MIRACLE evaluation of results for ImageCLEF 2003

ImageCLEF is a new pilot experiment introduced in CLEF 2003. It is devoted to the cross language retrieval of images using textual descriptions related to images contents. This paper presents MIRACLE research team experiments and results obtained for this track

Evaluation of MIRACLE approach results for CLEF 2003

This paper describes MIRACLE (Multilingual Information RetrievAl for the CLEf campaign) approach and results for the mono, bi and multilingual Cross Language Evaluation Forum tasks. The approach is based on the combination of linguistic and statistic techniques to perform indexing and retrieval tasks

OmniPaper : acceso inteligente a periódicos europeos

El proyecto OmniPaper (proyecto IST-2001-32174, www.omnipaper.org) pretende ofrecer un medio de acceso personalizado y unificado a las noticias de periódicos europeos. Para facilitar el acceso a los artículos se combina la navegación por una taxonomía multilingüe de temas con búsquedas a texto completo y otras técnicas que incluyen el manejo de metadatos.The aim of the OmniPaper project (IST-2001-32174, www.omnipaper.org) is to offer a personalized and standarized interface to the articles of European newspapers. In order to improve this access, the browsing through a multilingual taxonomy of subjects is combined with full-text searching and other techniques which involve metadata handling

Image Retrieval: The MIRACLE Approach

ImageCLEF is a pilot experiment run at CLEF 2003 for cross language image retrieval using textual captions related to image contents. In this paper, we describe the participation of the MIRACLE research team (Multilingual Information RetrievAl at CLEF), detailing the different experiments and discussing their preliminary results

A study of Burnout in students of the University of Granada: the modulating effect of variables of emotional intelligence and course classifications

Recepción: 20 de mayo de 2016 | Revisión: 21 de mayo de 2016 | Aceptado: 30 de mayo de 2016Correspondencia: [email protected] siguiente artículo se ha realizado con la finalidad de estudiar la relación entre el Síndrome de Burnout y la Inteligencia Emocional en población universitaria en función de su curso académico. Se le aplicó a una muestra de 70 sujetos universitarios estudiantes de grado o máster escogidos aleatoriamente los cuestionarios SBI-U-9 en versión española y el TMMS24 para medir respectivamente el Síndrome de Burnout y la Inteligencia Emocional. Una vez realizado el análisis estadístico, se pudo comprobar que las expectativas se cumplían en cuanto a la relación existente entre Burnout y curso, pero no en cuanto a la relación entre Burnout e Inteligencia Emocional.The aim of this article is to investigate the relation between Burnout Syndrome and Emotional Intelligence in University students, in connection to their academic year. A sample of 70 randomly selected subjects, currently studying a Master's or Bachelor's degree, were asked to complete two questionnaires, the Spanish version of the SBI-U-9 and the TMMS24, in order to evaluate Burnout Syndrome and Emotional Intelligence, respectively. It can be stated that the results of the statistical analysis correlated with the initial hypothesis as far as the relation that exists between Burnout Syndrome and academic year, but not with regards to the relationship between Burnout and Emotional Intelligence.Universidad de Granada. Departamento de Psicología Social. Proyecto de Innovación Docente ReiDoCre

Vitamin C deficiency in critically ill COVID-19 patients admitted to intensive care unit

COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia; Vitamin CCOVID-19; Neumonía por SARS-CoV-2; Vitamina CCOVID-19; Pneumònia per SARS-CoV-2; Vitamina CObjectives: To determine vitamin C plasma kinetics, through the measurement of vitamin C plasma concentrations, in critically ill Coronavirus infectious disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients, identifying eventually the onset of vitamin C deficiency. Design: Prospective, observational, single-center study. Setting: Intensive Care Unit (ICU), Vall d’Hebron University Hospital, Barcelona. Study period from November 12th, 2020, to February 24th, 2021. Patients: Patients who had a severe hypoxemic acute respiratory failure due to COVID-19 were included. Interventions: Plasma vitamin C concentrations were measured on days 1, 5, and 10 of ICU admission. There were no vitamin C enteral nor parenteral supplementation. The supportive treatment was performed following the standard of care or acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) patients. Measurement: Plasma vitamin C concentrations were analyzed using an ultra-performance liquid chromatography (UPLC) system with a photodiode array detector (wavelength set to 245 nm). We categorized plasmatic levels of vitamin C as follows: undetectable: 5 mg/L). Main results: Forty-three patients were included (65% men; mean age 62 ± 10 years). The median Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score was 3 (1–4), and the Acute Physiology and Chronic Health disease Classification System (APACHE II) score was 13 (10–22). Five patients had shock. Bacterial coinfection was documented in 7 patients (16%). Initially all patients required high-flow oxygen therapy, and 23 (53%) further needed invasive mechanical ventilation during 21 (± 10) days. The worst PaO2/FIO2 registered was 93 (± 29). ICU and hospital survival were 77 and 74%, respectively. Low or undetectable levels remained constant throughout the study period in the vast majority of patients. Conclusion: This observational study showed vitamin C plasma levels were undetectable on ICU admission in 86% of patients with acute respiratory failure due to COVID-19 pneumonia requiring respiratory support. This finding remained consistent throughout the study period

In search of an evidence-based strategy for quality assessment of human tissue samples: report of the tissue Biospecimen Research Working Group of the Spanish Biobank Network

The purpose of the present work is to underline the importance of obtaining a standardized procedure to ensure and evaluate both clinical and research usability of human tissue samples. The study, which was carried out by the Biospecimen Science Working Group of the Spanish Biobank Network, is based on a general overview of the current situation about quality assurance in human tissue biospecimens. It was conducted an exhaustive review of the analytical techniques used to evaluate the quality of human tissue samples over the past 30 years, as well as their reference values if they were published, and classified them according to the biomolecules evaluated: (i) DNA, (ii) RNA, and (iii) soluble or/and fixed proteins for immunochemistry. More than 130 publications released between 1989 and 2019 were analysed, most of them reporting results focused on the analysis of tumour and biopsy samples. A quality assessment proposal with an algorithm has been developed for both frozen tissue samples and formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) samples, according to the expected quality of sample based on the available pre-analytical information and the experience of the participants in the Working Group. The high heterogeneity of human tissue samples and the wide number of pre-analytic factors associated to quality of samples makes it very difficult to harmonize the quality criteria. However, the proposed method to assess human tissue sample integrity and antigenicity will not only help to evaluate whether stored human tissue samples fit for the purpose of biomarker development, but will also allow to perform further studies, such as assessing the impact of different pre-analytical factors on very well characterized samples or evaluating the readjustment of tissue sample collection, processing and storing procedures. By ensuring the quality of the samples used on research, the reproducibility of scientific results will be guaranteed.This work was funded by the Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovacion y Universidades of Spain and Instituto de Salud Carlos III (PI16/00528, PI16/00946, PI16/01207 and PI16/01276), co-funded by the Spanish Biobank Network (PT13/0010/0030, PT17/0015/0001, PT17/0015/0021, PT17/0015/0049, PT17/0015/0018, PT17/0015/0002, PT17/0015/0016, PT17/0015/0038, PT17/0015/0027, PT17/0015/0004, PT17/0015/0047, PT17/0015/0014, PT17/0015/0041, and PT17/0015/0006), European Regional Development Fund (FEDER) "A way to make Europe" and granted by Conselleria d'Innovacio, Recerca i Turisme del Govern de les Illes Balears (TEC/002/2017).S

Vitamin C deficiency in critically ill COVID-19 patients admitted to intensive care unit

ObjectivesTo determine vitamin C plasma kinetics, through the measurement of vitamin C plasma concentrations, in critically ill Coronavirus infectious disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients, identifying eventually the onset of vitamin C deficiency.DesignProspective, observational, single-center study.SettingIntensive Care Unit (ICU), Vall d’Hebron University Hospital, Barcelona. Study period from November 12th, 2020, to February 24th, 2021.PatientsPatients who had a severe hypoxemic acute respiratory failure due to COVID-19 were included.InterventionsPlasma vitamin C concentrations were measured on days 1, 5, and 10 of ICU admission. There were no vitamin C enteral nor parenteral supplementation. The supportive treatment was performed following the standard of care or acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) patients.MeasurementPlasma vitamin C concentrations were analyzed using an ultra-performance liquid chromatography (UPLC) system with a photodiode array detector (wavelength set to 245 nm). We categorized plasmatic levels of vitamin C as follows: undetectable: < 1,5 mg/L, deficiency: <2 mg/L. Low plasma concentrations: 2–5 mg/L; (normal plasma concentration: > 5 mg/L).Main resultsForty-three patients were included (65% men; mean age 62 ± 10 years). The median Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score was 3 (1–4), and the Acute Physiology and Chronic Health disease Classification System (APACHE II) score was 13 (10–22). Five patients had shock. Bacterial coinfection was documented in 7 patients (16%). Initially all patients required high-flow oxygen therapy, and 23 (53%) further needed invasive mechanical ventilation during 21 (± 10) days. The worst PaO2/FIO2 registered was 93 (± 29). ICU and hospital survival were 77 and 74%, respectively. Low or undetectable levels remained constant throughout the study period in the vast majority of patients.ConclusionThis observational study showed vitamin C plasma levels were undetectable on ICU admission in 86% of patients with acute respiratory failure due to COVID-19 pneumonia requiring respiratory support. This finding remained consistent throughout the study period

A Discrete-Wavelength Imaging Instrument for the Remote Sensing of Nitrogen Dioxide from Space at High Spatial and Temporal Resolution

Air pollution is a major environmental issue, causing millions of premature deaths worldwide and billions of pounds in economic losses every year. Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) is a key air pollutant and a good proxy for air quality. Reliable NO2 monitoring is key to understanding and tackling air pollution, and can be achieved at a global scale using satellite remote sensing. However, current and upcoming instruments do not provide the necessary spatio-temporal resolution to resolve fine-scale sources.This thesis explores a novel instrument concept, the High-resolution Anthropogenic Pollution Imager (HAPI), for use in a constellation of small satellites as a low-cost solution to the observational data gap. HAPI has only ten narrow spectral bands and uses a novel Discrete-Wavelength variant of the well-established Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy (DW-DOAS). This work evaluates a HAPI airborne demonstrator built at the University of Leicester during the OmniSat-HAPI project. Laboratory, field and flight tests were performed which showed consistently poor retrieval results. An investigation was conducted which confirmed that the cause of the poor retrieval performance was a suboptimal choice of wavelengths for NO2 nadir observations in combination with a DOAS-like method.A new set of wavelengths was identified and found to perform remarkably well. The robustness of DW-DOAS with the new wavelengths was evaluated by means of a sensitivity analysis, based on which new instrument performance requirements were defined for the next iteration of HAPI. While there are a few technical challenges to overcome, the OmniSat-HAPI constellation has the potential to provide NO2 observations at unprecedented spatial and temporal resolution, and would be a valuable complement to the existing air quality monitoring landscape.</div

Barriers to child wellbeing in Dhaka settlements: Stakeholder perspectives and geospatial analysis

The wellbeing of disadvantaged children in low-income countries (LIC) is often compromised by a range of environmental risk factors, as well as by limited access to supports and services. The aim of this exploratory study was to understand service provision barriers for children's wellbeing in an urban informal settlement in Dhaka, Bangladesh, by complementing stakeholder perspectives with a spatial method and a knowledge exchange framework. The research literature and official records informed interviews with 19 stakeholders, who identified interdisciplinary services. Visual geospatial analysis mapped services in relation to child wellbeing. These maps informed a knowledge exchange participatory workshop with 21 stakeholders, who co-produced recommendations related to child-centeredness and safety, community involvement, and accessible resources. Such a participatory approach combining stakeholder perspectives with geospatial analysis can be a useful tool in low-resource contexts