Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Strong structuration theory and accounting information: an empirical study

Purpose - This paper uses Strong Structuration Theory to explore the role of accounting information in New Product Development (NPD). NPD is a complex social action involving a wide range of different actors and clusters of actors. Strong Structuration Theory allows us to take a broad view of this social system in order to develop a complete picture of the clusters of actors involved, to comprehensively examine the relevant structures, both internal and external, and to understand how these are formed, reformed or modified through the actions of agents. Design/methodology/approach - A field study of the manufacturing division of a large group was conducted which explored how managers use accounting information during NPD. Examining how these managers draw upon their conjuncturally specific structures of signification, legitimation and domination, and how these are affected by their external structural conditions and their general dispositional frames of meaning, allowed the authors to develop an in-depth understanding of the managers’ behaviour during NPD. Findings - These findings suggest that the managers’ use of accounting information is determined as much by the subjective nature of the managers themselves as it is by the objective characteristics of the structures with which they interact. By using Stones’ composite research strategy, which encourages us to conceive of internal structures as always looking outwards and external structures as always looking inwards, the findings help us to understand the ‘connecting tissue’ between the different elements of the quadripartite of structuration which has been lacking in previous research in the area. This understanding of the connecting tissue between structures was facilitated by the micro-analysis of six managers within a given conjuncture. Using the concept of the agent-in-focus as a tool with which to switch lenses from manager to manager acknowledged the web-like interdependencies between different processes of structuration. This allowed an exploration of the relationships between the various agents and structures. Originality/value - This study contributes to our understanding of Stones’ Strong Structuration Theory at both an ontological and methodological level by operationalising Stones’ model in a case study setting.
Global foreign accent in native German speech

The results of this study suggest that German monolingual listeners were more likely to perceive a global foreign accent in the native German speech of consecutive bilinguals in Anglophone Canada and the Dutch Netherlands than in the speech of a control group of monolingual Germans in Germany. The results furthermore suggest that contact with the native German language may have a more significant effect on predicting global foreign accent in native speech than age of arrival or length of residence. More specifically, for both English and Dutch second language groups, a global foreign accent was more likely to be perceived in immigrants who had less contact with their native German language than in those who had more contact, although this effect was more evident in consecutive bilinguals who immigrated after 22 years of age.
Some Clinical and Molecular Characteristics of the most Extensively Studied Human Genome Instability Disorders Disorder Mode of Transmission Cancer Proneness Defective Protein Defective Function

Our genetic material is constantly damaged by internal sources such as reactive oxygen species and external sources such as ionizing radiation and sunlight. However, we seldom notice these injuries because our cells possess elegant DNA surveillance networks that serve to maintain cellular homeostasis. These networks are complex signal transduction pathways that coordinate cell cycle checkpoints and DNA repair processes to eliminate DNA damage, as well as invoking pathways such as sustained growth arrest (i.e., accelerated senescence) and apoptotic cell death to eliminate injured cells from the proliferating population. The p53 tumor suppressor protein and its downstream effector p21 are key regulators of these various responses. Failure of cells to properly activate p53/p21-mediated events following genotoxic stress may lead to the development of genomic instability and the emergence of malignant cells which exhibit stem cell-like properties. It is therefore not surprising that defects in major players of the DNA surveillance networks are the underlying cause for numerous debilitating human genetic disorders that are characterized by genomic instability, premature aging, and cancer proneness. In this article, we first provide an update on the role of the p53 signaling pathway in determining the fate of human cells following exposure to DNA-damaging agents. We next review the clinical and laboratory features of the most extensively studied human genome instability disorders including xeroderma pigmentosum, Cockayne syndrome, ataxia telangiectasia, and Li-Fraumeni syndrome, and discuss the current knowledge on the biological consequences of deregulated p53 signaling in cells derived from patients with such disorders.
Antidepressant Utilization and Suicide in Europe: An Ecological Multi-National Study

Background Research concerning the association between use of antidepressants and incidence of suicide has yielded inconsistent results and is the subject of considerable controversy. The first aim is to describe trends in the use of antidepressants and rates of suicide in Europe, adjusted for gross domestic product, alcohol consumption, unemployment, and divorce. The second aim is to explore if any observed reduction in the rate of suicide in different European countries preceded the trend for increased use of antidepressants. Methods Data were obtained for 29 European countries between 1980 and 2009. Pearson correlations were used to explore the direction and magnitude of associations. Generalized linear mixed models and Poisson regression distribution were used to clarify the effects of antidepressants on suicide rates, while an autoregressive adjusted model was used to test the interaction between antidepressant utilization and suicide over two time periods: 1980–1994 and 1995–2009. Findings An inverse correlation was observed in all countries between recorded Standardised Death Rate (SDR) for suicide and antidepressant Defined Daily Dosage (DDD), with the exception of Portugal. Variability was marked in the association between suicide and alcohol, unemployment and divorce, with countries depicting either a positive or a negative correlation with the SDR for suicide. Every unit increase in DDD of an antidepressant per 1000 people per day, adjusted for these confounding factors, reduces the SDR by 0.088. The correlation between DDD and suicide related SDR was negative in both time periods considered, albeit more pronounced between 1980 and 1994. Conclusions Suicide rates have tended to decrease more in European countries where there has been a greater increase in the use of antidepressants. These findings underline the importance of the appropriate use of antidepressants as part of routine care for people diagnosed with depression, therefore reducing the risk of suicide.
Substrate Integrated Waveguide Directional Couplers for Compact Three-Dimensional Integrated Circuits

A class of directional couplers based on the substrate integrated waveguide (SIW) technique for compact three-dimensional (3-D) integrated circuits is proposed and studied in this work. Backward and forward couplers as well as strong coupling-defined forward couplers are presented and developed. They are composed of two joined SIW sections such that the common wall between them is made of a portion of the broad side of the first SIW and the narrow side of the second SIW. This perpendicular topology is arranged and formed through the use of a LEGO-like interconnect between the two SIW structures. Different coupling geometries developed with a low-cost printed circuit board process are studied. Design considerations and measured results at Ka-band are presented and discussed. To achieve respectively weak backward and forward directional couplings, Schwinger and multihole-type directional couplers are introduced first of all, which make use of coupling slots arranged around the center of the SIW broad wall. For each of those structures, a wideband 20-dB directional coupler is fabricated and measured for demonstration purposes. To achieve a strong coupling, a Riblet-type directional coupler is proposed and examined. Subsequently, a 3-dB coupler is demonstrated together with a 0-dB coupler, offering a wideband and very efficient transition between the perpendicularly arranged SIWs. The proposed directional couplers can be used at millimeter-wave frequencies for probing and the design of compact 3-D integrated circuits and systems such as polarimetric imaging radiometer or antenna array feeding networks.
What Object Attributes Determine Canonical Views? Introduction

We investigated preferred or canonical views for familiar and novel three-dimensional objects using computer-graphics psychophysics. We assessed the canonical views for objects by allowing participants to actively rotate realistically shaded three-dimensional models in realtime. Objects were viewed on a Silicon Graphics Workstation and manipulated in virtual space using a three degree-of-freedom input device. In the rst experiment, participants adjusted each object to the viewpoint fromwhich they would take a photograph if they planned to use the object to illustrate a brochure. In the second experiment, participants mentally imaged each object based on the name and then adjusted the object to the viewpoint from which they imagined it. In both experiments, there was a large degree of consistency across participants in terms of the preferred view for a given object. Our results provide new insights on the geometrical, experiential, and functional attributes that determine canonical views under ecological conditions. VB was supported by a graduate student stipend from the Max-Planck Society. MJT was supported by a grant from the O ce of Naval Research, contract number N00014-93-1-0305, and a Max-Planck Society visitors' stipend. This document is available as /pub/mpi-memos/TR-042.ps via anonymous ftp from ftp.mpik-tueb.mpg. de or from the World Wide Web, http://www.mpik-tueb.mpg. de/projects/TechReport/list.html.
Individual Voice in Employment Relationships: A Comparison Under Different Forms of Workplace Representation

This article considers the role of individual employee voice in regulating the “zone of acceptance” within the employment relationship and examines the extent to which different models of collective voice inhibit or foster the operation of individual voice. It focuses especially on the role of representatives who deal with job-level grievances and who operate within contrasted frameworks of collective voice. In one, representation is negotiated with the employer, and in the other, it is based on rights established in employment law. The former is commonly associated with shop stewards and unions, and the latter with employee delegates and works councils. It is argued that whereas in the negotiated model, individual and collective voice are substitutes, in the rights-based one, they are complements. The article also considers how this may alter under dual-channel representation based on both unions and councils, which is very common in European workplaces. Britain provides an example of the negotiated model and France of both the rights-based and dual-channel models. These ideas are tested using data from the 2004 British and French workplace employment relations surveys and confirmed using data from the 1998 surveys.
The development and maintenance of anxiety symptoms from infancy through adolescence in a longitudinal sample

This study examined the etiology and course of anxiety symptoms from infancy through adolescence in a longitudinal high-risk community sample. One hundred fifty-five subjects were assessed using a variety of observational, projective, and objective measures. Results of path analyses revealed the following: (a) anxiety symptoms showed moderate stability during childhood and adolescence; (b) heightened neonatal biobehavioral reactivity and poor regulation predicted emotion regulation difficulties in preschool, which predicted anxiety symptoms in childhood; (c) developmental incompetence in childhood predicted anxiety symptoms in preadolescence, and anxiety symptoms in preadolescence predicted incompetence in adolescence; (d) insecure attachment relationships in infancy predicted negative peer relationship representations in preadolescence, and these representations predicted anxiety symptoms in adolescence; (e) compared to males, females showed similar rates of anxiety symptoms in childhood but greater and more stable rates in adolescence; however, males and females showed similar patterns of association between risk factors and anxiety symptoms across childhood and adolescence; and (f) the model tested was specific in predicting anxiety symptoms and not psychopathology in general. The results support a developmental model of the etiology and maintenance of anxiety symptoms in childhood and highlight factors to consider in efforts to prevent and treat childhood anxiety.This article is based on a doctoral dissertation completed by the first author. The research was supported by a Philanthropic Educational Organization Scholarship to the first author and by funds provided by grants to the second author from the Maternal and Child Health Service (MC-R-270416); the William T. Grant Foundation, New York; and the National Institute of Mental Health (MH-40864). This study is currently supported by the National Institute of Mental Health (MH-40864-18). The authors thank Manfred van Dulmen for the invaluable statistical guidance he provided in the preparation of this manuscript and the families and teachers whose generation donation of time made this project possible.
Pregnancy's Stronghold on the Vaginal Microbiome

Objective To assess the vaginal microbiome throughout full-term uncomplicated pregnancy. Methods Vaginal swabs were obtained from twelve pregnant women at 8-week intervals throughout their uncomplicated pregnancies. Patients with symptoms of vaginal infection or with recent antibiotic use were excluded. Swabs were obtained from the posterior fornix and cervix at 8–12, 17–21, 27–31, and 36–38 weeks of gestation. The microbial community was profiled using hypervariable tag sequencing of the V3–V5 region of the 16S rRNA gene, producing approximately 8 million reads on the Illumina MiSeq. Results Samples were dominated by a single genus, Lactobacillus, and exhibited low species diversity. For a majority of the patients (n = 8), the vaginal microbiome was dominated by Lactobacillus crispatus throughout pregnancy. Two patients showed Lactobacillus iners dominance during the course of pregnancy, and two showed a shift between the first and second trimester from L. crispatus to L. iners dominance. In all of the samples only these two species were identified, and were found at an abundance of higher than 1% in this study. Comparative analyses also showed that the vaginal microbiome during pregnancy is characterized by a marked dominance of Lactobacillus species in both Caucasian and African-American subjects. In addition, our Caucasian subject population clustered by trimester and progressed towards a common attractor while African-American women clustered by subject instead and did not progress towards a common attractor. Conclusion Our analyses indicate normal pregnancy is characterized by a microbiome that has low diversity and high stability. While Lactobacillus species strongly dominate the vaginal environment during pregnancy across the two studied ethnicities, observed differences between the longitudinal dynamics of the analyzed populations may contribute to divergent risk for pregnancy complications. This helps establish a baseline for investigating the role of the microbiome in complications of pregnancy such as preterm labor and preterm delivery.
Long-term and large-scale epidemiology of Brucella infection in baleen whales and sperm whales in the western North Pacific and Antarctic Oceans

In a long-term, large-scale serologic study in the western North Pacific Ocean, anti-Brucella antibodies were detected in common minke whales (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) in the 1994–2010 offshore surveys (21%, 285/1353) and in the 2006–2010 Japanese coastal surveys (20%, 86/436), in Bryde’s whales (B. edeni brydei) in the 2000–2010 offshore surveys (9%, 49/542), in sei whales (B. borealis) in the 2002–2010 offshore surveys (5%, 40/788) and in sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) in the 2000–2010 offshore surveys (8%, 4/50). Anti-Brucella antibodies were not detected in 739 Antarctic minke whales (B. bonaerensis) in the 2000–2010 Antarctic surveys. This suggests that Brucella was present in the four large whale populations inhabiting the western North Pacific, but not in the Antarctic minke whale population. By PCR targeting for genes of outer membrane protein 2, the Brucella infection was confirmed in tissue DNA samples from Bryde’s whales (14%, 2/14), sei whales (11%, 1/9) and sperm whales (50%, 2/4). A placental tissue and an apparently healthy fetus from a sperm whale were found to be PCR-positive, indicating that placental transmission might have occurred and the newborn could act as a bacterial reservoir. Marked granulomatous testes were observed only in mature animals of the three species of baleen whales in the western North Pacific offshore surveys, especially in common minke whales, and 29% (307/1064) of total mature males had abnormal testes. This study provides an insight into the status of marine Brucella infection at a global level.
On Becoming (Un)Committed: A Taxonomy and Test of Newcomer Onboarding Scenarios

How does the bond between the newcomer and the organization develop over time? Process research on temporal patterns of newcomer's early commitment formation has been very scarce because theory and appropriate longitudinal research designs in this area are lacking. From extant research we extract three process-theoretical accounts regarding how the newcomer adjustment process evolves over time: 1 Learning to Love; 2 Honeymoon Hangover; and 3 High Match, Moderate Match, or Low Match. From these scenarios we develop a taxonomy of newcomer adjustment scenarios. Further, we empirically verify these different scenarios by examining naturally occurring "trajectory classes," which are found to display strengthening, weakening, or stabilizing of the employee-organization linkage. For this, we use a sample of 72 Ph.D. graduates whose organizational commitment history was recorded in their first 25 consecutive weeks of new employment. In closing, we discuss the theoretical and practical implications of the scenario-based approach.
Spectroscopy of QUEST RR Lyrae Variables: The New Virgo Stellar Stream

Eighteen RR Lyrae variables (RRLs) that lie in the "12. ͪ4 clump" identified by the Quasar Equatorial Survey Team (QUEST) have been observed spectroscopically to measure their radial velocities and metal abundances. Ten blue horizontal branch (BHB) stars identified by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) were added to this sample. Six of the nine stars in the densest region of the clump have a mean radial velocity in the Galactic rest frame (Vgsr) of 99.8 and σ = 17.3 km s-1, which is slightly smaller than the average error of the measurements. The whole sample contains eight RRLs and five BHB stars that have values of Vgsr suggesting membership in this stream. For seven of these RRLs, the measurements of [Fe/H], which have an internal precision of 0.08 dex, yield ⟨[Fe/H]⟩ = -1.86 and σ = 0.40. These values suggest that the stream is a tidally disrupted dwarf spheroidal galaxy of low luminosity. Photometry from the database of the SDSS indicates that this stream covers at least 106 deg2 of the sky in the constellation Virgo. The name Virgo stellar stream is suggested.
DIRECT ESTIMATION OF FREQUENCY FROM MDCT-ENCODED FILES

The Modified Discrete Cosine Transform (MDCT) is a broadlyused transform for audio coding, since it allows an orthogonal time-frequency transform without blocking effects. In this article, we show that the MDCT can also be used as an analysis tool. This is illustrated by extracting the frequency of a pure sine wave with some simple combinations of MDCT coefficients. We studied the performance of this estimation in ideal (noiseless) conditions, as well as the influence of additive noise (white noise / quantization noise). This forms the basis of a low-level feature extraction directly in the compressed domain.
Generalized cell morphological parameters based on interferometric phase microscopy and their application to cell life cycle characterization

We present analysis tools which are formulated using wide-field interferometric phase microscopy measurements, and show their ability to uniquely quantify the life cycle of live cancer cells. These parameters are based directly on the optical path delay profile of the sample and do not necessitate decoupling the refractive index and the thickness in the cell interferometric phase profile, and thus can be calculated using a single-frame acquisition. To demonstrate the use of these parameters, we have constructed a wide-field interferometric phase microscopy setup and closely traced the full lifecycle of HeLa cancer cells. These initial results show the potential of the parameters to distinguish between the different phases of the cell lifecycle, as well others biological phenomena.
Trust Within and Across Boundaries : Conceptual Challenges and Empirical Insights Title : Making Sense of Trust Within and Across Boundaries

Recent calls have been placed for researchers to consider trust within wider theoretical conceptualizations, and in doing so, undertake a ‘reality check’ on existing theories and established methods of empirical inquiry. We respond to this by analysing trust as a social construction created within unique socially constructed contexts, such as boundaries. Actors assign meaning to boundaries which then influence what and how trust is created. To better understand how this may be achieved we use the notion of sensemaking to bring contextual nuance to the fore. Narrative is the preferred way actors make sense of their experiences. It is also the way research is constructed and developed, and we consider the role of the dominant, normative-based trust discourse in influencing how trust is talked about among and between researchers. A practice-based research agenda is advanced that sees trust reframed as ‘trusting’ or ‘trust-in-making’, in order to represent it as something individuals do.
Dynamical Model of Elementary Particles Based on an Analogy with Superconductivity

Continuing the program developed in a previous paper, a "superconductive" solution describing the proton-neutron doublet is obtained from a nonlinear spinor field Lagrangian. We Gnd the pions of Gnite mass as nucleon-antinucleon bound states by introducing a small bare mass into the Lagrangian which otherwise possesses a certain type of the p5 invariance. In addition, heavier mesons and two-nucleon bound states are obtained in the same approximation. On the basis of numerical mass relations, it is suggested that the bare nucleon Geld is similar to the electron-neutrino Geld, and further speculations are made concerning the complete description of the baryons and leptons.