Enhanced web analytics for health insurance

Internship Report presented as the partial requirement for obtaining a Master's degree in Data Science and Advanced AnalyticsNowadays companies need invest and improve on data solution implementation within most of the business workflows and processes, in order to differentiate the offer and stay ahead of their competitors. It’s becoming more and more important to take data driven decisions to boost profitability and improve the overall customer experience. In this way, strategies are defined not anymore on common beliefs and assumptions, but on contextualized and trustful insights. This reports describes the work that has been made during a 9-month internship, in order to provide the business with a new and improved solution for enhancing the web analytics tasks and supporting the improve of the online user digital experience. User-level data related to the website activity has been extracted at the highest granularity level. Afterwards, raw data have been cleaned and stored in an Analytical Base Table with which an initial data exploration has been made. After giving initial insights to the digital team, a predictive model has been developed in order to predict the probability of the users to buy the insurance product online. Finally, based on the initial data exploration and the model’s results, a set of recommendations has been built and provided to the digital department for their implementation in order to make the website more engaging and dynamic

Ocular-based automatic summarization of documents: is re-reading informative about the importance of a sentence?

Automatic document summarization (ADS) has been introduced as a viable solution for reducing the time and the effort needed to read the ever-increasing textual content that is disseminated. However, a successful universal ADS algorithm has not yet been developed. Also, despite progress in the field, many ADS techniques do not take into account the needs of different readers, providing a summary without internal consistency and the consequent need to re-read the original document. The present study was aimed at investigating the usefulness of using eye tracking for increasing the quality of ADS. The general idea was of that of finding ocular behavioural indicators that could be easily implemented in ADS algorithms. For instance, the time spent in re-reading a sentence might reflect the relative importance of that sentence, thus providing a hint for the selection of text contributing to the summary. We have tested this hypothesis by comparing metrics based on the analysis of eye movements of 30 readers with the highlights they made afterward. Results showed that the time spent reading a sentence was not significantly related to its subjective value, thus frustrating our attempt. Results also showed that the length of a sentence is an unavoidable confounding because longer sentences have both the highest probability of containing units of text judged as important, and receive more fixations and re-fixations

Loss of Renal Function After Retrograde Ureteral Placement of an Allium Stent for Severe Ureteral Stricture

Background: Ureteral strictures are a recurrent chronic condition that leads to severe side effects and poor quality of life. Management of ureteral stricture is a great challenge for urologists and no specific guidelines exist. Retrograde Allium®ureteral stent (AUS) is a newly developed ureteral stent to treat either bulbar urethral or ureteral stenosis. Case Presentation: We describe a case of a 74-year-old Caucasian adult male presenting with a severe ureteral stricture secondary to an ureteroscopy for stone disease. Treatment with retrograde AUS placement produced a complete loss of renal function after 36 months, probably because of the development of a long achalasic stretch of the ureter. Conclusions: AUS is a new and promising device for the treatment of ureteral stenosis. However, a lack of standardization of the technique recommends a close instrumental follow-up after the procedure to decide the optimal time for stent removal

Monitoraggio microbiologico ambientale nei musei: conservazione preventiva delle collezioni grafiche

Summary In museums, the biological component of indoor air, called bioaerosol or biological aerosol, is a potential biodeteriogen for graphic collections. The biological particles settling on the surface of artworks find favorable nutritional and environmental conditions for their growth, and promote biodeterioration. As is well known, biological attacks depend on microclimatic conditions; for this reason their control is essential to assess contamination and estimate biological risks. This article presents the partial application of a methodological model, in the National Institute of Graphic Arts (Istituto Nazionale per la Grafica-ING), a museum of international importance in Rome, on a collection of ancient drawings in the Fondo Corsini, preserved in repository no.1. This model is based on an integrated system of biological environmental monitoring (air and surfaces) in association with microclimatic monitoring (repository no.1, cabinet no.6, volumes, drawings and outdoor) carried out in an interdisciplinary research project.The values of thermohygrometric parameters were stable enough during the monitored month and had no daily fluctuations. The qualitative and quantitative analysis of air contamination and that on the surfaces of drawings did not show a critical situation.This article describes a pilot study which has focused attention on the biological contamination of the graphic collections and is a contribution to standardizing a system of diagnosis-intervention for preventive conservation of organic cultural heritage preserved in museums and in other indoor environments and the protection of the health of operators and visitors.Riassunto Nei musei la componente biologica dell’aria, chiamata bioaerosol o aerosol biologico, rappresenta un potenziale biodeteriogeno per le collezioni grafiche aventi come supporto la carta. Le particelle biologiche quando si depositano sulla superficie del manufatto e trovano condizioni nutrizionali ed ambientali favorevoli per la loro crescita causano il biodeterioramento. Come è noto gli attacchi biologici sono fortemente condizionati dalle condizioni microclimatiche, per questo il loro controllo è essenziale per la valutazione della contaminazione e la stima del rischio biologico. In questo articolo viene presentata l’applicazione parziale di un modello metodologico presso l’Istituto Nazionale per la Grafica (ING), un organismo museale di rilevanza internazionale con sede a Roma, su una raccolta di disegni antichi appartenenti al Fondo Corsini, conservato nel deposito di conservazione n°1. Tale modello è basato su un sistema integrato di monitoraggio microbiologico (aria e superfici) e monitoraggio microclimatico (interno ed esterno ambiente, opere ed arredi) e realizzato su un progetto di ricerca interdisciplinare. Dai risultati ottenuti emerge che i parametri termoigrometrici non mostrano fluttuazioni durante tutto il mese monitorato e il loro andamento risulta stabile. Dall’analisi qualitativa e quantitativa della contaminazione microbica nell’aria e sulle superfici dei disegni è emersa una situazione di non criticità. Questo lavoro riporta uno studio pilota che ha focalizzato l’attenzione sul rischio biologico per le collezioni grafiche, come contributo alla standardizzazione di un sistema di diagnosi-intervento per la conservazione preventiva del patrimonio culturale di natura organica conservato nei musei e in tutti gli ambienti confinati di conservazione ed esposizione e per la protezione della salute degli operatori e visitatori.Résumé Dans les musées, la composante biologique de l’air, appelée bioaerosol ou aérosol biologique, correspond à une menace potentielle de détérioration biologique pour les collections d’arts graphiques sur support papier. Lorsqu’elles se déposent sur la surface de l’objet, et lorsqu’elles y trouvent des conditions nutritionnelles et environnementales favorables à leur croissance, les particules biologiques en provoquent la biodétérioration. Il est bien connu que les attaques biologiques sont fortement influencées par les conditions microclimatiques. Dès lors, il devient primordial de les contrôler pour évaluer la contamination et pour estimer le risque biologique. Cet article traite de l’application partielle d’un modèle méthodologique chez l’Institut national des arts graphiques (Istituto Nazionale per la Grafica, ING), un organisme muséal d’importance internationale dont le siège est à Rome, notamment sur un recueil de dessins anciens du Fonds Corsini conservés dans le dépôt de conservation n. 1. Ce modèle est fondé sur un système intégré de surveillance microbiologique (air et surfaces) et surveillance microclimatique (environnement interne et externe, oeuvres et éléments de la décoration), qui a été mis en place dans le cadre d’un projet de recherche multidisciplinaire.Les résultats obtenus montrent que les paramètres thermiques et hydrométriques ne fluctuent pas au cours du mois étudié, leur évolution étant stable. L’analyse qualiquantitative de la contamination microbienne de l’air et des surfaces des dessins fait ressortir l’absence de criticités. Ce travail relate les résultats d’une étude pilote qui s’est concentrée tout particulièrement sur le risque biologique pour les collections d’arts graphiques, afin de contribuer à la standardisation d’un système de diagnostic et d’intervention pour la conservation préventive du patrimoine culturel de nature organique des musées et de tous les lieux de conservation et d’exposition confinés, en vue d’assurer aussi la protection de la santé des opérateurs et des visiteurs.Zusammenfassung In den Museen stellt die als Bio-Aerosol oder biologisches Aerosol bezeichnete Komponente der Luft einen potentiellen biologischen Schadfaktor für alle grafischen Sammlungen dar, deren Trägermaterial Papier ist. Wenn biologische Partikel sich auf der Oberfläche eines Manufakts ablagern und dort für ihr Wachstum günstige Ernährungs und Umgebungsbedingungen vorfinden, verursachen sie eine biologische Schädigung. Wie bekannt, sind biologische Angriffe stark von den mikroklimatischen Bedingungen abhängig. Deshalb ist deren Kontrolle eine wesentliche Voraussetzung für die Beurteilung der Kontamination und die Einschätzung des biologischen Risikos.In diesem Artikel präsentieren wir die partielle Anwendung einer Modellmethode beim Istituto Nazionale per la Grafica (ING), einer Museums-Organisation von internationaler Bedeutung mit Sitz in Rom. Diese Anwendung betrifft eine Sammlung antiker Zeichnungen aus dem Besitz des Fondo Corsini, die im Konservierungslager Nr. 1 verwahrt ist. Das genannte Modell basiert auf einem integrierten (Luft und Flächen) mikrobiologischen und mikroklimatischen Überwachungssystem (Umgebung innen und außen, Werke und Einrichtung) und wurde aufgrund eines interdisziplinären Forschungsprojekts realisiert. Aus den Ergebnissen zeigt sich, dass die Wärmeund Feuchtigkeitsparameter während des gesamten Überwachungsmonats keine Schwankungen aufweisen und der Verlauf der Werte gleichbleibend ist. Aus der Qualitäts- und Mengenanalyse der bakteriellen Kontamination der Luft und der Oberflächen der Zeichnungen ergibt sich eine nicht kritische Situation. Das vorliegende Schriftstück berichtet über eine Pilotstudie, deren Brennpunkt das biologische Risiko für graphische  Sammlungen war. Sie soll zur Standardisierung eines Diagnose- und Maßnahmensystems zur vorbeugenden Konservierung des Kulturbestands aus organischem Material beitragen, der in den Museen bzw. in geschlossenen Aufbewahrungs- und Ausstellungsräumen verwahrt ist, sowie zum Schutz der Gesundheit von Beschäftigten und Besuchern.Resumen En los museos, el componente biológico del aire, llamado bioaerosol o aerosol biológico, es un potencial agente biológico deteriorante de las colecciones gráficas realizadas sobre papel. Cuando las partículas biológicas se depositan sobre la superficie del objeto y encuentran condiciones nutricionales y ambientales favorables para su crecimiento provocan el deterioro biológico. Se sabe que los ataques biológicos están estrechamente vinculados a las condiciones del microclima. Por ello resulta fundamental controlarlas con miras a evaluar la contaminación y valorar el riesgo biológico.En este artículo se presenta la aplicación parcial de un modelo metodológico en el Istituto Nazionale per la Grafica (ING), organismo museológico de relevancia internacional sito en Roma, a una colección de dibujos antiguos pertenecientes al Fondo Corsini, guardado en el depósito de conservación nº 1. Dicho modelo se basa en un sistema integrado de seguimiento microbiológico (aire y superficies) y monitorización del microclima (ambiente interior y exterior, obras y decoraciones) aplicado en el marco de un proyecto de investigación interdisciplinario. De los resultados obtenidos se desprende que los parámetros térmicos e higrométricos no han mostrado fluctuaciones durante la totalidad del mes monitorizado y su evolución resulta ser estable. El análisis cualitativo y cuantitativo de la contaminación microbiana del aire y las superficies de los dibujos revela una situación no crítica. Este trabajo presenta un estudio piloto que centra su atención en el riesgo biológico al que están expuestas las colecciones gráficas y constituye una contribución para la creación de un sistema estándar de diagnostico-intervención con el fin de conservar de manera preventiva el patrimonio cultural de tipo orgánico que se guarda en los museos y en todos los lugares destinados a la conservación y la exposición, así como para proteger la salud de operadores y visitantes.简介 博物馆中空气中的生物组成成份，被称为有机气溶胶，是以纸张形式书画藏品一个潜在的生物腐蚀威胁。当生物颗粒附着于工艺品上，并获得营养物供给以及合适的繁殖环境，它们就会造成生物腐蚀问题。众所周知，微环境条件决定了微生物的破坏性，因此微环境的控制对污染评估及生物危害评估尤为重要。这篇文章介绍了国家书画协会（ING）所使用的部分应用，该协会位于罗马，是具有国际影响力的博物馆型组织，其中收藏了一系列归属于Corsini基金会的一级古老书绘画藏品。该应用模型基于一套完备的微生物监控（空气及表面）和微环境监控（内外部环境，作品及装饰），并融合多学科研究为一体。根据检测结果得出，在检测月期间，温度-湿参数无波动，走向平稳。由空气、绘画表面微生物污染的质、量分析得出无危险性。这项报告引发了新研究，将注意力指向了书画藏品所面对的生物威胁，如针对博物馆或其它保存、展览环境中的天然成分文化遗产的预防性保存，提供了一个标准化诊断-干预系统，并为工作人员及游客的身体健康提供保护。Резюме Биологические компоненты воздуха, т.н. биоаэрозоль или биологический аэ-розоль, является потенциальным биовредителем для графических коллекций на бумажном носителе в музеях. При оседании на поверхности артефакта и в присутствии благоприятных для их развития условий питания и окружающей среды биологические частицы наносят ущерб. Как известно, биологическая атака сильно зависит от микроклиматических условий, поэтому, их контроль играет фундаментальную роль в оценке загрязнения и биологического риска. В этой статье представлено частичное применение методологической модели в Национальном институте графики (ING) - римском музее международного значения, на собрании старинных рисунков из фонда Корсини, хранящегося в фондохранилище № 1. Эта модель основана на интегрированной системе микробиологического мониторинга (воздуха и поверхностей) и микроклиматического мониторинга (внутри и вне помещения, произведений и мебели) и была создана в результате междисципли-нарного исследовательского проекта. Полученные результаты показывают, что термо-гигрометрические параметры не претерпели колебаний в течение месяца, когда велось наблюдение, и их уровень является стабильным. Качественный и количественный анализ микробного загрязнения воздуха и поверхности рисунков обнаружил некритическое состояние. В этой работе представлено пилотное ис-следование, сфокусированное на биологическом риске для графических коллек-ций, вносящее вклад в стандартизацию системы диагноза и вмешательства для профилактической консервации объектов культурного достояния органического происхождения, хранящихся в музеях и других закрытых средах для хранения и экспозиции, а также для охраны здоровья работников и посетителей

Modeling the contribution of male testosterone levels to the duration of positive COVID testing among hospitalized male COVID-19 patients

Background: A growing body of evidence is emerging suggesting testosterone can affect all cells involved in the immune response to both bacterial and viral infections, and the testosterone effect on the immune response could explain the greater susceptibility of men to infections including COVID-19. We aimed to explore the predictive role of male serum total testosterone (TT) levels on the time till viral negativity testing among hospitalized COVID-19 patients. Methods: The univariate effect of risk factors for the duration of COVID-19 viral positivity was evaluated using the log-rank test and Kaplan-Meier estimates. A multivariable Cox regression model was developed to test the role of TT levels and the subsequent odds for shorter viral positivity intervals. Results: Increasing serum TT levels and the need for an oxygen administration strategy were independently predictive for respectively reduced and increased days to negativization (Hazard Ratio [HR]: 1.39, 95% CI: 0.95-2.03 and HR: 0.19, 95% CI: 0.03-1.18). Conclusion: Baseline higher TT levels for male COVID-19 patients at hospital admission are associated with shorter durations of positive COVID-19 testing and thus viral clearance. Our preliminary findings might play a relevant to help pandemic control strategies if these will be verified in future larger multicentric and possibly randomized trials

Safety and feasibility of outpatient surgery in benign prostatic hyperplasia: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Purpose: Most of endourological procedures along the urinary tract have been widely practiced as outpatient operations, including surgery for BPH. This systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted to assess safety and feasibility of outpatient surgery for patients suffering from symptomatic BPH candidate for endoscopic disobstruction. Materials and methods: PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane, and Embase were searched up until March 30, 2020. MINORS tool was utilized to assess the quality of included studies and a pooled measure of failure or event rate (FR, ER) estimate was calculated. Further sensitivity analysis, subgroup analysis, and meta-regression were conducted to investigate contribution of moderators to heterogeneity. Results: Twenty studies with a total of 1626 patients treated according to outpatient criteria for endoscopic BPH surgery were included. In total, 18 studies reporting data on immediate hospital readmission and/or inability to discharge after endoscopic procedure presented FR estimates ranging from 1.7% to 51.1%. Pooled FR estimate was 7.8% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 5.2%-10.3%); Heterogeneity: Q=76.85; d.f.=17, p<.001; I2= 75.12%. Subgroup analysis according to surgical technique revealed difference among the three approaches with pooled FR of 3% (95%CI: 1%-4.9%), 7.1% (95%CI: 3.9-10.4) and 11.8% (95%CI: 7-16.7%) for TURP, Green-light and HoLEP respectively (p<.001). At meta-regression analysis, none of the retrieved covariates were able to significantly influence the cumulative outcomes reported. ER for postoperative complications and early outpatient visit showed a pooled estimate of 18.6% (95%CI: 13.2%-23.9%) and 7.7% (95%CI: 4.3%-11%) respectively. Conclusions: Our analysis revealed how transurethral procedures for BPH on an outpatient setting are overall reliable and safe. Of note, there were significant outcome differences between groups with regard of type of surgical procedure, perioperative prostate volume and discharge protocol suggesting the need for further prospective analysis to better elucidate the best strategy in such outpatient conduct

Differential cross section measurements for the production of a W boson in association with jets in proton–proton collisions at √s = 7 TeV

Measurements are reported of differential cross sections for the production of a W boson, which decays into a muon and a neutrino, in association with jets, as a function of several variables, including the transverse momenta (pT) and pseudorapidities of the four leading jets, the scalar sum of jet transverse momenta (HT), and the difference in azimuthal angle between the directions of each jet and the muon. The data sample of pp collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 7 TeV was collected with the CMS detector at the LHC and corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 5.0 fb[superscript −1]. The measured cross sections are compared to predictions from Monte Carlo generators, MadGraph + pythia and sherpa, and to next-to-leading-order calculations from BlackHat + sherpa. The differential cross sections are found to be in agreement with the predictions, apart from the pT distributions of the leading jets at high pT values, the distributions of the HT at high-HT and low jet multiplicity, and the distribution of the difference in azimuthal angle between the leading jet and the muon at low values.United States. Dept. of EnergyNational Science Foundation (U.S.)Alfred P. Sloan Foundatio

Juxtaposing BTE and ATE – on the role of the European insurance industry in funding civil litigation

One of the ways in which legal services are financed, and indeed shaped, is through private insurance arrangement. Two contrasting types of legal expenses insurance contracts (LEI) seem to dominate in Europe: before the event (BTE) and after the event (ATE) legal expenses insurance. Notwithstanding institutional differences between different legal systems, BTE and ATE insurance arrangements may be instrumental if government policy is geared towards strengthening a market-oriented system of financing access to justice for individuals and business. At the same time, emphasizing the role of a private industry as a keeper of the gates to justice raises issues of accountability and transparency, not readily reconcilable with demands of competition. Moreover, multiple actors (clients, lawyers, courts, insurers) are involved, causing behavioural dynamics which are not easily predicted or influenced. Against this background, this paper looks into BTE and ATE arrangements by analysing the particularities of BTE and ATE arrangements currently available in some European jurisdictions and by painting a picture of their respective markets and legal contexts. This allows for some reflection on the performance of BTE and ATE providers as both financiers and keepers. Two issues emerge from the analysis that are worthy of some further reflection. Firstly, there is the problematic long-term sustainability of some ATE products. Secondly, the challenges faced by policymakers that would like to nudge consumers into voluntarily taking out BTE LEI

Penilaian Kinerja Keuangan Koperasi di Kabupaten Pelalawan

This paper describe development and financial performance of cooperative in District Pelalawan among 2007 - 2008. Studies on primary and secondary cooperative in 12 sub-districts. Method in this stady use performance measuring of productivity, efficiency, growth, liquidity, and solvability of cooperative. Productivity of cooperative in Pelalawan was highly but efficiency still low. Profit and income were highly, even liquidity of cooperative very high, and solvability was good