Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The association between narcissism and implicit self -esteem: A test of the fragile self -esteem hypothesis

The Office of Graduate Studies has verified and approved the above named committee members iii A mima, a Kiko y a los que dejamos en Cuba iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I appreciate the contributions and support from the following individuals: Dr. Bryan Loney, my major professor, and my dissertation committee members: Dr. also thank my colleague Mark Reeves for his instrumental assistance in programming. This project would not have been completed today without his help. Although not directly involved with this project, many other individuals, with their direction, assistance, and support, have propelled me to this point. To the many educators that have guided me over the years, from the time I lived in Cuba to those in the U.S., I acknowledge your contributions. More recently, Dr. Murray Krantz, who as a freshman encouraged me to learn about research, and Dr. Wallace A. Kennedy, my undergraduate advisor, without him this trajectory would have ended differently. You both deserve recognition and have my deepest gratitude. Much love to my husband, family and friends: your endless encouragement and optimism came at all appropriate times.
Recovery rates of bluetongue virus serotypes 1, 2, 4 and 8 Spanish strains from orally infected Culicoides imicola in South Africa

Bluetongue (BT) is an infectious disease of ruminants that has spread northwards in Europe during the last decade. The aetiological agent of the disease is an arbovirus [bluetongue virus (BTV)] that belongs to the genus Orbivirus (family Reoviridae). The virus is transmitted by certain species of biting midge within the genus Culicoides (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae). Information on the vector status of the Culicoides species in a specific area will be essential to predict the risk for BTV incursion. Field‐collected Culicoides (Avaritia) imicola Kieffer from South Africa were fed on blood containing several Spanish isolates of BTV. Despite the high virus concentrations in the bloodmeal (5.1–6.4 log10 TCID50/mL of blood), virus was recovered from <1% of midges assayed after incubation. Virus concentrations >2.5 log10 TCID50/midge in individual infected C. imicola suggest virus replication with possible risk for transmission to susceptible vertebrate hosts in the field for at least two of the serotypes assayed (BTV‐1 and BTV‐2). A third serotype (BTV‐4) was very close to the estimated threshold for transmission. The relatively low to near refractory status of C. imicola compared with other vector species such as Culicoides bolitinos supports previous results, indicating that Culicoides species other than C. imicola may play a more important role in the epidemiology of BTV.
Using a Projection Method to Analyze Inflation Bias in a Micro-Founded Model

Since Kydland and Prescott (1977) and Barro and Gordon (1983), most studies of the problem of the inflation bias associated with discretionary monetary policy have assumed a quadratic loss function. We depart from the conventional linear-quadratic approach in favor of a projection method approach. We investigate the size of the inflation bias that arises in a microfounded nonlinear environment with Calvo price setting. The inflation bias is found to lie between 1% and 6% for a reasonable range of parameter values, when the bias is defined as the steady-state deviation of the discretionary inflation rate from the optimal inflation rate under commitment.
Presenile dementia syndromes: an update on taxonomy and diagnosis

The four major degenerative dementias that often begin in presenescence: are reviewed. These are Alzheimer's disease, frontotemporal dementia, dementia with Lewy bodies, and Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease. Their epidemiological, genetic, and clinical features are reviewed, and controversies in taxonomy arising from recent discoveries described. Particular attention is given to the pathological role of protein aggregation, which appears to be a factor in each disease.
Planting Narrow-Row Soybean Leads To Increased Yield And Farm Profitability Under Conventional Tillage In The Northeast

Growers can plant soybean [Glycine max( L.) Merr. ] with a grain drill or row crop planter, which can affect seed and weed control costs and yield. Farmers planted soybean with a grain drill in 0.19 m rows and a row crop planter in 0.38 and 0.76 m rows at recommended (420,000 seeds ha ) and reduced (321,000 seeds ha) seeding rates in two field-scale studies in New York to obtain agronomic information and conduct partial budget analyses to aid growers in future planter purchase decisions. Soybean intercepted more light in 0.19 (65-70%) compared with 0.76 m rows (50-55%) at flowering, despite lower early plant establishment (~70 and ~85%, respectively) at both locations. At the no-till location, soybean in 0.76 m rows compared with narrower rows had greater weed density at full pod stage (19.7 vs. 6.3 and 5.1 plants m) and biomass at harvest (13.7 vs. 6.6 and 7.3 g m), but similar yield (~3.30 Mg ha). At the chisel tillage location, soybean in 0.19 m rows at 420,000 seeds ha yielded more (4.27 Mg ha) than other row spacing by seeding rate combinations (4.15 to 4.01 Mg ha). Partial budget analyses indicated that soybean in 0.19 m rows at 420,000 seeds ha had ~$30 ha increased profit compared with 0.76 m rows at 321,000 seeds ha. Partial budget analyses indicated that for farms without a grain drill the 4% yield advantage offsets costs of purchasing and owning a grain drill and added seed costs at present market and seed price.
Pathology of layer V pyramidal neurons in the prefrontal cortex of patients with schizophrenia.

OBJECTIVE Morphological indications of abnormal circuitry have been detected in the prefrontal neuropil of patients with schizophrenia. The authors tested the hypothesis that schizophrenia is associated with smaller dendritic field size in layer V pyramidal neurons in the prefrontal cortex. METHOD Tissue from area 10 with a mean postmortem interval of 5.7 hours was obtained from 15 subjects with chronic schizophrenia and 18 normal comparison subjects. After Golgi impregnation, basilar dendritic field size was estimated for layer V pyramidal neurons by ring intersection analysis. RESULTS The schizophrenia subjects had 40% fewer total ring intersections per neuron than comparison subjects. Smaller basilar dendritic field size was evident in proximal and distal branches. CONCLUSIONS These results indicate that abnormal dendritic outgrowth or maintenance contributes to reduced neuropil and prefrontal connectivity in schizophrenia. Short postmortem intervals and resulting high tissue quality suggest that these dystrophic changes reflect schizophrenia pathology rather than postmortem artifact.
Inverse Document Density: A Smooth Measure for Location-Dependent Term Irregularities

The advent and recent popularity of location-enabled social media services like Twitter and Foursquare has brought a dataset of immense value to researchers in several domains ranging from theory validation in computational sociology, over market analysis, to situation awareness in disaster management. Many of these applications, however, require evaluating the a priori relevance of trends, topics and terms in given regions of interest. Inspired by the well-known notion of the tf-idf weight combined with kernel density methods we present a smooth measure that utilizes large corpora of social media data to facilitate scalable, real-time and highly interactive analysis of geolocated text. We describe the implementation specifics of our measure, which are grounded in aggregation and preprocessing strategies, and we demonstrate its practical usefulness with two case studies within a sophisticated visual analysis system.
Beertsen in the Periodontal Ligament of the Rat Incisor A Quantitative Enzyme Histochemical Analysis of the Distribution of Alkaline Phosphatase Activity

The spatial distribution of alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity was examined in the periodontal ligament of the continuously growing rat incisor. With the indoxyl-tet-razolium salt method, enzyme activity was demonstrated in undecalcified cryosections, and the amount of reaction product was quantified. ALP activity appeared to be distributed heterogeneously. Its highest activity was found in the bone-related compartment of the ligament. In the tooth-related compartment and the supracrestal extension of the ligament, enzyme activity was significantly lower, but still higher than in the lamina propria ofthe gingiva. In the part of the ligament bordering the cementum, highest activity was found in the apical region just occlusal to Hertwigs epithelial root sheath, where formation ofacellu-lar cementum begins. From there toward the incisal edge, the activity of the enzyme gradually decreased. It is suggested that differences among the various parts of the periodontal ligament are related to local variations in phosphate metabolism and cementum deposition.
Essays on fiscal decentralization, institutions and ethnic conflict

This dissertation investigates the relationships between institutional quality, fiscal decentralization and ethnic conflict. We especially endorse the idea that taking into account institutions helps understanding the incidence of ethnic conflict. In the first chapter we assume that violent conflicts emanate either from an institutional failure or, in contrast, from a strong bureaucratic efficacy coupled with a willingness to discriminate minorities. 3SLS results show that both effects are simultaneously taking place. Chapters 2 and 3 investigate whether fiscal decentralization is an efficient conflict-mitigating institution. Results based on panel data in chapter 2 suggest that fiscal decentralization is a useful device. In contrast, the interactions between institutional quality and fiscal decentralization appear as more complex than assumed. The chapter 3 explores in length the preference-matching role of fiscal decentralization, taking into account recent models of political economy and introducing a distinction between local majorities and minorities. Estimations confirm that fiscal decentralization is desirable for local majorities but is found to stir violence amongst local minorities. The last chapter offers a microeconomic analysis of the interaction between a CDD program and local political institutions in Senegal. It reveals that the allocation of projects depends on political and geographical factors, originating from political leadership. However, the ethnic factor is insignificant to explain the leadership and some of the electoral imbalances are corrected through institutions created by the program.
ESSAYS ON EMPIRICAL ASSET PRICING USING BAYESIAN METHODS

This thesis is composed of three essays related to empirical asset pricing. In the first essay of the thesis, we investigate recent rational explanations of the value premium using a regime-switching approach. Using data from the US stock market, we investigate the risk of value and growth in different market states and using alternative risk measures such as downside beta and higher moments. Our results provide little or no evidence that value is riskier than growth, and that evidence is specific to pre-1963 period (including the Great Depression). Within the post-1963 sample, there are periods when the value premium can be explained by the CAPM, whilst during other periods the premium is explained by the fact that the returns on value firms increase more than the returns on growth stocks in periods of strong market performance, whilst in downturns growth stocks suffer more than value, and these features are captured by different upside/downside betas or higher moments. These results are not consistent with a risk-based explanation of the value premium. The second essay of the thesis contributes to the debate about the momentum premium. We investigate the robustness of the momentum premium in the US over the period from 1927 to 2006 using a model that allows multiple structural breaks. We find that the risk-adjusted momentum premium is significantly positive only during certain periods, notably from the 1940s to the mid-1960s and from the mid-1970s to the late 1990s, and we find evidence that momentum has disappeared since the late 1990s. Our results suggest that the momentum premium has been slowly eroded away since the early 1990s, in a process which was delayed by the occurrence of the high-technology stock bubble of the 1990s. In particular, we estimate that the bubble accounts for at least 60% of momentum profits during the period from 1995 to 1999. In the final essay of this thesis, we study the question of which asset pricing factors should be included in linear factor asset pricing model. We develop a simple multivariate extension of a Bayesian variable selection procedure from the statistics literature to estimate posterior probabilities of asset pricing factors using many assets at once. Using a dataset of thousands of individual stocks in the US market, we calculate posterior probabilities of 12 factors which have been suggested in the literature. Our results indicate strong and robust evidence that a linear factor model should include the excess market return, the size and the liquidity factors, and only weak evidence that the idiosyncratic volatility and downside risk factors matter. We also apply our methodology to portfolios of stocks commonly used in the literature, and find that the famous Fama and French (1993, 1996) HML factor has high posterior probability only if portfolios formed on book-to-market ratio are used.
The Constrained Maximal Expression Level Owing to Haploidy Shapes Gene Content on the Mammalian X Chromosome

X chromosomes are unusual in many regards, not least of which is their nonrandom gene content. The causes of this bias are commonly discussed in the context of sexual antagonism and the avoidance of activity in the male germline. Here, we examine the notion that, at least in some taxa, functionally biased gene content may more profoundly be shaped by limits imposed on gene expression owing to haploid expression of the X chromosome. Notably, if the X, as in primates, is transcribed at rates comparable to the ancestral rate (per promoter) prior to the X chromosome formation, then the X is not a tolerable environment for genes with very high maximal net levels of expression, owing to transcriptional traffic jams. We test this hypothesis using The Encyclopedia of DNA Elements (ENCODE) and data from the Functional Annotation of the Mammalian Genome (FANTOM5) project. As predicted, the maximal expression of human X-linked genes is much lower than that of genes on autosomes: on average, maximal expression is three times lower on the X chromosome than on autosomes. Similarly, autosome-to-X retroposition events are associated with lower maximal expression of retrogenes on the X than seen for X-to-autosome retrogenes on autosomes. Also as expected, X-linked genes have a lesser degree of increase in gene expression than autosomal ones (compared to the human/Chimpanzee common ancestor) if highly expressed, but not if lowly expressed. The traffic jam model also explains the known lower breadth of expression for genes on the X (and the Z of birds), as genes with broad expression are, on average, those with high maximal expression. As then further predicted, highly expressed tissue-specific genes are also rare on the X and broadly expressed genes on the X tend to be lowly expressed, both indicating that the trend is shaped by the maximal expression level not the breadth of expression per se. Importantly, a limit to the maximal expression level explains biased tissue of expression profiles of X-linked genes. Tissues whose tissue-specific genes are very highly expressed (e.g., secretory tissues, tissues abundant in structural proteins) are also tissues in which gene expression is relatively rare on the X chromosome. These trends cannot be fully accounted for in terms of alternative models of biased expression. In conclusion, the notion that it is hard for genes on the Therian X to be highly expressed, owing to transcriptional traffic jams, provides a simple yet robustly supported rationale of many peculiar features of X’s gene content, gene expression, and evolution.
Oxaliplatin-incorporated micelles eliminate both cancer stem-like and bulk cell populations in colorectal cancer

Purpose The failure of cancer treatments is partly due to the enrichment of cancer stem-like cells (CSLCs) that are resistant to conventional chemotherapy. A novel micelle formulation of oxaliplatin (OXA) encapsulated in chitosan vesicle was developed. The authors postulate that micelle encapsulation of OXA would eliminate both CSLCs and bulk cancer cells in colorectal cancer (CRC). Experimental design In this study, using stearic acid-g-chitosan oligosaccharide (CSO-SA) polymeric micelles as a drug-delivery system, OXA-loaded CSO-SA micelles (CSO-SA/OXA) were prepared. Intracellular uptake of CSO-SA/OXA micelles was assessed by confocal microscope. The effects of free OXA, the empty carrier, and CSO-SA/OXA micelles were tested using human CRC cell lines in vitro and in vivo. Results The micelles showed excellent internalization ability that increased OXA accumulation both in CRC cells and tissues. Furthermore, CSO-SA/OXA micelles could either increase the cytotoxicity of OXA against the bulk cancer cells or reverse chemoresistance of CSLC subpopulations in vitro. Intravenous administration of CSO-SA/OXA micelles effectively suppressed the tumor growth and reduced CD133+/CD24+ cell (putative CRC CSLC markers) compared with free OXA treatment, which caused CSLC enrichment in xenograft tumors (P < 0.05). Conclusion The results of this study indicate that CSO-SA micelle as a drug-delivery carrier is effective for eradicating CSLCs and may act as a new option for CRC therapy.
Variation in Four-note Location Calls

Male Spotted Owls (Strix occidentalis) use Four-note Location Calls for territorial defense and communication with females; yet little is known about Spotted Owl vocal behavior. There are three subspecies of Spotted Owls that are genetically distinct, occupy different forests in North America, and vary in body size. I measured three temporal and four frequency vocalization variables to assess call variation among the three subspecies. I used MANOVA, under an information-theoretic model selection framework, to rank 17 a priori models, which represented hypotheses explaining variation in the structure of Spotted Owl calls. I also experimentally tested the Acoustic Adaptation Hypothesis by broadcasting calls of all three subspecies and measuring their attenuation and degradation when transmitted through forests used by Northern Spotted Owls (S. o. caurina). A genetics (i.e., subspecies) hypothesis, where all three subspecies were distinct, best explained variation in temporal structure of calls among Spotted Owl subspecies. The statistical model based on this hypothesis described 49% of the variation in temporal structure sampled. A habitat hypothesis which considered mean basal area of conifers and broadleaf trees at owl nest sites best explained variation in the frequency structure among the three subspecies. This model described 52% of the variation in frequency structure of owl calls. Frequencies of Spotted Owl calls decreased in relation to conifer basal area and increased in relation to broadleaf basal area. My results iv provided limited support for the Acoustic Adaptation Hypothesis; owls from more open forests produced shorter calls composed of higher frequencies. In support of the Acoustic Adaptation Hypothesis, calls from owls that inhabited more closed forests attenuated 2 dB less per 25 m. However, contrary to the Acoustic Adaptation Hypothesis, these same calls also degraded by 58 msec more per 25 m. Ultimately, habitat may be a strong selective force behind the vocal frequencies used in Spotted Owl calls. Spotted Owl morphology did not explain variation in owl call frequencies. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Language modelling ’ s generative model : is it rational ?

This note considers issues of principle that arise in applying so-called language modelling to different language and information processing tasks. Language modelling is familiar and effective for some tasks, and has been proposed and appears promising for others (see, e.g. Croft and Lafferty 2003). However attention has been more often focused on technical manipulation than on the underlying justification for taking a language modelling view of a task. The aim of this note is to go right back to what language modelling looks like as a theoretical foundation for different language and information processing tasks. The discussion is quite informal: there is a more formal view in the Appendix.
UK in or UK out? A common cycle analysis between the UK and the Euro zone

We use a structural model estimated by the Kalman filter in order to extract the common cycle for different groups of OECD countries. We try to evaluate to what extent the Euro zone common cycle is affected by the inclusion of the UK into the group. An important result of this work is that adding the UK to the Euro group does not lead to a greater heterogeneity of the group as a whole. Besides, the UK business cycle is not much different from Euro zone cycles. Another point is that the influence of the UK on the `Euro plus UK' common cycle is less obvious for output than for consumption, public expenditures or investment series. This suggests the importance of taking into account the components of output when analysing business cycles. Classification JEL: E32, F02, F4.
Seeking solutions to Vulnerability in Old Age: Preferences, constraints, and alternatives for coverage under Peru`s pension system

Exploiting new data from a survey and behavioral experiment conducted in Peru we analyze individuals' preferences for securing income in old age. We identify a group that is unrationed by the mandate to save in Peru's pension system, and draw insights from their affiliation and contribution behavior. Among the unrationed, those who are more tolerant of risk, have more children, and have a greater share of housing in their accumulated assets are less likely to affiliate and/or contribute to the formal pensions system. Further, the less risk tolerant choose private individual retirement accounts over a publicly administered pension system.
New method on Lagrange stability of cellular neural networks with mixed delays

In this paper, the problem on globally exponentially stability in Lagrange sense for Cellular neural networks (CNNs) with both multiple delays and general activation functions is dealt with. Here, the multiple delays consist of time-varying delays and finite distribute delays. Based on assuming that the activation functions are neither bounded nor monotonous or differentiable, several algebra criteria for the globally exponentially stability in Lagrange sense of CNNs are obtained by virtue of Lyapunov functional, Halanay delay differential inequality and linear matrix inequality technique. Meanwhile, the detailed estimations of the globally exponentially attractive sets are also given out. The results derived here are more general than that of the existing reference. Finally, a numerical example is given and analyzed to demonstrate the theoretical result.
Towards explaining stability in and around management accounting systems

The aim of this longitudinal case study is to examine the reasons behind the often observed fact that accounting systems are difficult to change, despite the influence of significant market and other changes which put tremendous pressure on accounting to change. Unlike the bulk of studies on management accounting change, this study focuses on stability (continuity) and on the reasons for its existence or even necessity. The study aims to reveal how human, institutional, and economic factors become intertwined in MAS change projects, and especially in the cumulative process of change or its denial. The origins of stability and, therein, resistance in accounting systems are discussed using institutional theory and Giddens' theory of structuration.