Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Entrepreneurial activities of indigenous African women: a case of Ghana

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the personal profile and entrepreneurial activities of indigenous Ghanaian women and to provide updated research to raise awareness about the significant impact of the indigenous women‐run small to medium‐sized enterprises on Africa countries' economies.Design/methodology/approach – The study employed a mixed methodology research design where both qualitative and quantitative methods were used. Mail surveys were used to collect data from 241 indigenous Ghanaian women and in addition, 20 of these women were purposefully selected and interviewed.Findings – Indigenous Ghanaian women were found to exhibit many similarities with their counterparts in other countries in terms of their personality traits. However, they differed in other aspects such as their educational backgrounds and modes of entrepreneurial skills acquisition. Through their entrepreneurial activities the women have made substantial contributions to the economic growth of Ghana in terms of inno.
The Level and Growth Effects in Empirical Growth Models for the Nordic Countries: A Knowledge Economy Approach

We estimate the steady state growth rate for the Nordic countries using a “knowledge economy” approach. An endogenous growth framework is employed, in which total factor productivity is a function of human capital (measured by average years of education), trade openness, research and development, and investment ratio. We attempt to identify the variables which have significant level and growth effects within this framework. We find that education plays an important role in determining the long-run growth rates of Sweden, Norway, and Denmark; and trade openness has growth effects in Sweden, Finland, and Iceland. The investment ratio plays an important role for growth in Finland. In addition to growth effects, education also has level effects in Sweden, Finland, and Iceland. Research and development, has no level or growth effects in any of the Nordic countries. This may be attributable to the fact that research and development are driven by openness and education. Policy measures are identified to improve the long-run growth rates for these countries.
A Clinical Research Study of Cognitive Dysfunction and Affective Impairment after Isolated Brainstem Stroke

Although the function of the cerebellum in neurocognition has been well-documented, the similar role of the brainstem has yet to be fully elucidated. This clinical research study aimed to combine data relating to neuropsychological assessments and P300 to explore cognitive dysfunction and affective impairment following brainstem stroke. Thirty-four patients with isolated brainstem stroke and twenty-six healthy controls were recruited; for each patient, we collated data pertaining to the P300, Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination III (ACE-III), Montreal Cognitive Assessment Chinese version (MoCA), trail-making test (TMT), Symbol Digit Modalities Test (SDMT), Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Digit Spans (DS), Stroop test, Self Rating Depression Scale (SDS), and Self Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS). Significance was analyzed using an independent T-test or the Mann-Whitney U-test. Correlation was analyzed using Pearson's correlation analysis or Spearman's correlation analysis. Collectively, data revealed that brainstem stroke caused mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and that visuospatial, attention, linguistic, and emotional disturbances may occur after isolated brainstem stroke. Cognitive decline was linked to P300 latency, ACE-III, and MoCA; P300 latency was correlated with ACE-III. Patients with right brainstem lesions were more likely to suffer memory decline. The present study provides initial data relating to the role of the brainstem in neurocognition, and will be useful for further understanding of vascular cognitive and affective impairment.
Lipid peroxidation product 4-hydroxy-2-nonenal promotes seeding-capable oligomer formation and cell-to-cell transfer of α-synuclein.

AIMS Abnormal accumulation of α-synuclein aggregates is one of the key pathological features of many neurodegenerative movement disorders and dementias. These pathological aggregates propagate into larger brain regions as the disease progresses, with the associated clinical symptoms becoming increasingly severe and complex. However, the factors that induce α-synuclein aggregation and spreading of the aggregates remain elusive. Herein, we have evaluated the effects of the major lipid peroxidation byproduct 4-hydroxy-2-nonenal (HNE) on α-synuclein oligomerization and cell-to-cell transmission of this protein. RESULTS Incubation with HNE promoted the oligomerization of recombinant human α-synuclein via adduct formation at the lysine and histidine residues. HNE-induced α-synuclein oligomers evidence a little β-sheet structure and are distinct from amyloid fibrils at both conformation and ultrastructure levels. Nevertheless, the HNE-induced oligomers are capable of seeding the amyloidogenesis of monomeric α-synuclein under in vitro conditions. When neuronal cells were treated with HNE, both the translocation of α-synuclein into vesicles and the release of this protein from cells were increased. Neuronal cells can internalize HNE-modified α-synuclein oligomers, and HNE treatment increased the cell-to-cell transfer of α-synuclein proteins. INNOVATION AND CONCLUSION These results indicate that HNE induces the oligomerization of α-synuclein through covalent modification and promotes the cell-to-cell transfer of seeding-capable oligomers, thereby contributing to both the initiation and spread of α-synuclein aggregates.
Distance, information asymmetry, and mergers: evidence from Canadian firms

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of the distance between the acquiror and the target on merger outcomes. Design/methodology/approach - The authors use the distance between acquiror and target headquarters for a sample of 134 Canadian mergers to proxy for the impact of information asymmetry due to distance. They use an ordinary least squares regression to examine the impact of this distance on the abnormal returns earned by the acquiror and the operating performance of the acquiror. They also use a logistic regression to test for the impact of distance on the choice of the medium of exchange. Findings - The results suggest that a larger distance between the acquiror and the target is related to lower abnormal returns for the acquiror, poorer post-merger operating performance, as well as to a greater use of stock as the medium of exchange. The results are robust to several alternate specifications. Research limitations/implications - The findings of this paper extend existing research that suggests that distance affects investment decisions. Moreover, by analyzing the choice of the medium of exchange, this paper provides evidence that indicates that the distance matters due to its impact on information. As such, the paper suggests a potential empirical approach to measuring information asymmetry. Future research could help us better understand the role of distance in various other aspects of corporate decision making. Originality/value - This paper, by analyzing a sample of Canadian firms, provides an out-of-sample test for prior research that has focused almost exclusively on US firms. Moreover, by looking at the choice of the medium of exchange, it provides direct evidence that distance affects corporate decision making.
Electric power supply, main source and backing: A survey of residential utilization features

Limited access to quality and quantity electricity has remained an unresolved scourge in Nigeria. The ravage cuts across all electric energy utilization sectors in the nation especially the residential sector. This study highlights the sources of electric power supply, utilization features and effects of electricity deficits in Obantoko residents. A total of 124 households interviewed were selected using systematic random sampling techniques. This comprises of room(s), flat and duplex apartment inhabitants. The findings showed that despite the national grid connection, a significant number of households own and operate generators due to electricity shortfalls in the area. Comparative analysis of electricity supply status with that of countries in Southeast Asia such as India, Bangladesh, and Pakistan revealed that power supply deficit is a cognizant issue in developing countries. This essentially hampers domestic activities in the residential sectors. The effects on several households includes interruption of work, home discomfort, consequential effect on performance, increase expenditure, undue wastage, stress due to manual/mechanical household works and enjoyment/pleasure disruption. The salvaging role of private generators as an alternative source of power supply does not seem to significantly address the problem of electric power insufficiency in Nigeria as it poses its own challenges. There is therefore the need for improvement of the public source of power supply and adoption of other private alternative sources of electricity supply that have reduced operating cost and health implication.
Influence of endocervical specimen adequacy on PCR and direct fluorescent-antibody staining for detection of Chlamydia trachomatis infections

The cellular quality of the endocervical swab specimen used for the detection of Chlamydia trachomatis may dramatically impact the sensitivity of the diagnostic assay used. An evaluation of the adequacy of 319 endocervical swab specimens from women attending two inner-city sexually transmitted disease and family planning clinics, as well as five high school-based family planning clinics, was performed, and the resulting data were compared with the diagnostic results obtained by both Amplicor PCR and Microtrak direct fluorescent-antibody (DFA) staining. The swab from each patient was rolled across the open circular area of a DFA slide and then used to inoculate a transport tube for PCR (Roche), after which the swab was discarded. The slides were stained and examined by epifluorescence microscopy for the presence of C. trachomatis elementary bodies and for the presence and number of cell types to determine specimen adequacy. Cellular adequacy for a cervical swab specimen was defined as the presence of one or more columnar epithelial or metaplastic epithelial cells or the presence of more than 100 erythrocytes per high-power microscopic field. Of the 319 specimens read by DFA, 204 (63.9%) were determined to be adequate. There were 34 (10.7%) positive specimens by DFA and/or PCR. Twenty-nine (9.1%) specimens were positive by PCR, 20 (6.3%) specimens were DFA positive, and 15 (4.7%) were concordantly positive by both tests. The prevalence of chlamydia among adequate specimens was 14.2% (29/204), compared to 4.3% (5/115) for inadequate specimens (P < 0.0001). Variations in specimen quality and the sensitivity of the diagnostic assay used have a significant impact on determining the prevalence of C. trachomatis in a population.
Effective Parenting Interventions to Reduce Youth Substance Use: A Systematic Review

CONTEXT: Parenting interventions may prevent adolescent substance use; however, questions remain regarding the effectiveness of interventions across substances and delivery qualities contributing to successful intervention outcomes. OBJECTIVE: To describe the effectiveness of parent-focused interventions in reducing or preventing adolescent tobacco, alcohol, and illicit substance use and to identify optimal intervention targeted participants, dosage, settings, and delivery methods. DATA SOURCES: PubMed, PsycINFO, ERIC, and CINAHL. STUDY SELECTION: Randomized controlled trials reporting adolescent substance use outcomes, focusing on imparting parenting knowledge, skills, practices, or behaviors. DATA EXTRACTION: Trained researchers extracted data from each article using a standardized, prepiloted form. Because of study heterogeneity, a qualitative technique known as harvest plots was used to summarize findings. RESULTS: A total of 42 studies represented by 66 articles met inclusion criteria. Results indicate that parenting interventions are effective at preventing and decreasing adolescent tobacco, alcohol, and illicit substance use over the short and long term. The majority of effective interventions required ≤12 contact hours and were implemented through in-person sessions including parents and youth. Evidence for computer-based delivery was strong only for alcohol use prevention. Few interventions were delivered outside of school or home settings. LIMITATIONS: Overall risk of bias is high. CONCLUSIONS: This review suggests that relatively low-intensity group parenting interventions are effective at reducing or preventing adolescent substance use and that protection may persist for multiple years. There is a need for additional evidence in clinical and other community settings using an expanded set of delivery methods.
Performance measurement practices in software ecosystem

Purpose - – This paper aims to present the results of a survey study on performance and healthiness measurement practices in a Tunisian software ecosystem. The study evaluates the five dimensions of software ecosystem healthiness: robustness, productivity, interoperability, stakeholder's (customer and employee) satisfaction and creativity in the Tunisian context. Design/methodology/approach - – In this research a questionnaire was developed and distributed to the 150 Tunisian software ecosystem partners. Findings - – The results of this study show that managers should analyze the robustness, productivity, interoperability, stakeholder's (customer and employee) satisfaction and creativity measures simultaneously in order to enhance the quality of the decision-making process. Research limitations/implications - – In this study, one software ecosystem and 60 partners were examined. Future research should increase the number of respondents and the software ecosystem in order to generalize these results. Originality/value - – This paper is unique in reflecting the general practices and perceptions of software ecosystem organizations on performance and healthiness measures in Tunisia.
Transforaminal Lumbar Interbody Fusion: Comparison between Open and Mini-Open Approaches with Two Years Follow-Up

Abstract Background Transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (TLIF) is an efficient technique which can achieve a fusion rate of up to 90%. Minimally invasive approaches have become increasingly popular because they appear to minimize iatrogenic soft tissue and muscle injury. As minimally invasive TLIF gains popularity, its effectiveness compared with open TLIF has yet to be established. Objective A retrospective study was performed with the aim to compare long-term outcomes of patients who underwent mini-open TLIF with those who underwent open TLIF. Methods This is a retrospective review of prospectively collected data. Between 2005 and 2008, 100 patients underwent TLIF for low-grade spondylolisthesis or degenerative disc disease; 60 underwent open TLIF and 40 underwent mini-open TLIF. The mean age in each group was 48 years, and there were no statistically significant differences between the groups. Data were collected perioperatively. Pain and functional disability were measured using visual analogue scale (VAS) and Oswestry disability index (ODI) at 3 months, 6 months, 1 year, and 2 years. In addition, the fusion was evaluated at 1 year on a computerized tomography (CT) scan. Results The mean VAS improved from 7.3 to 3.8 for back pain and from 7 to 2.7 for leg pain and the ODI decreased from 60 to 30% at 2 years postoperatively. The fusion rate at 1 year was 98%. There were no statistical differences for the clinical and radiological outcomes between the groups. The mean operative time was 186 minutes in the open group and 170 minutes in the mini-open group (p < 0.05) and the mean blood loss was 486 mL in the open group and 148 mL in the mini-open group (p < 0.01). Conclusion The mini-open TLIF for symptomatic low-grade spondylolisthesis and degenerative disc disease is an effective option that achieves the same clinical and radiological outcomes at a minimum 2-year follow-up and reduces perioperative morbidity.
Effect of Protozoa on Bacterial Degradation of an Aromatic Compound

Prototrophic and growth factor-requiring strains of Alcaligenes spp. were used to study the effect of a protozoan, Tetrahymena pyriformis, on the degradation of p-aminobenzoate. The protozoan inhibited activity of the prototrophic bacterium by reducing its population size. For the growth factor-requiring strain of Alcaligenes, T. pyriformis provided the required growth factors so that the predator permitted the bacteria to grow and to continue p-aminobenzoate degradation. T. pyriformis inhibited bacterial activity when the amino acid supply was in excess, but activity of the auxotrophic strain of Alcaligenes was stimulated by the protozoan when the amino acid supply was limiting, although the bacterial population size was reduced by the protozoan.
Is There a Lack of Public Capital in the European Union?

This paper investigates whether there is a lack of public capital in European Union countries. The analysis builds on a new database providing internationally comparable capital stock estimates for 22 OECD countries, among these 14 EU countries, for the period 1960-2001. A simple model of endogenous growth is used in order to highlight the inherently nonlinear relationship between public capital and economic growth and to derive a measure of the growth-maximising public capital stock. Against this background, the empirical analysis provides estimates of the growth-maximising level of public capital for EU countries. The empirical results suggest that there currently is no lack of public capital in most "old" EU countries.
Context matters: examining ‘soft’ and ‘hard’ approaches to employee engagement in two workplaces

This paper reports different managerial approaches to engaging employees in two contrasting organizations. We categorize these approaches to employee engagement as ‘hard’ and ‘soft’, and examine how these reflect the different external contexts in which management operate and, in particular, their influence on management's ability to promote a supportive internal context. The paper extends the existing literature on the antecedents of engagement by illustrating the importance of combining practitioner concerns about the role and practice of managers with the insights derived from the psychological literature relating to job features. We build from these two approaches to include important features of organizational context to examine the tensions and constraints management encounter in promoting engagement. Our analysis draws on the critical organizational and HRM literature to make a contribution to understanding different applications of employee engagement within organizations. In so doing, we outline a situated and critical reading of organizations to better appreciate that management practices are complex, contested, emergent, locally enacted and context specific, and thereby provide new insights into the inherent challenges of delivering engaged employees.
Trace-Based Load Characterization for Gernerating Performance Software Models

Performance models of software designs can give early warnings of problems such as resource saturation or excessive delays. However models are seldom used because of the considerable effort needed to construct them. The ANGIOTRACE/sup TM/ was developed to gather the necessary information from an executable design and develop a model in an automated fashion. It applies to distributed and concurrent software with synchronous (send-reply or RPC) communications, developing a layered queuing network model. The trace-based load characterization (TLC) technique presented here extends the ANGIOTRACE/sup TM/ to handle software with both synchronous and asynchronous interactions. TLC also detects interactions which are effectively synchronous or partly-synchronous (forwarding) but are built up from asynchronous messages. These patterns occur in telephony software and in other systems. The TLC technique can be applied throughout the software life-cycle, even after deployment.
Inhibitory effects of long-chain fatty acids on VFA degradation and β-oxidation

The inhibitory effects of major long-chain fatty acids (LCFA), which have 16 or 18 carbons, not only on acetate degradation, but also on propionate degradation and β-oxidation were examined in anaerobic serum bottle tests at 35°C with the acclimated granular sludges. A modified Gompertz equation described cumulative methane production to assess the rates of VFA degradation and β-oxidation, which were applied to a simplified noncompetitive model and a simplified substrate inhibition model, respectively. The specific methane production rates on acetate decreased as LCFA concentration increased, which was in good agreement with the noncompetitive inhibition model. Unsaturated oleate (C18:1) and linoleate (C18:2) were more inhibitory than saturated stearate (C18:0) and palmitate (C16:0) on acetate degradation. LCFA inhibition on propionate degradation was similar to that for acetate; however, propionate degradation was less inhibited than acetate degradation. β-oxidation was the rate-limiting step in LCFA degradation in most cases. As LCFA concentration increased, β-oxidation rate reached the maximum value, and then decreased, which confirmed the substrate inhibition of LCFA. Oleate, the most abundant LCFA in wastewater, could be degraded more quickly than saturated LCFA containing the same or even less carbon in spite of relatively high toxicity on acetate degradation.
The Persistence of Risk-Adjusted Mutual Fund Performance

The authors examine predictability for stock mutual funds using risk-adjusted returns. They find that past performance is predictive of future risk-adjusted performance. Applying modern portfolio theory techniques to past data improves selection and allows the authors to construct a portfolio of funds that significantly outperforms a rule based on past rank alone. In addition, they can form a combination of actively managed portfolios with the same risk as a portfolio of index funds but with higher mean return. The portfolios selected have small but statistically significant positive risk-adjusted returns during a period where mutual funds in general had negative risk-adjusted returns. Copyright 1996 by University of Chicago Press.
The demand for International Reserves in China: An ECM Model with Domestic Monetary Disequilibrium

This paper employs a version of the error correction model to investigate the demand for international reserves in a typical planned economy, China. Disturbances from the domestic markets are considered by incorporating the monetary disequilibrium into the model. The authors' main conclusions are that (1) reserve holdings in China have maintained a long-run relationship and a stable dynamic relationship with several determinants since the 1950s, confirming China's prudential foreign reserve policy; and (2) monetary disequilibrium has significant short-run effects on reserve holdings, reflecting the authorities' 'general balancing' policy in their annual planning. Copyright 1994 by The London School of Economics and Political Science.
Fiscal Convergence in the European Union Before the Crisis

type="main" xml:id="coep12073-abs-0001"> This article investigates fiscal convergence attained by EU countries in the period 1991–2008, by employing β- and σ-convergence techniques complemented by a time series analysis. Overall our results highlight a distinctive convergence pattern in the European Union. Fiscal discipline leading to a fast convergence of deficit/GDP ratio over the 1990s markedly weakened in the following decade. Nonetheless, after the Euro debut a pronounced convergence in total revenue and total government spending emerges, with different patterns characterizing each expenditure component. Despite this evidence of fiscal harmonization, European treaties failed to attract countries toward a common share of government debt over GDP. (JEL E61, H11, C23)