Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Century of Labor-Leisure Distortions

I construct direct measures of labor-leisure distortions for the American economy during the period 1889-1996, using a new method for empirically evaluating competitive equilibrium models and extending that method to some noncompetitive situations. I then compare measured labor-leisure distortions to proxies for potential restraints of trade: distortionary taxes and subsidies, labor market regulation, monopoly unionism, and search frictions. Distortions have grown steadily over the century, with the exception of the Great Depression (when distortions were above trend), WWII (below trend), and the 1980's (below trend). Marginal tax rates are well correlated with labor-leisure distortions at low frequencies, but cannot explain Depression, wartime, or 1980's distortions. Monopoly unionism might explain a small part of the Depression distortions, and the decline of unions might explain some of the reduced distortions in the 1980's. In general, I find the decade-to-decade aggregate fluctuations in consumption, wages, and work to be hard to reconcile with simple quantitative models of labor supply and demand.
Pengaruh Kepemimpinan, Motivasi dan Budaya Organisasi terhadap Kinerja Pegawai pada Badan Perencanaan Pembangunan Daerah (Bappeda) Kota Dumai

Based on the background mentioned above, the authors conclude the formulation of the problem, namely: How does the leadership, motivation and organizational culture either partially or simultaneously on employee performance on Badan Perencanaan Pembangunan Daerah (BAPPEDA) Kota Dumai. The purpose of this study is to analyze done simultaneously and partially Influence Leadership, Motivation and Organizational Culture On Employee Performance Against Badan Perencanaan Pembangunan Daerah (BAPPEDA) Kota Dumai. This research was conducted at the Office Badan Perencanaan Pembangunan Daerah (BAPPEDA) Kota Dumai. The population in this study were all employees working in the office Badan Perencanaan Pembangunan Daerah (BAPPEDA) Kota Dumai. Determination of the number of samples using methods Slovin and obtained a sample of 52 respondents. While the types of data used in this study is primary data and secondary data. Data was collected through interviews and questionnaires. The data analysis method used is descriptive and quantitative methods to sum multiple regression formula. The variables used in this study is X1 (Leadership) with indicators communicate, coordinate, organize, motivate, utilize resources, rewarding, improve the skills of subordinates, the discipline of law, and classifying expectations of the organization. X2 (Motivation) with indicators of working conditions, salary, status, job security, high personal responsibility, willing to take risks, have realistic goals, have a plan of work, using feedback. X3 (Cultural Organization) with indicators of individual initiative, tolerance for risk measures, guidance, integration, management support, control, reward system, tolerance for conflict, communication patterns. Based on the research results, it can be seen leadership significantly influence employee performance on Badan Perencanaan Pembangunan Daerah (BAPPEDA) Kota Dumai. The better the leadership pattern is applied, the higher the employee's performance. Thus, the presence of leaders in every moment to improve employee performance. Motivation no effect on employee performance. This is due to the motivation of employees are non-material received while an employee is expected motivation of the material. The results showed that the influence of organizational culture on employee performance on Badan Perencanaan Pembangunan Daerah (BAPPEDA) Kota Dumai. Working culture of individual shaping organizational culture. Of the culture of the organization, can help improve employee performance. Due to a positive organizational culture, may establish a positive working patterns especially in improving employee performance. Kata Kunci : Leadership, Motivation, Organizational Culture and Performance
Developing and animating enterprising individuals and communities: A case study from rural Aberdeenshire, Scotland.

Purpose – Socio‐economic decline in rural areas is a pervasive and debilitating phenomenon in terms of regional development, particularly when former models of economic growth which once stimulated business generation and regeneration can no longer be counted on to do so. In these austere times, models of social and community enterprise are becoming more important. This corresponds to the emergence of theories of community‐based entrepreneurship and social enterprise as explanatory variables. Such theories are used to label enterprising behaviour enacted within our communities, even when the theoretical arguments underpinning these re‐conceptualisations require to be stretched to permit this. Often the resultant explanations are not entirely convincing. The purpose of this paper is to challenge existing conceptualisations of community‐based entrepreneurship and social enterprise.Design/methodology/approach – Using a case study methodology, the paper reports on the activities of the Buchan Development Part.
Revisiting random key pre-distribution schemes for wireless sensor networks

Key management is one of the fundamental building blocks of security services. In a network with resource constrained nodes like sensor networks, traditional key management techniques, such as public key cryptography or key distribution center (e.g., Kerberos), are often not effective. To solve this problem, several key pre-distribution schemes have been proposed for sensor networks based on random graph theory. In these schemes, a set of randomly chosen keys or secret information is pre-distributed to each sensor node and a network is securely formed based on this information. Most of the schemes assumed that the underlying physical network is dense enough, that is, the degree of each node is hig. In this paper, we revisit the random graph theory and use giant component theory by Erdos and Renyi to show that even if the node degree is small, most of the nodes in the network can be connected. Further, we use this fact to analyze the Eschenhauer et. al's, Du et. al's, and Chan et. al's key pre-distribution schemes and evaluate the relation between connectivity, memory size, and security. We show that we can reduce the amount of memory required or improve security by trading-off a very small number of isolated nodes. Our simulation results show that the communication overhead does not increase significantly even after reducing the node degree. In addition, we present an approach by which nodes can dynamically adjust their transmission power to establish secure links with the targeted networked neighbors. Finally, we propose an effcient path-key identification algorithm and compare it with the existing scheme.
Peak energy turnover in lactating European hares: the role of fat reserves

SUMMARY European hares (Lepus europaeus) in central Europe have high energetic costs of reproduction, mainly due to precocial, rapidly growing young that rely largely on energy-rich milk. Thus, hares in this climate build up large fat stores during winter that are then gradually depleted during the spring-to-autumn breeding season. We hypothesized that the diminishing fat stores of females over the breeding season might affect resource allocation, peak energy assimilation during lactation or the total investment in offspring. Therefore, we measured energy intake, milk quality and milk production throughout lactation in spring, summer and autumn in females raising (size-manipulated) litters with three young each, under a natural photoperiod but at buffered ambient temperatures inside our facility. Over the course of the breeding season, the amount of milk production remained constant, but the fat content of the milk decreased. Hence, total energy transfer to young decreased significantly in autumn. By using undecanoic acid as a tracer of body fat mobilization, we were able to show that milk fat partially originated from maternal fat stores, particularly in spring. The peak sustained energy assimilation rates of lactating females were significantly higher in autumn, due to increased rates of food intake. We conclude that fat stores allow female hares to downregulate energy intake and expenditure early in the breeding season, whereas late breeding forces them to reach peak energy intake levels. Accordingly, we suggest that in hares, peak energy turnover during lactation varies with the availability of fat reserves. Limits to the sustained metabolic rate serve as variable constraints on reproductive investment. Thus, there might be a trade-off in energetic costs to mothers rearing early versus late litters in the year.
In the Shadow of Shari'ah: Islam, Islamic Law and Democracy in Pakistan

Recent events in Pakistan, and more widely in the Islamic world, have sparked an unprecedented level of interest in the relationship between Islam and democracy. Studies of Islamic law (Shari'ah) lie at the heart of this trend, but carefully researched studies of Islamic law as it actually unfolds 'on the ground' remain extremely rare. This book promises to fill that gap, using a detailed study of Islamic laws in Pakistan to show exactly how the relationship between Islam, Islamic law and democracy is understood and, potentially, transformed in different cultural contexts. "In the Shadow of Shari'ah" reveals that Islam are neither compatible nor incompatible in any permanent or specific sense; they simply become more or less compatible owing to the historically embedded choices of individual Muslims regarding specific approaches to the law.
Acquisition through Horizontal Gene Transfer of Plasmid pSMA198 by Streptococcus macedonicus ACA-DC 198 Points towards the Dairy Origin of the Species

Background Streptococcus macedonicus is an intriguing streptococcal species whose most frequent source of isolation is fermented foods similarly to Streptococcus thermophilus. However, S. macedonicus is closely related to commensal opportunistic pathogens of the Streptococcus bovis/Streptococcus equinus complex. Methodology/Principal Findings We analyzed the pSMA198 plasmid isolated from the dairy strain Streptococcus macedonicus ACA-DC 198 in order to provide novel clues about the main ecological niche of this bacterium. pSMA198 belongs to the narrow host range pCI305/pWV02 family found primarily in lactococci and to the best of our knowledge it is the first such plasmid to be reported in streptococci. Comparative analysis of the pSMA198 sequence revealed a high degree of similarity with plasmids isolated from Lactococcus lactis strains deriving from milk or its products. Phylogenetic analysis of the pSMA198 Rep showed that the vast majority of closely related proteins derive from lactococcal dairy isolates. Additionally, cloning of the pSMA198 ori in L. lactis revealed a 100% stability of replication over 100 generations. Both pSMA198 and the chromosome of S. macedonicus exhibit a high percentage of potential pseudogenes, indicating that they have co-evolved under the same gene decay processes. We identified chromosomal regions in S. macedonicus that may have originated from pSMA198, also supporting a long co-existence of the two replicons. pSMA198 was also found in divergent biotypes of S. macedonicus and in strains isolated from dispersed geographic locations (e.g. Greece and Switzerland) showing that pSMA198’s acquisition is not a recent event. Conclusions/Significance Here we propose that S. macedonicus acquired plasmid pSMA198 from L. lactis via an ancestral genetic exchange event that took place most probably in milk or dairy products. We provide important evidence that point towards the dairy origin of this species.
Face the Edges: Catalytic Active Sites of Nanomaterials

Edges are special sites in nanomaterials. The atoms residing on the edges have different environments compared to those in other parts of a nanomaterial and, therefore, they may have different properties. Here, recent progress in nanomaterial fields is summarized from the viewpoint of the edges. Typically, edge sites in MoS2 or metals, other than surface atoms, can perform as active centers for catalytic reactions, so the method to enhance performance lies in the optimization of the edge structures. The edges of multicomponent interfaces present even more possibilities to enhance the activities of nanomaterials. Nanoframes and ultrathin nanowires have similarities to conventional edges of nanoparticles, the application of which as catalysts can help to reduce the use of costly materials. Looking beyond this, the edge structures of graphene are also essential for their properties. In short, the edge structure can influence many properties of materials.
The Impact of Inherited Thrombophilia Types and Low Molecular Weight Heparin Treatment on Pregnancy Complications in Women with Previous Adverse Outcome

Purpose To assess the distribution of births and spontaneous abortions, first-trimester abortion (FTA) and mid-trimester abortion (MTA), in untreated (n=128) and low molecular weight heparin (LMWH) treated pregnancies (n=50) of the same women with inherited thrombophilias and adverse pregnancy outcome (APO) in previous pregnancies. We particularly investigated the impact of LMWH on reducing the pregnancy complications in two thrombophilia types, "Conventional" and "Novel". Materials and Methods 50 women with inherited thrombophilia (26 Conventional and 24 Novel) and APO in previous pregnancies were included in the study. Conventional group included factor V Leiden (FVL), prothrombin G20210A (PT) mutations and antithrombin (AT), protein S (PS), and protein C (PC) deficiency, while the Novel group included methylentetrahydrofolate-reductase (MTHFR), plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1), and angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) polymorphism. APO was defined as one of the following: preterm birth (PTB), fetal growth restriction (FGR), preeclampsia (PE), intrauterine fetal death (IUFD), placental abruption (PA) and deep venous thrombosis (DVT). Results There was no difference in distribution of births and spontaneous abortions between Conventional and Novel thrombophilia in untreated pregnancies (χ2=2.7; p=0.100) and LMWH treated pregnancies (χ2=0.442; p=0.506). In untreaed pregnancies thrombophilia type did not have any impact on the frequency of FTA and MTA (χ2=0.14; p=0.711). In birth-ended pregnancies LMWH treatement reduced the incidence of IUFD (p=0.011) in Conventional and FGR, IUFD, and PTB in Novel thrombophilia group. Conclusion The equal impact of two thrombophilia types on the pregnancy outcomes and a more favorable effect of LMWH therapy on pregnancy complications in Novel thrombophilia group point the need for Novel thrombophilias screening and the future studies on this issue should be recommended.
Approximation properties of fuzzy systems for smooth functions and their first-order derivative

The problem of simultaneous approximations of a given function and its derivatives, has been addressed frequently in pure and applied mathematics. In pure mathematics, Bernstein polynomials get their importance from the fact that they provide simultaneous approximation of a function and its derivatives. In neural network theory, feedforward networks were shown to be universal approximators of an unknown function and its derivatives. In this paper, we consider fuzzy logic systems with the membership functions of each input variables are chosen as the translations and dilations of one appropriately fixed function. We prove, by a constructive proof based on discretization of the convolution operator, that under certain conditions made on the input variables membership functions, fuzzy logic systems of Sugeno type are universal approximators of a given function and its derivatives.
A CGE Simulation Of A Flat Tax As A Possibility For Tax Reform In South Africa

During recent years, there has been widespread interest in South Africa for the so-called “flat tax” systems that appear to have been implemented successfully in Eastern Europe. This paper applied a CGE modelling technique to compare the performance of the South African economy in case alternative tax systems, namely the progressive and the flat tax systems, are applied. The counterfactual situation whose effects are tested in this paper is a 10% decrease in the VAT rate consistent with some popular call for the reduction of the degree of the regressiveness of VAT. The key performances of the South African economy are assessed in terms of economic growth, the welfare of households, equity and employment. On the basis of this empirical investigation the flat tax has a slight edge over the current progressive system.
Hugo Chávez and the Bolivarian Revolution: Populism and democracy in a globalised age

List of tables Acknowledgments Introduction 1. Populism and Latin America: context, causes, characteristics and consequences 2. Structural fractures, crises, the state and the emergence of Chavez 3. The leader and the led: hegemonic strategies in the leadership of Hugo Chavez 4. Populism, globalisation and the socio-economic policies of the Chavez government 5. Democrat or authoritarian? Human rights, institutional autonomy and popular participation under the government of Fujimori and Chavez 6. The consequences and impact of populism: institutionalisation and democratization in Chavez's Venezuela 7. Venezuelan international relations in the age of globalisation Conclusion: populism and democracy in a globalised age Bibliography Index
An Important Role of the SDF-1/CXCR4 Axis in Chronic Skin Inflammation

Inflammatory angiogenesis and vascular remodeling play key roles in the chronic inflammatory skin disease psoriasis, but little is known about the molecular mediators of vascular activation. Based on the reported elevated mRNA levels of the angiogenic chemokine stromal cell-derived factor-1 (SDF-1) and its receptor CXCR4 in psoriasis, we investigated the relevance of the SDF-1/CXCR4 axis in two experimental models of chronic psoriasis-like skin inflammation. The cutaneous expression of both SDF-1 and CXCR4 was upregulated in the inflamed skin of K14-VEGF-A transgenic mice and in imiquimod-induced skin inflammation, with expression of CXCR4 by blood vessels and macrophages. Treatment with the CXCR4 antagonist AMD3100 potently inhibited skin inflammation in both models, associated with reduced inflammatory angiogenesis and inflammatory cell accumulation, including dermal CD4+ cells and intraepidermal CD8+ T cells. Similar anti-inflammatory effects were seen after treatment with a neutralizing anti-SDF-1 antibody. In vitro, inhibition of CXCR4 blocked SDF-1-induced chemotaxis of CD11b+ splenocytes, in agreement with the reduced number of macrophages after in vivo CXCR4 blockade. Our results reveal an important role of the SDF-1/CXCR4 axis in skin inflammation and inflammatory angiogenesis, and they indicate that inhibition of the SDF-1/CXCR4 axis might serve as a novel therapeutic strategy for chronic inflammatory skin diseases.
Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Tomato-Associated RhizobacteriaApplied Singly or as Three-Strain Consortium for Biosuppression ofSclerotinia Stem Rot in Tomato

In the present study, the capacity of three native tomato-associated rhizobacteria (Bacillus subtilis B2, B. thuringiensis B10, and Enterobacter cloacae B16) to suppress Sclerotinia Stem Rot in tomato and to improve growth was investigated in two tomato cultivars. The three bacterial strains were tested against S. sclerotiorum either singly or as consortium and their efficacy was compared to a fungicide control. All bacteria-based treatments were found to be more effective in suppressing disease than chemical fungicide on both cultivars and in both year trials. The disease-suppression and growth-promoting abilities of the treatments tested varied significantly depending on bacterial strains used, tomato cultivars grown, and year trial. Overall, all three strains suppressed the disease more effectively than the chemical fungicide. Indeed, for both year trials and cultivars combined, disease suppression potential, as compared to pathogen-inoculated and untreated control, ranged between 80.79 and 88.01% using the three-strain consortium relative to 70.00-82.07% achieved with single strains and 32.13-58.97% using fungicide. Plants grown in S. sclerotiorum-infected peat and challenged with the three-strain consortium were 38.36 to 80.95% taller than control ones whereas height increment noted using single strains and fungicide was of about 32.35- 79.01 and 29.62-51.85%, respectively. Aerial parts and root fresh weights of pathogen-inoculated and treated plants were enhanced by 51.59-74.69% and 54.00-78.12% using mixed strains and by 39.12-76.83% and 42.02-77.01%, respectively, using single strains compared to 24.04-53.05 and 12.74-67.05% noted on chemically treated plants. The effect of the three biocontrol agents was also examined on the composition of microbial communities inhabiting the rhizosphere of tomato plants. Results of the single strand conformational polymorphism (SSCP)-based profiling revealed that rhizosphere communities differed between cultivars only. However, the introduction of S. sclerotiorum or biocontrol agents did not cause detectable perturbations in the composition of fungal and bacterial communities inhabiting roots of treated tomato plants.
A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial of Early versus Routine Caffeine in Extremely Premature Infants

Abstract Objective This study aims to compare the effects of early and late (routine) initiation of caffeine in nonintubated preterm neonates. Study Design A total of 21 neonates < 29 weeks gestational age were randomized to receive intravenous caffeine citrate (20 mg/kg) or placebo either before 2 hours of age (early) or at 12 hours of age (routine). This was an observational trial to determine the power needed to reduce the need for endotracheal intubation by 12 hours of age. Other outcomes included comparisons of cerebral oxygenation, systemic and pulmonary blood flow, hemodynamics, hypotension treatment, oxygen requirement, and head ultrasound findings. Results There was no difference in the need for intubation (p = 0.08), or vasopressors (p = 0.21) by 12 hours of age. Early caffeine was associated with improved blood pressure (p = 0.03) and systemic blood flow (superior vena cava flow, p = 0.04 and right ventricular output, p = 0.03). Heart rate, left ventricular output, and stroke volume were not significantly affected. Cerebral oxygenation transiently decreased 1 hour after caffeine administration. There were no differences in other outcomes. Conclusion This pilot study demonstrated the feasibility of conducting such a trial in extremely preterm neonates. We found that early caffeine administration was associated with improved hemodynamics. Larger studies are needed to determine whether early caffeine reduces intubation, intraventricular hemorrhage, and related long-term outcomes.