A tool to overcome technical barriers for bias assessment in human language technologies

Automatic processing of language is becoming pervasive in our lives, oftentaking central roles in our decision making, like choosing the wording for ourmessages and mails, translating our readings, or even having full conversationswith us. Word embeddings are a key component of modern natural languageprocessing systems. They provide a representation of words that has boosted theperformance of many applications, working as a semblance of meaning. Wordembeddings seem to capture a semblance of the meaning of words from raw text,but, at the same time, they also distill stereotypes and societal biases whichare subsequently relayed to the final applications. Such biases can bediscriminatory. It is very important to detect and mitigate those biases, toprevent discriminatory behaviors of automated processes, which can be much moreharmful than in the case of humans because their of their scale. There arecurrently many tools and techniques to detect and mitigate biases in wordembeddings, but they present many barriers for the engagement of people withouttechnical skills. As it happens, most of the experts in bias, either socialscientists or people with deep knowledge of the context where bias is harmful,do not have such skills, and they cannot engage in the processes of biasdetection because of the technical barriers. We have studied the barriers inexisting tools and have explored their possibilities and limitations withdifferent kinds of users. With this exploration, we propose to develop a toolthat is specially aimed to lower the technical barriers and provide theexploration power to address the requirements of experts, scientists and peoplein general who are willing to audit these technologies.Fil: Alemany, Laura Alonso. Fundación Via Libre; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Matemática, Astronomía y Física; ArgentinaFil: Benotti, Luciana. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Matemática, Astronomía y Física; Argentina. Fundación Via Libre; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Gonzalez, Lucía. Fundación Via Libre; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Matemática, Astronomía y Física; ArgentinaFil: Maina, Hernán Javier. Fundación Via Libre; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Matemática, Astronomía y Física; ArgentinaFil: Busaniche, Beatriz. Fundación Via Libre; ArgentinaFil: Halvorsen, Alexia. Fundación Via Libre; ArgentinaFil: Bordone, Matías. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Matemática, Astronomía y Física; Argentina. Fundación Via Libre; ArgentinaFil: Sanchez, Jorge Adrian. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Matemática, Astronomía y Física; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentin

effects of concurrent eccentric overload and high intensity interval training on team sports players performance

The aim of the study was to compare the effects of an in-season five weeks of high-intensity training (HIT) with a concurrent HIT eccentric overload training (CT) program on male amateur team-sports players' fitness performance. Twenty-two athletes were randomly assigned to HIT (n=10) or CT (n=12). Both groups completed a HIT program. The CT group also completed two-three sets of six repetitions of eccentric overload training. Before and after training, performance was assessed for change of direction ability (COD), repeated sprint ability for best time (RSAb), mean time (RSAm) and slowest time (RSAs), jumping, and shuttle-run performance. Within-group analyses in both groups showed substantial better scores on COD, RSAb and RSAm and shuttle-run performance. Between-group analyses showed greater improvements in COD, RSAb, RSAm, RSAs, and jumping after additional CT compared to solely HIT. In conclusion, compared to HIT alone, concurrent eccentric overload and HIT training within the same session improved COD, RSA, jump, and shuttle-run performance in basketball and soccers amateur players

Comparison of proximal remote sensing devices of vegetable crops to determine the role of grafting in plant resistance to meloidogyne incognita

Proximal remote sensing devices are novel tools that enable the study of plant health status through the measurement of specific characteristics, including the color or spectrum of light reflected or transmitted by the leaves or the canopy. The aim of this study is to compare the RGB and multispectral data collected during five years (2016–2020) of four fruiting vegetables (melon, tomato, eggplant, and peppers) with trial treatments of non-grafted and grafted onto resistant rootstocks cultivated in a Meloidogyne incognita (a root-knot nematode) infested soil in a greenhouse. The proximal remote sensing of plant health status data collected was divided into three levels. Firstly, leaf level pigments were measured using two different handheld sensors (SPAD and Dualex). Secondly, canopy vigor and biomass were assessed using vegetation indices derived from RGB images and the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) measured with a portable spectroradiometer (Greenseeker). Third, we assessed plant level water stress, as a consequence of the root damage by nematodes, using stomatal conductance measured with a porometer and indirectly using plant temperature with an infrared thermometer, and also the stable carbon isotope composition of leaf dry matter.. It was found that the interaction between treatments and crops (ANOVA) was statistically different for only four of seventeen parameters: flavonoid (p < 0.05), NBI (p < 0.05), NDVI (p < 0.05) and the RGB CSI (Crop Senescence Index) (p < 0.05). Concerning the effect of treatments across all crops, differences existed only in two parameters, which were flavonoid (p < 0.05) and CSI (p < 0.001). Grafted plants contained fewer flavonoids (x¯ = 1.37) and showed lower CSI (x¯ = 11.65) than non-grafted plants (x¯ = 1.98 and x¯ = 17.28, respectively, p < 0.05 and p < 0.05) when combining all five years and four crops. We conclude that the grafted plants were less stressed and more protected against nematode attack. Leaf flavonoids content and the CSI index were robust indicators of root-knot nematode impacts across multiple crop typesY.H. acknowledges the support of the Tunisian government from the Ministery of Higher Education and Scientific Research. J.L.A. acknowledges support from the Institucio Catalana d'Investigacio i Estudis Avancats (ICREA) Academia, Generalitat de Catalunya, Spain. S.C.K. is supported by the Ramon y Cajal RYC-2019-027818-I research fellowship from the Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovacion, Spain. Thanks are also given to the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (MINECO) and the European Regional Development Fund (FEDER) for funding the project AGL2013-49040-C2-1-R and to the Ministry of Science and Innovation from the Spanish Government for funding the AGL2017-89785-R, and to the European Regional Development Fund (FEDER) AGL2017-89785-R, and for providing the FPI grant PRE2018-084265 to AMF. This research was also supported by the COST Action CA17134 SENSECO (Optical synergies for spatiotemporal sensing of scalable ecophysiological traits) funded by COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology, www.cost.eu accessed on 29 April 2022)

Pressure-Driven Metallization in Hafnium Diselenide

The quest for new transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) with outstanding electronic properties operating at ambient conditions draws us to investigate the 1T-HfSe2 polytype under hydrostatic pressure. Diamond anvil cell (DAC) devices coupled to in- situ synchrotron X-ray, Raman and optical (VIS-NIR) absorption experiments along with density functional theory (DFT) based calculations prove that: (i) bulk 1T-HfSe2 exhibits strong structural and vibrational anisotropies, being the interlayer direction especially sensitive to pressure changes, (ii) the indirect gap of 1T-HfSe2 trend to vanish by a -0.1 eV/GPa pressure rate, slightly faster than MoS2 or WS2, (iii) the onset of the metallic behavior appears at Pmet ~10 GPa, which is to date the lowest pressure among common TMDs, and finally (iv) the electronic transition is explained by the bulk modulus B0-Pmet correlation, along with the pressure coefficient of the band gap, in terms of the electronic overlap between chalcogenide p-type and metal d-type orbitals

Exceptional electronic transport and quantum oscillations in thin bismuth crystals grown inside van der Waals materials

Confining materials to two-dimensional forms changes the behavior of electrons and enables new devices. However, most materials are challenging to produce as uniform thin crystals. Here, we present a new synthesis approach where crystals are grown in a nanoscale mold defined by atomically-flat van der Waals (vdW) materials. By heating and compressing bismuth in a vdW mold made of hexagonal boron nitride (hBN), we grow ultraflat bismuth crystals less than 10 nanometers thick. Due to quantum confinement, the bismuth bulk states are gapped, isolating intrinsic Rashba surface states for transport studies. The vdW-molded bismuth shows exceptional electronic transport, enabling the observation of Shubnikov-de Haas quantum oscillations originating from the (111) surface state Landau levels, which have eluded previous studies. By measuring the gate-dependent magnetoresistance, we observe multi-carrier quantum oscillations and Landau level splitting, with features originating from both the top and bottom surfaces. Our vdW-mold growth technique establishes a platform for electronic studies and control of bismuth's Rashba surface states and topological boundary modes. Beyond bismuth, the vdW-molding approach provides a low-cost way to synthesize ultrathin crystals and directly integrate them into a vdW heterostructure

Prospective Latin American cohort evaluating outcomes of patients with COVID-19 and abnormal liver tests on admission

Introduction & objectives: The independent effect of liver biochemistries as a prognostic factor in patients with COVID-19 has not been completely addressed. We aimed to evaluate the prognostic value of abnormal liver tests on admission of hospitalized patients with COVID-19. Materials & methods: We performed a prospective cohort study including 1611 hospitalized patients with confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection from April 15, 2020 through July 31, 2020 in 38 different Hospitals from 11 Latin American countries. We registered clinical and laboratory parameters, including liver function tests, on admission and during hospitalization. All patients were followed until discharge or death. We fit multivariable logistic regression models, further post-estimation effect through margins and inverse probability weighting. Results: Overall, 57.8% of the patients were male with a mean age of 52.3 years, 8.5% had chronic liver disease and 3.4% had cirrhosis. Abnormal liver tests on admission were present on 45.2% (CI 42.7–47.7) of the cohort (n = 726). Overall, 15.1% (CI 13.4–16.9) of patients died (n = 244). Patients with abnormal liver tests on admission presented higher mortality 18.7% (CI 15.9–21.7), compared to those with normal liver biochemistries 12.2% (CI 10.1–14.6); P 30. Conclusions: The presence of abnormal liver tests on admission is independently associated with mortality and severe COVID-19 in hospitalized patients with COVID-19 infection and may be used as surrogate marker of inflammation.Fil: Mendizabal, Manuel. Universidad Austral. Hospital Universitario Austral; ArgentinaFil: Piñero, Federico. Universidad Austral. Hospital Universitario Austral; ArgentinaFil: Ridruejo, Ezequiel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. CEMIC-CONICET. Centro de Educaciones Médicas e Investigaciones Clínicas "Norberto Quirno". CEMIC-CONICET; ArgentinaFil: Anders, Margarita. Hospital Aleman; ArgentinaFil: Silveyra, María Dolores. Sanatorio Anchorena; ArgentinaFil: Torre, Aldo. Centro Médico ABC; MéxicoFil: Montes, Pedro. Hospital Nacional Daniel A. Carrión; PerúFil: Urzúa, Alvaro. Hospital Clínico de la Universidad de Chile; ChileFil: Pages, Josefina. Universidad Austral. Hospital Universitario Austral; ArgentinaFil: Toro, Luis G.. Hospitales de San Vicente Fundación de Medellín y Rionegro; ColombiaFil: Díaz, Javier. Hospital Nacional Edgardo Rebagliati Martins; PerúFil: Gonzalez Ballerga, Esteban. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Medicina. Hospital de Clínicas General San Martín; ArgentinaFil: Miranda Zazueta, Godolfino. Instituto Nacional de Ciencias Médicas y Nutrición; MéxicoFil: Peralta, Mirta. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital de Infecciosas "Dr. Francisco Javier Muñiz"; ArgentinaFil: Gutiérrez, Isabel. Centro Médico ABC; MéxicoFil: Michelato, Douglas. Hospital Especializado en Enfermedades Infecciosas Instituto Couto Maia; BrasilFil: Venturelli, Maria Grazia. Hospital Nacional Guillermo Almenara Irigoyen; PerúFil: Varón, Adriana. Fundación Cardio-Infantil; ColombiaFil: Vera Pozo, Emilia. Hospital Regional Dr. Teodoro Maldonado Carbo; EcuadorFil: Tagle, Martín. Clínica Anglo-Americana; PerúFil: García, Matías. Centro de Educación Médica e Investigaciones Clínicas "Norberto Quirno"; ArgentinaFil: Tassara, Alfredo. Hospital Aleman; ArgentinaFil: Brutti, Julia. Sanatorio Anchorena; ArgentinaFil: Ruiz García, Sandro. Hospital de Víctor Lazarte Echegaray; PerúFil: Bustios, Carla. Clínica Delgado; PerúFil: Escajadillo, Nataly. Hospital Nacional Almanzor Aguinaga Asenjo; PerúFil: Macias, Yuridia. No especifíca;Fil: Higuera de la Tijera, Fátima. Hospital General de México “Dr. Eduardo Liceaga"; MéxicoFil: Gómez, Andrés J.. Hospital Universitario Fundación Santa Fé de Bogotá; ColombiaFil: Dominguez, Alejandra. Hospital Padre Hurtado; ChileFil: Castillo Barradas, Mauricio. Hospital de Especialidades del Centro Médico Nacional La Raza; MéxicoFil: Contreras, Fernando. No especifíca;Fil: Scarpin, Aldana. Centro de Educación Médica e Investigaciones Clínicas "Norberto Quirno"; ArgentinaFil: Schinoni, Maria Isabel. Hospital Alianza; BrasilFil: Toledo, Claudio. Universidad Austral de Chile; ChileFil: Girala, Marcos. Universidad Nacional de Asunción; ParaguayFil: Mainardi, Victoria. Hospital Central De las Fuerzas Armadas; UruguayFil: Sanchez, Abel. Hospital Roosevelt; GuatemalaFil: Bessone, Fernando. Provincia de Santa Fe. Ministerio de Salud y Medio Ambiente - Rosario. Hospital Provincial del Centenario; ArgentinaFil: Rubinstein, Fernando Adrian. Instituto de Efectividad Clínica y Sanitaria; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Silva, Marcelo Oscar. Universidad Austral. Hospital Universitario Austral; Argentin

Rates and Predictors of Treatment Failure in Staphylococcus aureus Prosthetic Joint Infections According to Different Management Strategies: A Multinational Cohort Study—The ARTHR-IS Study Group

Introduction: Guidelines have improved the management of prosthetic joint infections (PJI). However, it is necessary to reassess the incidence and risk factors for treatment failure (TF) of Staphylococcus aureus PJI (SA-PJI) including functional loss, which has so far been neglected as an outcome. Methods: A retrospective cohort study of SA-PJI was performed in 19 European hospitals between 2014 and 2016. The outcome variable was TF, including related mortality, clinical failure and functional loss both after the initial surgical procedure and after all procedures at 18 months. Predictors of TF were identified by logistic regression. Landmark analysis was used to avoid immortal time bias with rifampicin when debridement, antibiotics and implant retention (DAIR) was performed. Results: One hundred twenty cases of SA-PJI were included. TF rates after the first and all surgical procedures performed were 32.8% and 24.2%, respectively. After all procedures, functional loss was 6.0% for DAIR and 17.2% for prosthesis removal. Variables independently associated with TF for the first procedure were Charlson >= 2, haemoglobin 30 kg/m(2) and delay of DAIR, while rifampicin use was protective. For all procedures, the variables associated with TF were haemoglobin < 10 g/dL, hip fracture and additional joint surgery not related to persistent infection. Conclusions: TF remains common in SA-PJI. Functional loss accounted for a substantial proportion of treatment failures, particularly after prosthesis removal. Use of rifampicin after DAIR was associated with a protective effect. Among the risk factors identified, anaemia and obesity have not frequently been reported in previous studies. [GRAPHICS]

Antimicrobial resistance among migrants in Europe: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Rates of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) are rising globally and there is concern that increased migration is contributing to the burden of antibiotic resistance in Europe. However, the effect of migration on the burden of AMR in Europe has not yet been comprehensively examined. Therefore, we did a systematic review and meta-analysis to identify and synthesise data for AMR carriage or infection in migrants to Europe to examine differences in patterns of AMR across migrant groups and in different settings. METHODS: For this systematic review and meta-analysis, we searched MEDLINE, Embase, PubMed, and Scopus with no language restrictions from Jan 1, 2000, to Jan 18, 2017, for primary data from observational studies reporting antibacterial resistance in common bacterial pathogens among migrants to 21 European Union-15 and European Economic Area countries. To be eligible for inclusion, studies had to report data on carriage or infection with laboratory-confirmed antibiotic-resistant organisms in migrant populations. We extracted data from eligible studies and assessed quality using piloted, standardised forms. We did not examine drug resistance in tuberculosis and excluded articles solely reporting on this parameter. We also excluded articles in which migrant status was determined by ethnicity, country of birth of participants' parents, or was not defined, and articles in which data were not disaggregated by migrant status. Outcomes were carriage of or infection with antibiotic-resistant organisms. We used random-effects models to calculate the pooled prevalence of each outcome. The study protocol is registered with PROSPERO, number CRD42016043681. FINDINGS: We identified 2274 articles, of which 23 observational studies reporting on antibiotic resistance in 2319 migrants were included. The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or AMR infection in migrants was 25·4% (95% CI 19·1-31·8; I2 =98%), including meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (7·8%, 4·8-10·7; I2 =92%) and antibiotic-resistant Gram-negative bacteria (27·2%, 17·6-36·8; I2 =94%). The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or infection was higher in refugees and asylum seekers (33·0%, 18·3-47·6; I2 =98%) than in other migrant groups (6·6%, 1·8-11·3; I2 =92%). The pooled prevalence of antibiotic-resistant organisms was slightly higher in high-migrant community settings (33·1%, 11·1-55·1; I2 =96%) than in migrants in hospitals (24·3%, 16·1-32·6; I2 =98%). We did not find evidence of high rates of transmission of AMR from migrant to host populations. INTERPRETATION: Migrants are exposed to conditions favouring the emergence of drug resistance during transit and in host countries in Europe. Increased antibiotic resistance among refugees and asylum seekers and in high-migrant community settings (such as refugee camps and detention facilities) highlights the need for improved living conditions, access to health care, and initiatives to facilitate detection of and appropriate high-quality treatment for antibiotic-resistant infections during transit and in host countries. Protocols for the prevention and control of infection and for antibiotic surveillance need to be integrated in all aspects of health care, which should be accessible for all migrant groups, and should target determinants of AMR before, during, and after migration. FUNDING: UK National Institute for Health Research Imperial Biomedical Research Centre, Imperial College Healthcare Charity, the Wellcome Trust, and UK National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit in Healthcare-associated Infections and Antimictobial Resistance at Imperial College London