Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Voices of the women: feedback from women of child-bearing age who are living with HIV can help improve efficacy of psychosocial interventions.

BACKGROUND We hypothesized that voluntary counselling and testing during pregnancy are necessary but not sufficient to provide the holistic psychosocial support needed by Jamaican women living with HIV and/or AIDS. Based on this hypothesis, we investigated a range of coping methods and support systems used by HIV-infected women and a group of their HIV-negative counterparts before, during and immediately after their pregnancies. METHODS Women attending obstetric clinics in urban Jamaica completed a quantitative survey aimed at discovering coping behaviours, social and spiritual support systems. Pre-survey focus group studies and key informant interviews contributed to the design of the questionnaire while post-survey focus groups were used to probe the validity of the data gleaned from the questionnaire survey Survey data were analyzed using non-parametric tests for trend with independent univariate tests. RESULTS Fifty-five HIV-infected women and 51 HIV-negative women completed the survey Compared with HIV-negative women, more HIV-infected women reported both feeling depressed (p = 0.07) and having difficulty concentrating (p = 0.05) during the month immediately prior to the study. Other statistically significant differences included: HIV-infected women were more likely to pray, to sleep and to change eating habits in response to worry and stress (p = 0.001 in each instance). Although several women declared religious faith, significantly fewer HIV-infected women were willing to talk to a religious leader about their problems compared to their HIV-negative counterparts (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS Participation of HIV-infected women in post-survey focus groups augmented the survey findings. Many of the women reported negative emotions and some indicated serious challenges in accessing social support. The results point to the need for systematic documentation of psychosocial profiles as part of the approach to caring for these women. In addition, in the Jamaican sociocultural context, we recommend improved training of religious leaders and healthcare providers in psychosocial issues.
The Institutional Framework and Economic Development

The compound growth rates of per capita output and Farrell-type efficiency measures for 115 market economies over the period 1960-80 were compared with measures of political, civil, and economic liberty. It was found that the institutional framework has significant and large effects on the efficiency and growth rate of economies. Politically open societies, which subscribe to the rule of law, to private property, and to the market allocation of resources, grow at three times the rate and are two and one-half times as efficient as societies in which these freedoms are abridged.
Governance structures, size and corporate performance in UK firms

Analyses the extent of Cadbury compliance and its impact on corporate performance in the UK. Comparing 1992 and 1995, we find that UK public companies have, in general, complied with the Cadbury Committee’s Code of Best Practice and have adopted the recommended governance structures. However, compliance is more common among larger firms. Thus we find that duality is less common, firms tend to have more than three non‐executive directors and that there has been an almost universal adoption of board subcommittees such as the remuneration and audit committees. However, little evidence is found to suggest either that the board characteristics recommended by Cadbury lead to improved performance or that moving towards them improves performance. The only governance mechanism which does positively affect performance is the presence of remuneration and audit committees.
A human surfactant peptide-elastase inhibitor construct as a treatment for emphysema

Two million Americans suffer from pulmonary emphysema, costing $2.5 billion/year and contributing to 100,000 deaths/year. Emphysema is thought to result from an imbalance between elastase and endogenous inhibitors of elastase, leading to tissue destruction and a loss of alveoli. Decades of research have still not resulted in an effective treatment other than stopping cigarette smoking, a highly addictive behavior. On the basis of our previous work, we hypothesize that small molecule inhibitors of human neutrophil elastase are ineffective because of rapid clearance from the lungs. To develop a long-acting elastase inhibitor with a lung pharmacodynamic profile that has minimal immunogenicity, we covalently linked an elastase inhibitor, similar to a trifluoro inhibitor that was used in clinical trials, to a 25-amino-acid fragment of human surfactant peptide B. We used this construct to prevent human neutrophil elastase-induced emphysema in a rodent model. The elastase inhibitor alone, although in a 70-fold molar excess to elastase in a mixture with <0.6% residual elastase activity, provided no protection from elastase-induced emphysema. Covalently combining an endogenous peptide from the target organ with a synthetic small molecule inhibitor is a unique way of endowing an active compound with the pharmacodynamic profile needed to create in vivo efficacy.
Assuming Responsibility: Teachers Taking Charge of Their Professional Development

The paper reports on some of the findings of an extensive study undertaken in Victoria as part of a national Science, ICT and Mathematics Education in Rural and Regional Australia (SiMERR) project. One of the significant findings of the study was the extent to which teachers in the schools where the study data were collected took responsibility for many aspects of their own professional development. This was not at the expense of, but rather was in addition to, their involvement in school- and region-based professional development activity. The study also identifies some of the challenges faced, mostly related to the location of their schools in a rural or regional setting.
Impact of Higher Education on Economic Growth of Pakistan

This paper investigates the returns of higher education on economic growth of Pakistan from 1972 to 2008 through the application of Cobb-Douglas production function. The prime objective of the study is to identify and establish a link between the higher education and economic growth of Pakistan. For this purpose the impact of higher education enrollment on economic growth is analyzed. An attempt is made, in this study, to analyze the educational trends, the strategies and challenges for higher educational and its role in overall development in the country. Furthermore, the study also delves that a well educated labor force appears to significantly affluence the economic growth. The research also provides some implications for the policy purpose to develop higher education so as to curb the use of expatriate manpower in different sectors of the economy.
Investment in Man: An Economist's View

My plan is first to comment on the state of our knowledge about investments that people make in themselves and, then, to consider briefly the reluctance that we have in thinking about human wealth, and to give reasons why modern economists have shied away from it. I plan, then, to show how wholly new and important questions can be examined, once we acknowledge the role of human wealth, and how a number of big puzzles in our economic data may be solved. I venture to suggest a human wealth hypothesis and to note that estimates from two recent studies are consistent with it. It is a simple truth that people invest in themselves. They do it as individuals and as families and through their national and local communities. In mak-
Protecting adolescents from harm. Findings from the National Longitudinal Study on Adolescent Health.

CONTEXT The main threats to adolescents' health are the risk behaviors they choose. How their social context shapes their behaviors is poorly understood. OBJECTIVE To identify risk and protective factors at the family, school, and individual levels as they relate to 4 domains of adolescent health and morbidity: emotional health, violence, substance use, and sexuality. DESIGN Cross-sectional analysis of interview data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. PARTICIPANTS A total of 12118 adolescents in grades 7 through 12 drawn from an initial national school survey of 90118 adolescents from 80 high schools plus their feeder middle schools. SETTING The interview was completed in the subject's home. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Eight areas were assessed: emotional distress; suicidal thoughts and behaviors; violence; use of 3 substances (cigarettes, alcohol, marijuana); and 2 types of sexual behaviors (age of sexual debut and pregnancy history). Independent variables included measures of family context, school context, and individual characteristics. RESULTS Parent-family connectedness and perceived school connectedness were protective against every health risk behavior measure except history of pregnancy. Conversely, ease of access to guns at home was associated with suicidality (grades 9-12: P<.001) and violence (grades 7-8: P<.001; grades 9-12: P<.001). Access to substances in the home was associated with use of cigarettes (P<.001), alcohol (P<.001), and marijuana (P<.001) among all students. Working 20 or more hours a week was associated with emotional distress of high school students (P<.01), cigarette use (P<.001), alcohol use (P<.001), and marijuana use (P<.001). Appearing "older than most" in class was associated with emotional distress and suicidal thoughts and behaviors among high school students (P<.001); it was also associated with substance use and an earlier age of sexual debut among both junior and senior high students. Repeating a grade in school was associated with emotional distress among students in junior high (P<.001) and high school (P<.01) and with tobacco use among junior high students (P<.001). On the other hand, parental expectations regarding school achievement were associated with lower levels of health risk behaviors; parental disapproval of early sexual debut was associated with a later age of onset of intercourse (P<.001). CONCLUSIONS Family and school contexts as well as individual characteristics are associated with health and risky behaviors in adolescents. The results should assist health and social service providers, educators, and others in taking the first steps to diminish risk factors and enhance protective factors for our young people.
Integrated High-Voltage Inductive Power and Data-Recovery Front End Dedicated to Implantable Devices

In near-field electromagnetic links, the inductive voltage is usually much larger than the compliance of low-voltage integrated-circuit (IC) technologies used for the implementation of implantable devices. Thus most integrated power-recovery approaches limit the induced signal to low voltages with inefficient shunt regulation or voltage clipping. In this paper, we propose using high-voltage (HV) complementary metal-oxide semiconductor technology to fully integrate the inductive power and data-recovery front end while adopting a step-down approach where the inductive voltage is left free up to 20 or 50 V. The advantage is that excessive inductive power will translate to an additional charge that can be stored in a capacitor, instead of shunting to ground excessive current with voltage limiters. We report the design of two consecutive HV custom ICs-IC1 and IC2-fabricated in DALSA semiconductor C08G and C08E technologies, respectively, with a total silicon area (including pads) of 4 and 9 mm2, respectively. Both ICs include HV rectification and regulation; however, IC2 includes two enhanced rectifier designs, a voltage-doubler, and a bridge rectifier, as well as data recovery. Postlayout simulations show that both IC2 rectifiers achieve more than 90% power efficiency at a 1-mA load and provide enough room for 12-V regulation at a 3-mA load and a maximum-available inductive power of 50 mW only. Successful measurement results show that HV regulators provide a stable 3.3- to 12-V supply from an unregulated input up to 50 or 20 V for IC1 and IC2, respectively, with performance that matches simulation results.
The Molecular Biology Revolution and the Rise of Bioscience Megacentres in North America and Europe

This paper focuses on ‘triple helix’ effects in biosciences. Scientific change can have profound socioeconomic effects. The molecular biology revolution tilted pharmaceuticals production away from its fine chemistry path dependence into microbiology and biotechnology. The key to any triple helix effects has thus shifted to universities and spinouts buttressed with burgeoning public funding, leaving ‘big pharma’ increasingly playing the role of licenser and marketer of bought-in therapeutic treatments. Concentration in the healthcare value chain means a few places that have become bioscience ‘mega-centres’ dominate healthcare innovation. Ambitious regions seeking to establish megacentres of their own are causing governments to experiment with ‘regional science policy’ to build up competitiveness.
THE IMPACT OF THE DISCLOSURE OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS OF ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR ON THE MARKET

Corporations interact with their environment. Guiding their behavior is the goal of maximizing shareholder wealth, an objective which is not obviously affected by social costs associated with pollution and other externalities [2]. These social costs should be identified, measured and reported if corporations are to fulfill their social as well as their shareholder responsibilities [1]. The accounting profession has taken few positive steps to report social costs and the expenditures made by corporations to reduce them. However, the 1970-71 annual reports of companies in industries as diverse as chemical, food, petroleum, and pulp and paper do include information on pollution control either in the president's letter or in the review of operations. This disclosure suggests that the managers of some corporations see an advantage in making these expenditures and see some reason for disclosing that information to investors. The pollution abatement expenditures are not trivial. For some large firms they may reach to 4% of sales and 10% of capital investment [10]. In the steel industry, the abatement costs are reported to be as high as 25% of capital investment [4]. Their size supports the conclusion that these expenditures provide material information to investors. The information is essential if investors are
Outward-Oriented Developing Economies Really Do Grow More Rapidly: Evidence from 95 LDCs, 1976-1985

The long run trade orientation of an economy is measured in this article by an index which measures the extent to which the real exchange rate is distorted away from its free trade level by the trade regime. The technique for estimating a cross country index of real exchange rate distortion uses the international comparison of prices prepared by Robert Summers and Alan Heston. Resource endowment constitutes the norm and real overvaluation or undervaluation relative to this norm reveals whether incentives are directed to the domestic or international market. The index is constructed based on data for GDP/capita average price level in US dollars 1976-85 and GDP growth rate/capita 1976-85. Other sections are devoted the comparison of the procedure for 117 countries between 1976-85 and an examination of the empirical relationship between outward orientation and economic growth and sensitivity analysis. The results indicate that Latin America generally was overvalued by 33% relative to Asia and Africa was overvalued by 86%. The real exchange rate distortion index supports the view that Asian countries are more outward oriented. Asian economies have lower price levels which reflect relatively modest protection and incentives oriented to external markets. Latin American countries with moderately high price level and African countries with very high price levels reflect strong protection and incentives directed to production for the domestic market. An alternative specification which eliminates the dummy variables for Africa yields similar results with slightly lower magnitude; i.e. overvaluation is 60% instead of 86% for Africa and Latin America is overvalued by 39% instead of 33% over Asia. A table is provided which indicates by country the distortion and variability of the real exchange rate the GDP growth the 1976 GDP/capita and the investment rate. Another finding was that there is a significant negative relationship between distortion of the real exchange rate and growth of GDP/capita after controlling for the effects of real exchange rate variability and investment level with both the original specification and the alternative. The growth rate/capita of Latin American and African countries would increase 1.5-2.1% with a shift to move outward oriented trade policies. This gain as well as devaluation of the real exchange reate trade liberalization and maintenance of a stable real exchange rate would contribute to positive growth rates. In the analysis of the poorest 24 countries the result was that only rate distortion and not variability and investment rate explained the growth rate. The gain for Ghana for example of adopting the trade policies and exchange rate of Bangladesh would be 5% to its growth.
ECONOMIC GROWTH AND INCOME INEQUALITY IN MALAYSIA, 1971–95

Abstract This article investigates trends in income inequality in Malaysia for the period 1970–95 based on published aggregated household income data, and places these trends within the broader economic policy framework of the period. An important issue addressed here is the extent to which the observed trends in income inequality can be linked directly to the different policies implemented by the government. This study shows that general development policies implemented under the New Economic Policy have had a major impact on reducing income inequality in Malaysia from the late 1970s. However, since 1990 there is a trend towards rising income inequality, both overall and with inter-ethnic as well as urban-rural income disparities. It is suggested that the government policy reversal towards liberalization, deregulation and privatization since the late 1980s has contributed to this trend of increasing inequality.
Effects of organizational and serviceperson orientation on customer loyalty

Purpose – Within the service industry, the serviceperson enhances customer loyalty by increasing customer benefits and decreasing customer costs, but is also embedded within and influenced by the organizational context. Thus, the influence of a serviceperson's orientation may differ or even conflict with the organization's orientation. There are two purposes to this paper. The paper first aims to develop a conceptual model that clearly distinguishes between benefit‐ and cost‐based explanations of the effect of the serviceperson. The paper's second aim is to examine the impact of the organization on the serviceperson's ability to foster customer loyalty through interactions with customers.Design/methodology/approach – A survey methodology is used and data gathered from managers and customers. Multi‐group structural equation modeling is employed to test partial mediation and partial moderation theses.Findings – In line with social exchange theory, the paper finds that a serviceperson's customer orientation .
Testing Uncertainty's Effect in Real Options with Multiple Capital Goods

The irreversible investment theory with heterogeneous capital predicts a negative relationship between uncertainty and the investment extensive margin. We empirically explore this prediction using plant-level data for investment across multiple fixed assets, and employ a discrete ordered choice model. Our results indicate that uncertainty, even after controlling for financial constraints, induces a negative effect on the extensive margin, thereby decreasing the likelihood of investment triggering in more types of capital. This effect takes the form of both a higher probability of investment inactivity but also a lower probability of investment triggering in a higher number of capital types.
Applying the Value-Belief-Norm Theory to Marine Contexts: Implications for Encouraging Pro-Environmental Behavior

Encouraging pro-environmental behavior among protected area visitors and other stakeholders has become a priority for marine resource managers. However, there exists a lack of understanding of the human dimensions of resource management regarding the perceptions and attitudes of stakeholders. Using the value-belief-norm theory of environmentalism (VBN) as a framework, the purposes of this investigation were to: 1) test a model of variables that influence stakeholders' intentions to adopt pro-environmental behavior in two marine protected areas (i.e., the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park and the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary); and 2) using the relevant literature and information gleaned from the model, suggest techniques that managers can use to encourage pro-environmental intentions. Acceptable goodness-of-fit indices for both of the structural equation models (one for each protected area) provided empirical support for the usefulness of the VBN framework to guide both research in marine contexts and marine protected area management efforts to encourage stakeholders' intentions to engage in pro-environmental behavior. Specific suggestions include increasing stakeholders. knowledge about impacts via environmental education strategies, increasing their awareness of their impacts and their efficacy in mitigating those impacts (e.g., workshops), and developing interpersonal relationships among managers and stakeholders (e.g., implementation intention and follow-up strategies).
Hard Core Cartels and Avoidance of Investigation in the Presence of an Antitrust Authority

Hard Core Cartels aim to design, being aware of the presence of an antitrust authority, market practices granting avoidance of antitrust investigations. We show, in a dynamic game, that they can reach this goal and get extra--normal profits. However, the bulk of this opportunity does not lay, here, in limiting price changes across periods (as in Harrington [2004b]), but rather in sending a signal to the authority which has a twofold effect: (1) it does make evident that cartel's members are currently not engaged in an ``excessive'' degree of collusion, (2) it credibly shows that this moderate collusive activity has a persistence effect, i.e. it will be maintained also in future periods. We also show that antitrust remedies (e.g. behavioral constraints or injunction reliefs) are more powerful, in limiting the collusive activity, than fines. Last, we show that social welfare is higher if Hard Core Cartels have limited information about the type of authority (i.e. tough or accommodating) they are facing.
Transaction processing in multilevel-secure databases using replicated architecture

In a multilevel secure database management system based on the replicated architecture, there is a separate database management system to manage data at or below each security level, and lower-level data are replicated in all databases containing higher-level data. The issue of transaction processing in such a system is addressed. A synchronization protocol is given that guarantees one-copy serializability of concurrent transaction executions. It is secure since the information always flows in one direction-from databases at lower security classes to databases with higher security classes-and it can be implemented in such a way that the size of the trusted code (including the code required for concurrency and recovery) is small. <<ETX>>