Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Does Mismatch Negativity Show Differences in Reading-Disabled Children Compared to Normal Children and Children with Attention Deficit?

An auditory event-related potential (ERP) component called mismatch negativity (MMN) was examined in three groups of children (n = 63) aged 8–14 years. A control group comprised healthy children in second or sixth grade of comprehensive school (n = 21). The two clinical groups included children with reading disability (RD) (n = 21) and children with attention deficit (AD) (n = 21). MMN was elicited in a passive oddball paradigm by duration changes in a continuous sound, consisting of two alternating (600 and 800 Hz) 100 msec tones. The deviant tones were either 30 or 50 msec in duration. Both deviants elicited a clear MMN in all groups. Statistical analyses showed no systematic difference in the MMN peak latencies or amplitudes between the groups. A significant difference between the RD group and the control group was observed in the lateralization of the MMN peak amplitudes.
Ocular higher-order aberrations and contrast sensitivity after conventional laser in situ keratomileusis.

PURPOSE To investigate prospectively the relation between induced changes in higher-order aberrations of the eye and changes in contrast sensitivity by conventional laser in situ keratomileusis (LASIK) for myopia. METHODS In 200 eyes of 110 consecutive patients (mean age, 32.7 +/- 8.4 years) undergoing LASIK, ocular aberrations and contrast sensitivity function were determined before and 1 month after surgery. The amount of myopic correction was 5.2 +/- 2.8 D (range, 1.0-13.0). Ocular higher-order aberrations were measured for a 4-mm pupil using the Hartmann-Shack wavefront analyzer (KR-9000PW; Topcon, Tokyo, Japan). The root mean square (RMS) of the third- and fourth-order Zernike coefficients was used to represent coma- and spherical-like aberrations, respectively. Total higher-order aberrations were calculated as the RMS of the third- and fourth-order coefficients. Contrast sensitivity and low-contrast visual acuity were measured. From the contrast sensitivity data, the area under the log contrast sensitivity function (AULCSF) was calculated. RESULTS LASIK significantly improved logMAR best corrected visual acuity (Wilcoxon signed-rank test, P <0.001), but significantly reduced AULCSF (P <0.001) and low-contrast visual acuity (P=0.007). Total higher-order (P <0.001), coma-like (P <0.001), and spherical-like (P <0.001) aberrations were significantly increased after LASIK. The greater the amount of achieved myopia correction was, the more the changes in contrast sensitivity function and ocular higher-order aberrations were. The induced changes in AULCSF by LASIK showed significant correlations with changes in total higher-order (Pearson r=-0.221, P=0.003), coma-like (r=-0.205, P=0.006), and spherical-like (r=-0.171, P=0.022) aberrations. The changes in logMAR low-contrast visual acuity by surgery significantly correlated with changes in total higher-order (r=0.222, P=0.003), coma-like (r=0.201, P=0.007), and spherical-like (r=0.207, P=0.005) aberrations. CONCLUSIONS Conventional LASIK significantly increases ocular higher-order aberrations, which compromise the postoperative contrast sensitivity function.
The Analysis of Geographic Living-Cost Differentials: A Brief Empirical Note

The determinants of geographic livingcost differentials in the United States have been examined extensively (cf. Cebula 1980; Cobas 1978; Grady 1981; Haworth and Rasmussen 1973; Hogan 1983, 1984; Izraeli 1977; Langston, Rasmussen, and Simmons 1985; McMahon and Melton 1978; Ostrosky 1983, 1986). This brief note seeks to add to this literature by addressing two statistical issues: heteroskedasticity and multicollinearity.
The health status of Roma children--a medical or social issue?

BACKGROUND Most studies dealing with health problems of the Roma population suggests that a low economic status significantly contributes to their overall poor health. In Serbia, Roma people are members of a marginalized ethnic group with a low socioeconomic status which contributes to their much higher morbidity and mortality rate compared with the majority population. The questions we asked in this paper were: Are Roma children discriminated during hospital care? Do they get the same treatment as the non-Roma children? PATIENTS AND METHODS To answer these questions, we examined medical records of 59 Roma children and compared with 59 records of non-Roma children in order to determine whether there are any differences in the health status, as well as the length, course, outcome, and cost of treatment. RESULTS Roma children have statistically significant more comorbidity, more malnutritions, more skin diseases (especially parasitic and fungal infections) and were more frequently anemic. Also, the length of hospitalization of Roma children was significantly higher, as well as the number of laboratory tests performed and number of drugs prescribed, which contribute to the significantly higher costs of treatment for Roma children compared to non-Roma children. However, a significantly lower number of Roma children were discharged as "completely cured". CONCLUSIONS The results of our study does not support hypothesis of discrimination of Roma children concerning medical treatment in observed hospital. At the same time, our results suggests that social interventions (e.g. hygienic housing, water supply, etc.) and prevention measures could prevent necessity of hospitalized treatment of Roma children and could diminish the drain on the health budget spent on treating the consequences of social neglect.
Sleep Modes for Enhanced Battery Life of 5G Mobile Terminals

In addition to higher data rates and lower latency the 5G Radio Access Technology concepts are targeting to provide better battery life for mobile broadband and Machine Type Communication users. In this overview paper we analyze how microsleep, Discontinuous Reception and Transmission, and a wake-up receiver concept can be combined to enhance the battery life of 5G mobile terminals. Due to the short and pipelined 5G frame structure microsleep provides 20 % energy savings as compared to LTE. The Discontinuous Reception and Transmission modes also benefit from the new frame structure leading to faster connection setup and up to 80 % lower energy consumption depending on the traffic type. Finally we estimate that the wake-up receiver concept, when adapted to scheduled and cellular communication, can provide 90 % lower energy consumption and ensure a predictable and consistent latency.
Acute neuromuscular and performance responses to Nordic hamstring exercises completed before or after football training

ABSTRACT The optimal scheduling of Nordic Hamstring exercises (NHEs) relative to football training sessions is unknown. We examined the acute neuromuscular and performance responses to NHE undertaken either before (BT) or after (AT) simulated football training. Twelve amateur players performed six sets of five repetitions of the NHE either before or after 60 min of standardised football-specific exercise (SAFT60). Surface electromyography signals (EMG) of the hamstring muscles were recorded during both the NHE, and maximum eccentric actions of the knee flexors (0.52 rad · s–1) performed before and after the NHE programme, and at 15 min intervals during SAFT60. Ten-metre sprint times were recorded on three occasions during each 15 min SAFT60 segment. Greater eccentric hamstring fatigue following the NHE programme was observed in BT versus AT (19.8 %; very likely small effect), which was particularly apparent in the latter range of knee flexion (0–15°; 39.6%; likely moderate effect), and synonymous with hamstring EMG declines (likely small–likely moderate effects). Performing NHE BT attenuated sprint performance declines (2.0–3.2%; likely small effects), but decreased eccentric hamstring peak torque (–14.1 to –18.9%; likely small effects) during football-specific exercise. Performing NHE prior to football training reduces eccentric hamstring strength and may exacerbate hamstring injury risk.
Illiquidity Spirals in Coupled Over-the-Counter Markets

Banks provide intermediation of two economically coupled assets, each traded on an OTC market—e.g., secured debt and the underlying collateral. We model banks’ decisions to provide liquidity as a game of strategic complements on two coupled trading networks:incentives to be active in one network are increasing in its neighbors’ activity in both networks. When an exogenous shock renders some banks inactive, other banks follow in an illiquidity spiral across the two networks. Liquidity can be improved if one of the two OTC markets is replaced by an exchange. For a class of market structures associated with random graphs, liquidity changes discontinuously in the size of an exogenous shock, in contrast to contagion on one network.
Towards the Understanding of Chinese Collaboration in Hospitality – The Opinions of Professionals

The increasingly competitive market in China has resulted in the struggle of hotels for competitive advantage, and even for survival. Among the possible tools to rise above this cut-throat environment is the concept of hotel collaboration. This paper moves towards the understanding of hotel collaboration in China based on the focus group discussions of 22 experienced practitioners in the Chinese hotel and related industries. The data identified several threats, opportunities, and insights into hotel collaboration of domestic with overseas hotels as well as predictions for the future of this practice in China. Based on specific cultural, political, and economic contexts of contemporary China, the results indicate that partial collaboration is likely to succeed in the hotel market of the country.
The Other-Race Effect does not Rely on Memory: Evidence from a Matching Task

Viewers are typically better at remembering faces from their own race than from other races; however, it is not yet established whether this effect is due to memorial or perceptual processes. In this study, UK and Egyptian viewers were given a simultaneous face-matching task, in which the target faces were presented upright or upside down. As with previous research using face memory tasks, participants were worse at matching other-race faces than own-race faces and showed a stronger face inversion effect for own-race faces. However, subjects' performance on own and other-race faces was highly correlated. These data provide strong evidence that difficulty in perceptual encoding of unfamiliar faces contributes substantially to the other-race effect and that accounts based entirely on memory cannot capture the full data. Implications for forensic settings are also discussed.
The spacing effect in immediate and delayed free recall

Spacing repetitions improves learning relative to massing repetitions (the spacing effect). While most studies have examined the spacing effect at short retention intervals, there are contradictory claims about its fate at a delay. Certain empirical findings suggest that the spacing effect persists at a delay. However, a recent theoretical account proposes that in free recall the spacing effect should disappear at a delay. The few studies that have examined the spacing effect at a delay are sub-optimally designed, preventing an unbiased conclusion. The current study used incidental learning and controlled recency and encoding strategy in order to examine the effect of delay on the recall of spaced items within a free recall paradigm. The results demonstrated that the spacing effect persists after a delay. The results point to an important dissociation between intentional forgetting and context-change designs (which produce more forgetting of spaced than massed items) and the passage of time (which produces similar forgetting of spaced and massed items).
Predicting acoustic relaxation absorption in gas mixtures for extraction of composition relaxation contributions

The existing molecular relaxation models based on both parallel relaxation theory and series relaxation theory cannot extract the contributions of gas compositions to acoustic relaxation absorption in mixtures. In this paper, we propose an analytical model to predict acoustic relaxation absorption and clarify composition relaxation contributions based on the rate-determining energy transfer processes in molecular relaxation in excitable gases. By combining parallel and series relaxation theory, the proposed model suggests that the vibration-translation process of the lowest vibrational mode in each composition provides the primary deexcitation path of the relaxation energy, and the rate-determining vibration–vibration processes between the lowest mode and others dominate the coupling energy transfer between different modes. Thus, each gas composition contributes directly one single relaxation process to the molecular relaxation in mixture, which can be illustrated by the decomposed acoustic relaxation absorption spectrum of the single relaxation process. The proposed model is validated by simulation results in good agreement with experimental data such as N2, O2, CO2, CH4 and their mixtures.
ENURESIS NOCTURNA PREVALENCE AND RISK FACTORS AMONG SCHOOL AGE CHILDREN IN NORTHWEST TURKEY

To find out prevalence of enuresis nocturna (EN) among school age children, and to determine associated factors and regional differences, an epidemiological study was performed among children between 7 to 12 years living in Zonguldak, Turkey. Data were collected at schools by a questionnaire. EN prevalence was found as 8.9 %, most (75.7 %) were primary, and the rest were secondary. Prevalence decreased as the age increased in both genders. There was a positive relationship of EN with positive family history, presence of EN in a brother or a sister, encopresis, sleep disturbances, a maternal education of primary school or less, working mother, low monthly income, low school success and introversion or extroversion. Only 19.8 % of the cases preferred medical treatment modalities, other preferences were waiting for spontaneous improvement, awaking the child for voiding, water restriction and diapering, in decreasing order. As EN is a disease that can result in low self-esteem, some other psychological problems and low school success, it must be treated. Informing these parents wherever they are met, especially at primary health care settings, is necessary both not to miss patients and to convince the parents for treatment.
Approximating equity volatility.

The volatility estimation is a crucial problem for pricing derivatives. The traditional implied volatility approach induces the undesired smile effect and is therefore inconsistent with the market reality. A second more realistic approach is due to Bensoussan, Crouhy and Galai (1995) who derive an extension of the Black-Scholes model where the stochastic volatility ? is endogenous and depends on the change in the firm’s financial leverage. These authors give an analytic approximation for ? when the firm is financed by external funds such as debts, under the assumptions that the risk-free rate and the volatility of the return on the firm’s asset are constant. In this work, we will generalize this result by allowing these parameters to be variable.
Dissemination of Accruals Information, Role of Semi-Annual Reporting, and Analysts' Earnings Forecasts: Evidence from Japan

Our study investigates the effects of dissemination of accounting accruals information on stock prices using Japanese annual reports as our sample. We conduct month-by-month detailed analyses of price adjustment behavior with a particular focus on revisions of analysts' earnings forecasts and changes in trading volume around the period of upcoming semi-annual reports. We find that analysts' forecasts are often revised around this time, and analysts use this as auxiliary information. In addition, an accompanying re-adjustment of abnormal returns and an increase in trading volume are observed. Our findings demonstrate that informational uncertainty initially triggered by the announcement of annual reports decreases as semi-annual reports are disclosed and analysts change their earnings forecasts, and confirms the importance of semi-annual reporting.
Effects of the Big Five Brand Personality Dimensions on Repurchase Intentions: Using Branded Coffee Chains as Examples

This study explored brand personality dimensions and examined the effects of brand personality on repurchase intentions. Starbucks and 85 Degrees, the two largest branded coffee chains in the Taiwanese hospitality market, were taken as examples. The results indicated the existence of a five-factor model of brand personality for both Starbucks and 85 Degrees. Starbucks was perceived as being exciting, sophisticated, and sincere; 85 Degrees was perceived as being exciting. More importantly, the perceived personality traits of Starbucks and 85 Degrees can positively influence repurchase intentions. Finally, this study provides specific suggestions for practitioners in developing appropriate strategies for hospitality brands.
Coalitions, Incentives, and Risk Sharing

Abstract This paper analyzes the effects of coalitional behavior in principal–multiagent relationships with moral hazard and identifies cases where the principal prefers agents to form a coalition via side contracting. It is shown that the principal can implement given efforts, via non-individualistic incentive contracts, at a lower cost when the agents can monitor each other′s efforts perfectly and hence coordinate their effort choice than when the agents behave independently. Permitting the principal to utilize more complex communication mechanisms does not alter the result, for there is no coalition-proof revelation mechanism improving the principal′s welfare. Journal of Economic Literature Classification Number: D82.
The influence of exchange rate variability on UK exports

This paper examines the influence of exchange rate variability on UK exports in the period of ‘floating’ sterling 1973Q2-1990Q3. Using the most recently developed bounds tests (appropriate when the cointegrating vector incorporates both I(1) or I(0) variables) the long-run demand for UK exports invariant to exchange rate variability is found.
The Importance of Demonstratively Restoring Order

Contrary to what is often assumed, order is not the strongest context for encouraging normative behavior. The strongest context effect on normative behavior comes from cues that clearly convey other people’s respect for norms. Ironically, this show of respect necessitates some contrasting disrespect that is being restored. Using civic virtues (such as helping behavior) as a prototype of normative behavior, the three field experiments described in this paper reveal the impact of normative cues on civic virtues. Results show that the strongest effect on making people follow prosocial norms in public places emanates from seeing order being restored, rather than just order being present. The robust and surprisingly large effects show that observing other people’s respect for one particular norm (as evidenced in their restoring physical order) makes it more likely that the onlooker follows other norms as well. This implies that prosocial behavior has the highest chance of spreading when people observe order being restored. There are clear policy implications: create low cost “normative respect cues” wherever it is desirable to increase conformity to norms.
A generalized site ranking model for Web IR

Normally, the unit for a ranking model in a Web IR system is a Web page, which is, sometimes, just an information fragment. A larger unit considering the linkage information may be desired to reduce the cognitive overload for users to identify the complete information from the interconnected Web. We propose a ranking model to measure the relevance of the whole Web site. We take some illustrations to show the idea and provide evidences to indicate its effectiveness.
Consumer motives for purchasing organic coffee

Purpose – This study aims to investigate consumer choice motives for purchasing organic coffee by applying the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) approach and how those are influenced by different degrees of ethical concern and price sensitivity to gain a better understanding about consumer behavior related to the rapidly growing demand for this unique product. Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected from consumers at cafes (n = 482) located in seven metropolitan cities in South Korea using a self-administered questionnaire. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling. Findings – Results documented that health and environmental protection were predictors of purchase attitude and subjective norm. Environmental protection was found to be a predictor of perceived behavioral control. TPB antecedents were significantly related to purchase intention. Ethical concern and price sensitivity documented the significant moderating roles upon o.
Golf swing analysis system with a dual band and motion analysis algorithm

In this paper, we developed a golf position analysis system with an inertial sensor and swing motion analysis algorithm that can be used in golf courses. Specifically, we developed a band for both wrists that analyzes the golf swing of whoever is wearing it. By analyzing the movements of both the right and left wrists of the golfer, their golf swing can be judged more accurately, which can be used to advise the golfer regarding their golf swing. Experimental results show that this portable instrument along with its swing motion detection algorithm is a promising training tool for golfers.
Effect of non-invasive ventilation on respiratory muscle loading and endurance in patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy

Background: Respiratory muscle weakness in patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) leads to respiratory failure for which non-invasive positive pressure ventilation (NIPPV) is an effective treatment. This is used initially at night (n-NIPPV) but, as the disease progresses, diurnal use (d-NIPPV) is often necessary. The connection between NIPPV and relief of respiratory muscle fatigue remains unclear. A study was undertaken to determine the extent to which n-NIPPV and d-NIPPV unload the respiratory muscles and improve respiratory endurance in patients with DMD. Methods: Fifty patients with DMD were assessed at 20.00 and 08.00 h. More severely affected patients with nocturnal hypoventilation received n-NIPPV; those with daytime dyspnoea also received d-NIPPV via a mouthpiece (14.00–16.00 h). Lung function, modified Borg dyspnoea score, spontaneous breathing pattern, tension-time index (TT0.1 = occlusion pressure (P0.1)/maximum inspiratory pressure (MIP) × duty cycle (Ti/Ttot)) and respiratory muscle endurance time (Tlim) against a threshold load of 35% MIP were measured. Results: More severe respiratory muscle weakness was associated with a higher TT0.1 and lower Tlim. In contrast to non-dyspnoeic patients, patients with dyspnoea (Borg score >2.5/10) showed an increase in Tlim and decrease in TT0.1 after n-NIPPV. At 16.00 h, immediately after d-NIPPV, patients with dyspnoea had lower TT0.1 and Borg scores with unchanged Tlim. Compared with the control day without d-NIPPV, TT0.1, Borg scores and Tlim were all improved at 20.00 h. Conclusions: In patients with dyspnoea with DMD, the load on respiratory muscles increases and endurance capacity decreases with increasing breathlessness during the day, and this is reversed by n-NIPPV. An additional 2 h of d-NIPPV unloads respiratory muscles and reverses breathlessness more effectively than n-NIPPV alone.