, CysC eGFR, PTH, 1.25 (OH) CONCLUSIONS: Our data emphasize the importance of phosphate and 1.25 (OH

Human-centered NLP Fact-checking: Co-Designing with Fact-checkers using Matchmaking for AI

A key challenge in professional fact-checking is its limited scalability in relation to the magnitude of false information. While many Natural Language Processing (NLP) tools have been proposed to enhance fact-checking efficiency and scalability, both academic research and fact-checking organizations report limited adoption of such tooling due to insufficient alignment with fact-checker practices, values, and needs. To address this gap, we investigate a co-design method, Matchmaking for AI, which facilitates fact-checkers, designers, and NLP researchers to collaboratively discover what fact-checker needs should be addressed by technology and how. Our co-design sessions with 22 professional fact-checkers yielded a set of 11 novel design ideas. They assist in information searching, processing, and writing tasks for efficient and personalized fact-checking; help fact-checkers proactively prepare for future misinformation; monitor their potential biases; and support internal organization collaboration. Our work offers implications for human-centered fact-checking research and practice and AI co-design research