Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An Analysis of Frequency, Morphology, and Locations of Maxillary Sinus Septa Using Cone Beam Computed Tomography.

PURPOSE To evaluate the frequency, morphology, and locations of maxillary sinus septa using cone beam computed tomographic (CBCT) imaging of the entire maxillary sinus and to analyze factors influencing the presence or absence of septa. MATERIALS AND METHODS CBCT images of the maxilla taken during a 1-year study period (October 1, 2012, to September 30, 2013) were evaluated for the presence and type of septa as well as the health or pathology of the maxillary sinus. Differences in age, gender, type of dentition, septa location, and sinus pathology with regard to the incidence of sinus septa were analyzed statistically. RESULTS The study included 294 maxillary sinuses in 212 patients (126 women and 86 men) with a mean age of 53.8 years. Sinus septa were present in 141 patients (66.5%) and in 166 of 294 sinuses (56.5%). The most common orientation of the septa was coronal (61.8%), 7.6% were oriented axially, and 3.6% were aligned sagittally. Most septa were located on the floor of the maxillary sinus (58.6%), commonly (60.7%) in the region of the first and second molars. The maxillary sinuses were diagnosed in 36.4% of cases as healthy and without thickening of the sinus membrane. Sex was a significant variable in the health of the maxillary sinus; 57.7% of the sinuses in women and 72.3% in men were diagnosed as pathologic. CONCLUSION Septa are common anatomical structures and are most often found in the first or second molar region on the floor of the maxillary sinus. To prevent possible complications during sinus floor elevation procedures, a thorough three-dimensional radiographic examination of the sinus prior to surgery is recommended.
Residents' Attitudes Toward Rural Tourism in Taiwan: a Comparative Viewpoint

In this study, we first conclude two main patterns – community-based rural tourism and theme farm – of rural tourism in Taiwan, then investigate and compare the impacts of rural tourism perceived by the residents, the frequency and quality of tourists-residents interaction, and residents' attitudes toward rural tourism of the two chosen areas. Moreover, we discuss and conclude the differences of two patterns in terms of economic, socio-cultural, and environmental impacts. As a whole, the development of rural tourism gains highly supports in both areas. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Regional biases in mutation screening due to intratumoural heterogeneity of prostate cancer

Intratumoural heterogeneity (ITH) leads to regional biases of the mutational landscape in a single tumour and may influence the single biopsy‐based clinical diagnosis and treatment decision. To evaluate the extent of ITH in unifocal prostate cancers (PCAs), we analysed multiple regional biopsies from three PCAs, using whole‐exome sequencing, DNA copy number and gene expression profiling analyses. A substantial level of ITH was identified, in that 0–61% and 18–71% of somatic variants were common or private, respectively, within a given cancer. The enhanced mutation detection rate in the combined sequencing dataset across intratumoural biopsies was demonstrated with respect to the total number of mutations identified in a given tumour. Allele frequencies of the mutations were positively correlated with the levels of intratumoural recurrence (private < shared < common), but some common mutations showed low allele frequency, suggesting that not all were clonally fixed. Regional biases in the presentation of a well‐known TMPRSS2–ERG fusion was noted in one PCA and the somatic mutation‐ and copy number‐based phylogenetic relationships between intratumoural biopsies were largely concordant. Genes showing intratumoural expression variability were commonly enriched in the molecular function of eicosanoid metabolism and PCA‐relevant clinical markers. Taken together, our analyses identified a substantial level of genetic ITH in unifocal PCAs at the mutation, copy number and expression levels, which should be taken into account for the identification of biomarkers in the clinical setting. Copyright © 2014 Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Oxygen Consumption of a Pneumatically Controlled Ventilator in a Field Anesthesia Machine

BACKGROUND:Field anesthesia machines (FAM) have been developed for remote locations where reliable supplies of compressed medical gases or electricity may be absent. In place of electricity, pneumatically controlled ventilators use compressed gas to power timing circuitry and actuate valves. We sought to determine the total O2 consumption and ventilator gas consumption (drive gas [DG] plus pneumatic control [PC] gas) of a FAM's pneumatically controlled ventilator in mechanical models of high (HC) and low (LC) total thoracic compliance. METHODS:The amount of total O2 consumed by the Magellan-2200 (Oceanic Medical Products, Atchison, KS) FAM with pneumatically controlled ventilator was calculated using the ideal gas law and the measured mass of O2 consumed from E cylinders. DG to the bellows canister assembly was measured with the Wright Respirometer Mk 8 (Ferraris Respiratory Europe, Hertford, UK). PC gas consumption was calculated by subtracting DG and fresh gas flow (FGF) from the total O2 consumed from the E cylinder. The delivered tidal volume (VT) was measured with a pneumotach (Hans Rudolph, KS City, MO). Three different VT were tested (500, 750, and 1000 mL) with two lung models (HC and LC) using the Vent Aid Training Test Lung (MI Instruments, Grand Rapids, MI). Respiratory variables included an I:E of 1:2, FGF of 1 L/min, and respiratory rate of 10 breaths/min. RESULTS:Total O2 consumption was directly proportional to VT and inversely proportional to compliance. The smallest total O2 consumption rate (including FGF) was 9.3 ± 0.4 L/min in the HC-500 model and the largest was 15.9 ± 0.5 L/min in the LC-1000 model (P < 0.001). The mean PC circuitry consumption was 3.9 ± 0.24 L/min or 390 mL ± 24 mL/breath. CONCLUSIONS:To prepare for loss of central DG supply, patient safety will be improved by estimating cylinder duration for low total thoracic compliance. Using data from the smaller compliance and greatest VT model (LC-1000), a full O2 E cylinder would be depleted in <42 min, whereas a full H cylinder would last approximately 433 min.
The conductivity of the human skull: results of in vivo and in vitro measurements

The conductivity of the human skull was measured both in vitro and in vivo. The in vitro measurement was performed on a sample of fresh skull placed within a saline environment. For the in vivo measurement a small current was passed through the head by means of two electrodes placed on the scalp. The potential distribution thus generated on the scalp was measured in two subjects for two locations of the current injecting electrodes. Both methods revealed a skull conductivity of about 0.015 (1//spl Omega/)/m. For the conductivities of the brain, the skull and the scalp a ratio of 1:1/15:1 was found. This is consistent with some of the reports on conductivities found in the literature, but differs considerably from the ratio 1:1/80:1 commonly used in neural source localization. An explanation is provided for this discrepancy, indicating that the correct ratio is 1:1/15:1.
Home-making in Higher Density Cities: Residential Experiences in Newcastle, Australia

Increasing residential densities by promoting urban in-fill housing is a central element of contemporary Australian urban strategy. Such increases will rely, in part, on maintaining a resident appetite for higher density housing forms. Despite the important role that residents' tastes, values and experiences play in securing the success of current urban strategy, there are relatively few accounts of resident experiences in higher density urban in-fill housing. This article focuses on resident experiences in such housing using a qualitative case study based in the regional city of Newcastle, NSW. Through the lens of ‘home-making’, this article explores affective connections between residents and their housing. It attends to personalisation and neighbouring, and demonstrates how residents engage in site-specific material and social home-making practices that both enable and constrain their ability to be ‘at home’ in higher density housing.
Flood risk management in Dutch local spatial planning practices

Spatial planning is increasingly regarded as an important instrument to reduce flood consequences. Nevertheless, there are very few studies that show why local planning authorities do or do not systematically use spatial planning in advance to mitigate flood risks. This paper explores flood reduction strategies in local planning practices in the Netherlands. It also explores why spatial planning was or was not used to reduce flood consequences. The arguments for the use or non-use of planning mainly referred to requirements from other governmental bodies and the perceived role and the related responsibility of local planning authorities, previous disaster experience, and previous experience with spatial planning for flood risk management.
Channels of US Monetary Policy Spillovers into International Bond Markets

We document significant US monetary policy (MP) spillovers to international bond markets. Our methodology identifies US MP shocks as the change in short-term treasury yields within a narrow window around FOMC meetings, and traces their effects on international bond yields using panel regressions. We emphasize three main results. First, US MP spillovers to long-term yields have increased substantially after the global financial crisis. Second, spillovers are large compared to the effects of other events, and at least as large as the effects of domestic MP after 2008. Third, spillovers work through different channels, concentrated in risk neutral rates (expectations of future MP rates) for developed countries, but predominantly on term premia in emerging markets. In interpreting these findings, we provide evidence consistent with an exchange rate channel, according to which foreign central banks face a tradeoff between narrowing MP rate differentials, or experiencing currency movements against the US dollar. Developed countries adjust in a manner consistent with freely floating regimes, responding partially with risk neutral rates, and partially through currency adjustments. Emerging countries display patterns consistent with FX interventions, which cushion the response of exchange rates but reinforce capital flows and their effects in bond yields through movements in term premia. Our results suggest that the endogenous effects of FXI on long-term yields should be added into the standard cost-benefit analysis of such policies.
The price-volume relationship in the sale and purchase market for dry bulk vessels

This paper investigates, for the first time, the relationship between prices and trading activity in a market where real assets are traded, i.e. in the sale and purchase market for second-hand dry bulk vessels. Investigation of this issue is of interest since the level of trading activity may contain information about the sentiment and the future direction of the prices in the market. Several important conclusions emerge from this analysis. It is found that price changes are useful in predicting trading volume, which suggests that higher capital gains encourage more transactions in the market. Additionally, it seems that volume has a negative impact on the volatility of price changes. More specifically, in contrast to what is reported for financial markets, we find evidence that, in the market for ships, increases in trading activity lead to a reduction in market volatility. This can be explained by the unique underlying characteristics of the market for ships, including thin trading, which imply that increases in trading activity result in price transparency and stability. These findings indicate that practitioners in the market may use the information contained in the level of trading activity so as to guide their market decisions in the sale and purchase market.
A revolution in financial reporting

The nature of reported financial performance and financial disclosure is undergoing a dramatic change. The author argues that the issue of accounting for financial instruments and its emphasis on fair values goes to the heart of the problem. He argues that the thoughts provided by the AIMR provide the chance for a searchlight into corporate affairs which will create greater stability and guard against the worrying signs that greater instability is likely.
Depression in adolescents : Causes , correlates and consequences

Randy P. Auerbach is an assistant professor at Harvard Medical School. He also is the director of clinical research for the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and the director of the Child and Adolescent Mood Disorders Laboratory at McLean Hospital. Auerbach conducts multidisciplinary research in children, adolescents and young adults using a multimodal approach to determine why depressive symptoms unfold, how self-injurious and suicidal behaviors develop, and what changes in the brain during treatment. This work is funded by grants from the National Institute of Mental Health, the Klingenstein Third Generation Foundation, the Dana Foundation and several private foundations, and it has resulted in over 60 published scientific papers and book chapters, as well as a book (with C.A. Webb and J.G. Stewart), Cognitive Behavior Therapy for Depressed Adolescents (Routledge, 2016). Auerbach is the recipient of several awards, including the David Shakow Early Career Award and the Society for Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology Early Career Award. Author website.
Forecasting exchange rates using genetic algorithms

A novel approach is employed to investigate the predictability of weekly data on the euro/dollar, British pound/dollar, Deutsche mark/dollar, Japanese yen/dollar, French franc/dollar and Canadian dollar/dollar exchange rates. A functional search procedure based on the Darwinian theories of natural evolution and survival, called genetic algorithms (hereinafter GA), was used to find an analytical function that best approximates the time variability of the studied exchange rates. In all cases, the mathematical models found by the GA predict slightly better than the random walk model. The models are heavily dominated by a linear relationship with the most recent past value, while contributions from nonlinear terms to the total forecasting performance are rather small. In consequence, the results agree with previous works establishing explicitly that nonlinear nature of exchange rates cannot be exploited to substantially improve forecasting.
Solving the Value Metrics Puzzle

On theoretical grounds, shareholder returns should be better explained by some version of residual income (operating profit minus a capital charge) than by a profit number solely. However, empirical evidence indicates the opposite. We first investigate whether this 'value metrics puzzle' may be due to the measurement problems met when quantifying the cost of capital. Our results suggest that these problems do indeed negatively affect the explanatory power of residual income. Secondly, after robustness handling the results further improve and we find strong evidence that 'residual income beats earnings'. A third finding is that the market-derived way of determining the cost of capital generally dominates the CAPM-based one.
Ambitions, external environment and strategic factor differences between family and non--family companies

Family firms are regarded as an important phenomenon throughout the world. It is, however, surprizing to note that empirical research surrounding the ambitions, ‘external’ environments and strategies of family firms is scarce. This exploratory paper addresses this research gap. To detect real rather than sample differences between independent family i and non–family unquoted companies in the UK, a matched sample methodology was utilized. In total, data was collected on 51 variables. Chi–square tests revealed 16 statistically significant contrasts between the two matched groups of companies. A discriminant analysis model, in addition, revealed the combination of variables that best dichotomized family from non–family companies. This model confirmed that family companies faced a number of unique issues that influ–enced their competitive stance. Interestingly, family companies that were resistant to change and unaware of emerging industry and market opportunities were markedly less likely to have focused upo.
Dynamic Properties of the Preferences for Renewable Energy Sources – A Wind Power Experience-Based Approach

Based on a Danish survey including respondents with on-shore viewshed experience and varying degrees of off-shore viewshed experience, it is estimated how the different types of wind power experience influence the preferences for wind power, biomass energy and solar energy development in Denmark. The preference relations indicate that on-shore viewshed experience reduces preferences for wind power by 6% and increases preferences for biomass and solar energy solutions relative to wind power by nearly 5%. In contrast, off-shore viewshed experience increases preferences for wind power relative to biomass energy by 24%. However, the effect is dependent on the type of off-shore wind farm experience. Thus, experience of near-shore wind farms can reduce the preferences for wind power. The results also suggest that wind turbines in the viewshed influence the relative preferences between solar energy and biomass energy.
Optimal hedging of variance derivatives

We examine the optimal hedging of derivatives written on realised variance, focussing principally on variance swaps (VS) (but, en route, also considering skewness swaps), when the underlying stock price has discontinuous sample paths, i.e. jumps. In general, with jumps in the underlying, the market is incomplete and perfect hedging is not possible. We derive easily implementable formulae which give optimal (or nearly optimal) hedges for VS under very general dynamics for the underlying stock which allow for multiple jump processes and stochastic volatility. We illustrate how, for parameters which are realistic for options on the S&P 500 and Nikkei-225 stock indices, our methodology gives significantly better hedges than the standard log-contract replication approach of Neuberger and Dupire which assumes continuous sample paths. Our analysis seeks to emphasise practical implications for financial institutions trading variance derivatives.
Dexamethasone Treatment of Infants at Risk for Chronic Lung Disease: Surfactant Components and Inflammatory Parameters in Airway Specimens

ABSTRACT: The mechanisms explaining the beneficial effects of glucocorticoid in ventilator-dependent preterm infants are not known. In the present randomized trial, we evaluated the hypothesis that dexamethasone (DEX) treatment of small, preterm infants at risk for chronic lung disease favorably affects the surfactant system. Twenty-three ventilator-dependent infants, with a mean ± SD gestational age of 26 ± 2 wk and a mean birth weight of 836 ± 173 g, received 1 wk of treatment with either DEX (dose 0.5 mg/kg/d) or placebo beginning at 2 wk of age. The airway specimens were analyzed for surfactant components, surface activity, surfactant inhibitors, and inflammatory mediators. The concentrations of these parameters in epithelial lining fluid were calculated using the urea method. DEX treatment decreased the concentration of nonsedimentable protein in epithelial lining fluid within 3 d (p < 0.05). The nonsedimentable fraction of airway specimens decreased the surface activity of surfactant as a function of protein concentration. At a constant protein concentration, the protein from placebo-treated infants inhibited the surface activity of human surfactant in vitro more than protein from DEX-treated infants (p < 0.05). DEX transiently increased the concentration of surfactant protein-A in epithelial lining fluid but had no effect on surface activity of the sediment-able surfactant complex or on concentrations of phosphati-dylcholine, IL-ip, lactoferrin, or myeloperoxidase. We conclude that the acute beneficial effect of DEX treatment in preterm ventilator-dependent infants may in part be mediated through a decrease in the concentration of non-sedimentable protein and a decrease in the capacity of this protein to inhibit surface activity.
Water accounting in two rural meso‐scale catchments of the middle mountains in Nepal

Abstract: This study assesses water needs and uses in two middle mountain catchments in Nepal, the Jhikhu Khola and the Yarsha Khola. It concludes that the amount of annual water available is adequate for the current water demands, and that rainwater stored to use it during the dry season can be useful to increase cropping intensity and change cropping patterns, if efficient irrigation methods are applied.
Limiting rotational period of neutron stars.

Pulsars have been identified with the theoretical objects called neutron stars. The identification is convincing—but not proved. The short rotational periods of millisecond pulsars inform us that the average density (and, therefore, the central density) must be very high—higher than the density of nuclei (5.8). The most obvious inference is that pulsars are the objects conceived of by Baade and Zwicky. However, there is another possibility that has such a fundamental implication that it should not be overlooked. We will find that the conventional interpretation of pulsars as neutron stars—or any any other type of star that is gravitationally bound—can be ruled out if any pulsar is found to rotate at a frequency above a certain limit.
Does governance structure influence pension fund fees and costs? An examination of Australian not-for-profit superannuation funds

The importance of managed fund governance structures has become apparent in recent years. Looking at the Australian not-for-profit pension funds, we find correlations between funds’ internal governance structures and their level of costs. Larger boards are linked to higher investment management fees and expenses, operating expenses and trustee and audit fees. We also find a positive relation between the proportion of independent trustees and investment management fees and expenses and operating expenses. These fund costs increase as the number of board committees and fund size increase. Finally, we observe that the presence of board committees affects different types of fund costs. Overall, these findings suggest that the conventional good governance practices do not benefit superannuation fund members in terms of cost reduction. We find no evidence of economies of scale in cost minimisation, since the relation between fund size and costs is mixed across various governance variables.