LLukas22/scidocs huggingface dataset:
Tracking the digital footprints of customers: how firms can improve their sensing abilities to achieve business agility

In turbulent business environments firms must be able to respond to changes rapidly in order to operate in an economical and efficient manner. To detect such changes, sensing capabilities have to be developed to support decision makers with accurate and timely information. As is known from research in marketing, consumers’ information search behavior is a valuable source to gain insights about the market’s buying side. Therefore, we suggest firms include data on consumers' online information search into their IT-systems to enhance their sensing capabilities. In an empirical example we predict monthly sales numbers for two car manufacturers and demonstrate how information search data can be leveraged to improve forecasting accuracy. The results clearly show that information search based models are able to outperform existing benchmark models. Beyond sales forecasting, consumers’ online information search may be analyzed for a variety of purposes to enhance the sensing capabilities of enterprises.
Time domain statistical control for PAPR reduction in OFDM system

This paper studies the problem of peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR) in orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) system. It introduces a new PAPR reduction method that performs signal processing in the OFDM time domain. The simple non-linear amplitude pre-distortion process of the proposed method changes the statistical characteristics of the OFDM symbol from Rayleigh distribution into Gaussian like distribution. This change in statistical distribution is accompanied by changes of the peak and average power values and consequently reduces in the PAPR value. This scheme decreases the bit error rate (BER) slightly while significantly reduces the PAPR value. Furthermore, there is no need for side information, and hence no loss in the data rate. For the 64-QAM OFDM system with 512 sub-carriers, 4 dB reduction in PAPR value is achieved at only -15 dB spectral shoulder re- growth below the in-band signal level.
Prevalencia de fibrilación auricular y uso de fármacos antitrombóticos en el paciente hipertenso ≥ 65 años. El registro FAPRES.

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES
Age and arterial hypertension are two of the main factors associated with atrial fibrillation and an increased risk of embolism. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of atrial fibrillation and the extent of antithrombotic use in hypertensive patients aged ≥65 years in the Spanish region of Valencia.


METHODS
Each study investigator enrolled the first three hypertensive patients aged ≥65 years who came for a consultation on the first day of each week for 5 weeks. Each patient's risk factors, history of cardiovascular disease, CHADS(2) score and medical treatment were noted and an ECG was recorded. Data were analyzed centrally. A patient was regarded as having atrial fibrillation if it was observable on the ECG or reported in medical records.


RESULTS
The study included 1,028 hypertensive patients with a mean age of 72.8 years. Overall, 10.3% had atrial fibrillation: in 6.7%, it was observable on the ECG while 3.6% were in sinus rhythm but had a history of the condition. Factors associated with atrial fibrillation were age, alcohol intake, structural heart disease and glomerular filtration rate. In total, 76.2% of patients with ECG evidence of atrial fibrillation and a CHADS(2) score >1 were taking anticoagulants compared with 41.7% of those who had a history of the condition but were currently in sinus rhythm.


CONCLUSIONS
The prevalence of atrial fibrillation in our group of hypertensives was 10.3%; in 1.7%, it was previously undiagnosed. Antithrombotic use was high in patients with current atrial fibrillation, but lower in those who had experienced an episode previously.
Influence of different types of environmental enrichment on the behaviour of finishing pigs in two different housing systems 2. Ratio of pigs to enrichment

The aims of this study were to assess the effects of: (1) environmental enrichment with either straw bedding or a hanging manipulable toy and (2) the ratio of pigs to environmental enrichment when toys are provided. One thousand and twenty four (Large White Landrace) Large White pigs were housed contemporarily, in 32 pen groups of 32 pigs (16 pens in each housing system), in matched straw-bedded (ST) or fully-slatted (FS) buildings from 35 kg to slaughter at 104 kg liveweight. In the ST building, half of the pens were enriched only by the straw bedding and half received additional enrichment in the form of a single hanging ‘toy’. In the FS house, half of the pens were provided with the same hanging toy, whilst the remaining pens were provided with four such toys. Time spent in toy manipulation was< 2% in both housing systems, and did not differ in pairwise comparison of the same toy in different housing systems, or the different numbers of the toy per pen within the FS house. Manipulation of straw bedding occupied a much higher proportion of time (21%). In the absence of straw, significantly more investigatory behaviours were directed towards pen components (P < 0.001), with a similar tendency in behaviours directed at pen-mates (P = 0.06). It is concluded that the low level of occupation provided by the hanging toy was unrelated to spatial restriction of access to the environmental enrichment, as there were no differences in the level of pigor pen-directed behaviours, or in the level of skin lesions, between pigs provided with one or four toys within the FS house. # 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Tegaserod for the Treatment of Chronic Constipation: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Multinational Study

OBJECTIVES:Chronic constipation is a common, persistent disorder with limited effective treatment options. This study investigated the efficacy, safety, and tolerability of tegaserod in the treatment of chronic constipation.METHODS:After a 2-wk baseline period, patients were randomized to double-blind treatment of 12 wk with tegaserod (2 or 6 mg b.i.d.) or placebo. Response during weeks 1–4 (primary variable) was defined as an increase in complete spontaneous bowel movement (CSBM)/wk. Secondary variables included response during weeks 1–12, patient evaluation of individual symptoms, and global assessment of bowel habits and constipation.RESULTS:One thousand two hundred and sixty-four patients were randomized to tegaserod or placebo. Responder rates for the primary efficacy variable were 35.6% for tegaserod 2 mg b.i.d. (p = 0.0059 vs placebo), 40.2% for 6 mg b.i.d. (p < 0.0001 vs placebo) and 26.7% for placebo. The number needed to treat was 7.3 for the 6 mg b.i.d. dose compared with 11.1 for tegaserod 2 mg b.i.d. Tegaserod 6 mg b.i.d. reduced straining, abdominal bloating/distension, and abdominal pain/discomfort during the 12-wk treatment period compared with placebo (p < 0.05 for all symptoms). Significant improvements were also seen in stool form and in global assessment of bowel habits and constipation. The most common adverse events, headache and abdominal pain, were more frequent with placebo than with tegaserod.CONCLUSIONS:Tegaserod was efficacious in relieving symptoms of chronic constipation and was well tolerated.
Defective Suppressor Function of Human CD4+ CD25+ Regulatory T Cells in Autoimmune Polyglandular Syndrome Type II

In autoimmune polyglandular syndromes (APS), several organ-specific autoimmune diseases are clustered. Although APS type I is caused by loss of central tolerance, the etiology of APS type II (APS-II) is currently unknown. However, in several murine models, depletion of CD4(+) CD25(+) regulatory T cells (T(regs)) causes a syndrome resembling human APS-II with multiple endocrinopathies. Therefore, we hypothesized that loss of active suppression in the periphery could be a hallmark of this syndrome. T(regs) from peripheral blood of APS-II, control patients with single autoimmune endocrinopathies, and normal healthy donors showed no differences in quantity (except for patients with isolated autoimmune diseases), in functionally important surface markers, or in apoptosis induced by growth factor withdrawal. Strikingly, APS-II T(regs) were defective in their suppressive capacity. The defect was persistent and not due to responder cell resistance. These data provide novel insights into the pathogenesis of APS-II and possibly human autoimmunity in general.
Iterative Learning Control based on Stochastic Approximation

In this paper stochastic approximation theory is used to produce Iterative Learning Control (ILC) algorithms which are less sensitive to stochastic disturbances, a typical problem for the learning process of standard ILC algorithms. Two algorithms are developed, one to obtain zero mean controlled error and one to minimise the mean 2-norm of the controlled error. The former requires a certain knowledge of the system but in the presence of noise can give reasonably rapid convergence. The latter can either use a model or be model free by employing a second experiment.
The HIF-1 Hypoxia-Inducible Factor Modulates Lifespan in C. elegans

During normal development or during disease, animal cells experience hypoxic (low oxygen) conditions, and the hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF) transcription factors implement most of the critical changes in gene expression that enable animals to adapt to this stress. Here, we examine the roles of HIF-1 in post-mitotic aging. We examined the effects of HIF-1 over-expression and of hif-1 loss-of-function mutations on longevity in C. elegans, a powerful genetic system in which adult somatic cells are post-mitotic. We constructed transgenic lines that expressed varying levels of HIF-1 protein and discovered a positive correlation between HIF-1 expression levels and lifespan. The data further showed that HIF-1 acted in parallel to the SKN-1/NRF and DAF-16/FOXO transcription factors to promote longevity. HIF-1 over-expression also conferred increased resistance to heat and oxidative stress. We isolated and characterized additional hif-1 mutations, and we found that each of 3 loss-of-function mutations conferred increased longevity in normal lab culture conditions, but, unlike HIF-1 over-expression, a hif-1 deletion mutation did not extend the lifespan of daf-16 or skn-1 mutants. We conclude that HIF-1 over-expression and hif-1 loss-of-function mutations promote longevity by different pathways. These data establish HIF-1 as one of the key stress-responsive transcription factors that modulate longevity in C. elegans and advance our understanding of the regulatory networks that link oxygen homeostasis and aging.
Distinct vascular and metabolic effects of different classes of anti-hypertensive drugs.

BACKGROUND
ASCOT-BPLA study demonstrates that in hypertensive subjects, atenolol+bendroflumethiazide therapy is associated with higher incidence of adverse cardiovascular outcomes and developing diabetes than an amlodipine+perindopril regimen. This is not explained by changes in blood pressure alone. We hypothesized that distinct vascular and metabolic effects of anti-hypertensive drugs may explain these differential effects.


METHODS
Either placebo or one class of anti-hypertensive drug (atenolol 100 mg, amlodipine 10 mg, hydrochlorothiazide 50 mg, ramipril 10 mg, or candesartan 16 mg) was given daily during 8 weeks to 31 patients in each of 6 arms of a randomized, single-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel study.


RESULTS
Atenolol, amlodipine, and candesartan therapies significantly reduced systolic blood pressure when compared with ramipril (P<0.05 by ANOVA). Atenolol and thiazide therapies increased triglycerides levels greater than ramipril or candesartan (P=0.005 by ANOVA). Amlodipine significantly increased HDL cholesterol levels greater than atenolol (P=0.011 by ANOVA). Ramipril and candesartan therapies improved FMD and increased adiponectin levels and insulin sensitivity to a greater extent than atenolol or thiazide therapies (P<0.001 and P<0.015 by ANOVA). Amlodipine therapy increased adiponectin levels greater than atenolol therapy (P<0.05 by ANOVA). Ramipril, candesartan, and amlodipine therapies significantly decreased leptin levels to a greater extent when compared with atenolol or thiazide therapies (P<0.001 by ANOVA). Amlodipine therapies significantly decreased resistin levels greater than ramipril or candesartan therapies (P=0.001 by ANOVA).


CONCLUSIONS
We observed differential effects of anti-hypertensive drugs on endothelial dysfunction and plasma adipocytokines.
The economic burden of physical inactivity in Canada.

BACKGROUND
About two-thirds of Canadians are physically inactive. As a risk factor for several chronic diseases, physical inactivity can potentially be a substantial public health burden. We estimated the direct health care costs attributable to physical inactivity in Canada, the number of lives lost prematurely each year that are attributable to a sedentary lifestyle and the effect that a reduction of 10% in inactivity levels (a Canadian objective for 2003) could have on reducing direct health care costs.


METHODS
We calculated summary relative risk (RR) estimates from prospective longitudinal studies of the effects of physical inactivity on coronary artery disease, stroke, colon cancer, breast cancer, type 2 diabetes mellitus and osteoporosis. We then computed the population-attributable fraction (PAF) for each illness from the summary RR and the prevalence of physical inactivity (i.e., 62%) and applied the PAF to the total direct health care expenditures for 1999 and to the number of deaths in 1995 associated with each disease to determine the health care costs and lives lost prematurely that were directly attributable to physical inactivity.


RESULTS
About $2.1 billion, or 2.5% of the total direct health care costs in Canada, were attributable to physical inactivity in 1999. A sensitivity analysis (simultaneously varying each of the health care costs and PAF by +/- 20%) indicated that the costs could be as low as $1.4 billion and as high as $3.1 billion. About 21,000 lives were lost prematurely in 1995 because of inactivity. A 10% reduction in the prevalence of physical inactivity has the potential to reduce direct health care expenditures by $150 million a year.


INTERPRETATION
Physical inactivity represents an important public health burden in Canada. Even modest reductions in inactivity levels could result in substantial cost savings.
The effect of interleukin-2 on canine peripheral nerve sheath tumours after marginal surgical excision: a double-blind randomized study

BACKGROUND
The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect on outcomes of intraoperative recombinant human interleukin-2 injection after surgical resection of peripheral nerve sheath tumours. In this double-blind trial, 40 patients due to undergo surgical excision (<5 mm margins) of presumed peripheral nerve sheath tumours were randomized to receive intraoperative injection of interleukin-2 or placebo into the wound bed.


RESULTS
There were no significant differences in any variable investigated or in median survival between the two groups. The median recurrence free interval was 874 days (range 48-2141 days), The recurrence-free interval and overall survival time were significantly longer in dogs that undergone the primary surgery by a specialist-certified surgeon compared to a referring veterinarian regardless of whether additional adjunct therapy was given.


CONCLUSION
Overall, marginal excision of peripheral nerve sheath tumours in dogs resulted in a long survival time, but adjuvant treatment with recombinant human interleukin-2 (rhIL-2) did not provide a survival advantage.
Wingspan stent-assisted coiling of intracranial aneurysms with symptomatic parent artery stenosis: experience in 35 patients with mid-term follow-up results.

BACKGROUND
There is a potential risk of aneurysm rupture after parent artery revascularization because of increased blood flow. The purpose of this study is to assess the efficacy and safety of Wingspan stent-assisted coil embolization in the treatment of intracranial aneurysms with symptomatic parent artery stenosis.


METHODS
Thirty-five consecutive patients (19 men, 16 women; age range, 48-79 years; mean age, 60.4 years) harboring 35 unruptured wide-necked or fusiform intracranial aneurysms (mean size 6.8mm; range 2.5-18 mm.) with symptomatic parent artery stenosis (mean degree 71.1%; range 50-92%) were treated with the Wingspan stent-assisted coiling. Twenty-four lesions were located in the anterior circulation and eleven in the posterior circulation. Patients were premedicated with antiplatelet therapy consisting of aspirin 300 mg and clopidogrel 75 mg for at least 3 days before the procedure. Following pre-dilatation and stent placement, a coiling microcatheter entered the aneurysm through the interstices of the stent, and then coiling was performed. After the procedure, clopidogrel 75 mg daily was recommended for an additional 30 days, and aspirin 100mg was recommended throughout follow-up. For all patients, clinical follow-up was conducted by clinic visitation, or telephone interview. Angiographic follow-up with DSA was recommended at 6 months and 1 year after the procedure. Angiography follow-up (mean time 10.6 months) was obtained in 31 cases (88.6%). The technical feasibility of the procedure, procedure-related complications, angiographic results, clinical outcome and follow-up angiography were evaluated.


RESULTS
In every case, technical success was achieved. The degree of stenosis was reduced from 71.1% to 17.4% after balloon angioplasty and stenting. Immediate angiography demonstrated complete occlusion in 25 cases (71.4%), neck remnant in 7 cases (20.0%), and incomplete occlusion in 3 cases (8.6%). Procedure-related morbidity occurred in two patients (5.7%), including thromboembolism (n=1) and occlusion of small penetrating arteries (n=1). At follow-up (mean time 18.3 months), two additional cases of ischemic stroke occurred. The overall frequency of any stroke, intracranial hemorrhage, or death within 30 days or ipsilateral stroke beyond 30 days was 11.4%. No rehemorrhage of treated aneurysm occurred. At angiographic follow-up, four cases demonstrated ≥ 50% in-stent restenosis (12.9%), one of which was symptomatic, and two aneurysms (6.4% of the follow-up angiograms) demonstrated recanalization.


CONCLUSION
We found that the Wingspan stent-assisted coil embolization was helpful in the treatment of intracranial aneurysms with parent artery stenosis.
Mitigating the power density and temperature problems in the nano-era

This paper introduces the power-density and temperature induced issues in the modern on-chip systems. In particular, the emerging Dark Silicon problem is discussed along with critical research challenges. Afterwards, an overview of key research efforts and concepts is presented that leverage dark silicon for performance and reliability optimization. In case temperature constraints are violated, an efficient dynamic thermal management technique is employed.
Information, School Choice, and Academic Achievement: Evidence from Two Experiments

We examine a natural experiment and a field experiment that provided direct information on school test scores to lower-income families in a public school choice plan. Receiving information significantly increases the fraction of parents choosing higher-performing schools. Parents with high-scoring alternatives nearby were more likely to choose non-guaranteed schools with higher test scores. Using random variation from each experiment, we find that attending a higher-scoring school increases student test scores. The results imply that school choice will most effectively increase academic achievement for disadvantaged students when parents have easy access to test score information and good options to choose from. ______________________________________________________________________________ *We would like to thank the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Public School District for allowing us to study public school choice in the district. Jason Ghassemi, Jacob Gramlich, and Hillary Gramlich provided excellent assistance creating and distributing the information sheets. We would also like to thank Joseph Altonji, Judy Chevalier, Stefano Della Vigna, Alan Gerber, Edward Glaeser, Donald Green, Caroline Hoxby, Dean Karlan, Lawrence Katz, Jeffrey Kling, Michael Kremer, Sendhil Mullainathan, Douglas Staiger, Rebecca Thornton, Ebonya Washington, and anonymous referees for valuable input. We gratefully acknowledge support from the Smith Richardson Foundation and the Institution for Social and Policy Studies at Yale University.
A Joint Location - Inventory Model

Zuo-Jun Max Shen • Collette Coullard • Mark S. Daskin Department of Industrial & Systems Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611 Department of Industrial Engineering and Management Sciences, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois Department of Industrial Engineering and Management Sciences, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois shen@ise.ufl.edu • coullard@northwestern.edu • m-daskin@northwestern.edu
Angiotensin-(1-7) Attenuates Angiotensin II-Induced ICAM-1, VCAM-1, and MCP-1 Expression via the MAS Receptor Through Suppression of P38 and NF-κB Pathways in HUVECs.

BACKGROUND/AIMS
Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory disease. Intracellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1), vascular cellular adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1), and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) play important roles in inflammatory processes. P38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) and nuclear factor (NF)-κB signaling regulate ICAM-1, VCAM-1, and MCP-1 expression. Angiotensin (Ang) II upregulates ICAM-1, VCAM-1, and MCP-1 expression through the P38 MAPK and NF-κB pathways. Ang-(1-7) may oppose the actions of Ang II. We investigated whether Ang-(1-7) prevents Ang II-induced ICAM-1, VCAM-1, and MCP-1 expression in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs).


METHODS
ICAM-1, VCAM-1, and MCP-1 expression was estimated by real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA); P38, NF-κB, and p-IκB-α expression was estimated by western blotting.


RESULTS
Ang-(1-7) inhibited Ang II-induced ICAM-1, VCAM-1, and MCP-1 expression and secretion in HUVECs. Ang II sharply increased P38 MAPK phosphorylation, which was inhibited by pretreatment with Ang-(1-7). Moreover, Ang-(1-7) significantly inhibited Ang II-induced IκB-α phosphorylation and NF-κB P65 nuclear translocation. The MAS receptor antagonist A-779 abolished the suppressive effects of Ang-(1-7).


CONCLUSION
Ang-(1-7) attenuates Ang II-induced ICAM-1, VCAM-1, and MCP-1 expression via the MAs receptor by suppressing the P38 and NF-κB pathways in HUVECs. Ang-(1-7) might delay the progression of inflammatory diseases, including atherosclerosis.