Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Antecedents and Consequences of Interaction Quality in Virtual End-User Communities

Research has identified virtual communities as a valuable source of innovation. This study aims to provide an understanding of what makes some end-user communities more successful in creating innovations than others. Specifically, we explore how the attractiveness of innovations is influenced by the quality of interaction between the community members. Additionally, we consider trust in benevolent behaviour and competition for reputation, as well as their interaction effect, as being possible antecedents of interaction quality. Drawing on data collected through a web-based survey, this study explores the innovation activities of 127 virtual end-user communities within the fields of sports, car and motorbike tuning and model building. The findings confirm that interaction quality is positively related to the innovativeness of virtual communities. As regards the antecedents of interaction quality, the analysis indicates that trust is a key prerequisite to co-operative behaviour among the members of virtual communities. The level of competition, however, only affects interaction quality if a high level of trust is present among members. The results highlight the need to create an environment that facilitates interaction among the members of innovation communities. Furthermore, community managers should ensure that a minimum level of trust is established within the community before stimulating competition.
Role of the innate immune system in host defence against bacterial infections: focus on the Toll‐like receptors

The innate immunity plays a critical role in host protection against pathogens and it relies amongst others on pattern recognition receptors such as the Toll‐like receptors (TLRs) and the nucleotide‐binding oligomerization domains proteins (NOD‐like receptors, NLRs) to alert the immune system of the presence of invading bacteria. Since their recent discovery less than a decade ago, both TLRs and NLRs have been shown to be crucial in host protection against microbial infections but also in homeostasis of the colonizing microflora. They recognize specific microbial ligands and with the use of distinct adaptor molecules, they activate different signalling pathways that in turns trigger subsequent inflammatory and immune responses that allows a immediate response towards bacterial infections and the initiation of the long‐lasting adaptive immunity. In this review, we will focus on the role of the TLRs against bacterial infections in humans in contrast to mice that have been used extensively in experimental models of infections and discuss their role in controlling normal flora or nonpathogenic bacteria. We also highlight how bacteria can evade recognition by TLRs.
Trust, plan knowledge and 401(k) savings behavior*

Abstract Plan knowledge and trust in financial institutions – two variables missing from standard neoclassical or behavioral models of decision-making – are strongly correlated to 401(k) savings behavior based on results from this paper. In voluntary enrollment settings, plan knowledge and demographic characteristics are related to participation in a 401(k) plan. In automatic enrollment settings, trust in financial institutions and knowledge of an available plan match are related to participation. Although this study cannot prove causality of the relationships, it does extend our understanding of the complex factors underlying savings choices. Policy implications are discussed.
Effects of the insect growth inhibitor, Dimilin, on hatching of mosquito eggs.

Exposure of egg rafts of the southern house mosquito, Culex pipiens quinquefasciatus Say, to water treated with Dimilin® [1-(4-chlorophenyl)-3-(2,6-difluorobenzoyl)-urea] induced abnormal side-hatching as well as ovicidal action. The activity was influenced by the age of the embryos at the time of treatment; younger embryos (preblastoderm stage) were the most sensitive and 7-, to 23-h-old embryos were more tolerant. The side-hatching and ovicidal phenomena also were produced by baiting adults with Dimilin in sucrose. In this instance, females were more sensitive than males. Ovicidal and abnormal hatching due to baiting with Dimilin was likewise exhibited in Culex tarsalis Coquillett and Aedes taeniorhynchus (Wiedemann).
Probing the Red Blood Cells Aggregating Force With Optical Tweezers

The red blood cells (RBC) aggregation is of current basic science and clinical interest, as a determinant of blood microcirculation. Thus, the measurement and assessment of the RBC aggregation property (aggregability) and aggregation state at different physiologic conditions of a human individual or laboratory animal are an important issue. In this paper, in order to assess the dynamics of RBC interaction, optical tweezers were used to probe the forces during the RBC doublet formation or disruption. We show that in autologous plasma, RBC aggregating and disaggregating forces have different absolute values, ca 2-4 pN and dozens of piconewton, correspondingly. We speculate that in plasma, RBC aggregation and disaggregation processes have different driving forces.
The differential impact of social-pension income on household poverty alleviation in three South African ethnic groups

Social pension programmes play a key role in old-age support systems through their ability to reach vulnerable older persons. Pension income helps to sustain households affected by extreme poverty and vulnerability, by providing resources for spending that protects against vulnerability, and thereby they facilitate economic and social development. Under apartheid, South Africa's citizens were categorised according to race, and persons classified as Asian, black and coloured (mixed race) had less access to the opportunities and resources available to whites. Parity in the amount of social pension benefits paid to beneficiaries in the different ethnic categories was achieved only in 1993. The Non-Contributory Pensions and Poverty Study (NCPPS), conducted in Brazil and South Africa, has assessed the impact of social pension income on household poverty alleviation. This paper draws on the findings of the South African survey to analyse the differential effects of pension income on household poverty alleviation in three ethnic-geographic groups. Its data show a pervasive social and economic gradient of disadvantage among the groups, with rural-black households being most disadvantaged, urban-coloured households least disadvantaged, and urban-black households in between. The impact of pension income on household poverty alleviation has a similar pattern. The paper concludes with a discussion of the implications of the findings for the achievement of equity through informed policy interventions.
Trade Barriers in a Global Perspective

This article develops an index of trade barrier for 119 countries by using the tariff and the import data from TRAINS database of UNCTAD at 6-digit level of HS classifications. Bivariate as well as multivariate econometric models have been estimated to explain cross-country variations in the constructed trade barrier indices. The results show that cross-country variations in trade barrier indices are much influenced by variations in per capita income, population and literacy rate. This article considers Bangladesh as an example and finds that at disaggregated levels of commodity classification, there are significant differences among trade barrier indices across commodities and cross-country rankings of trade barrier indices are not necessarily consistent with the rankings of trade barrier indices in the cross-industry context.
Nonimmediate &bgr;-lactam reactions in patients with cystic fibrosis

Purpose of reviewThe aim of this review is to present and discuss new developments regarding &bgr;-lactam hypersensitivity in patients with cystic fibrosis. It is a common complication that can have significant implications for a patient. Up to 30% of patients have had multiple &bgr;-lactam reactions. Recent findingsFor the first time drug-specific lymphocytes have been identified in patients with cystic fibrosis. This supports the clinical viewpoint that the nonimmediate reactions seen are T-cell mediated. Furthermore, in piperacillin hypersensitivity mass spectrometric methods have been used to characterise hapten formation both in vivo and in vitro. The synthetic piperacillin–albumin conjugate is able to stimulate patients’ lymphocytes and T cell clones. Lymphocyte proliferation was not seen with ceftazidime; this may be due to undetectable protein reactivity in vitro. Skin testing was not sensitive in this cohort and many patients have uncertain allergy status. Desensitisation is performed with some success; however, at present it is not known whether any immune modulation takes place. SummaryThe piperacillin model provides us with a useful tool to characterise the mechanisms of drug hypersensitivity. Prospective studies are needed to assess how drug sensitivity develops and whether clinical practice could be modified to reduce the risk.
Multilevel Framing: An Alternative Understanding of Budget Control in Public Enterprises

This paper addresses the question as to why there tends to be recurring budget deviations in public sector service organizations. In the public sector, budgets and actuals are loosely coupled, and budgets may serve other institutional functions than control purposes. However, little research has addressed how the framing of budget information may explain the different functions of the budgets as control devices. The paper argues that the valence of budget deviations varies between organizations, and that organizations that have a positively oriented valence towards budget surpluses have a propensity to underspend the budgets. Consequently, organizations that have a positively oriented valence towards budget deficits tend to overspend the budgets. The empirical part analyses the budget situations in the Central Bank of Norway and in a large university hospital in Norway. In the case of the Bank, it was found that underspending of budgets was framed as performance measures indicating high organizational efficiency. The Hospital, on the other hand, showed a different picture as budget deficits were the situation during all years studied. One main finding was the key actors’ roles as translators of the society's expectations as to the fulfilling of the organizations’ missions. These translators function as mediators between the institutional context and pressures, the organizations’ goals and the internal budget processes. The conventional wisdom that the budget also acts as a means of communication and as symbols and ritual acts that reflect the institutional contingencies of the organizations, is further developed by describing how organizations’ goals valence the role of budgets.
Australian Household Debt - an empirical investigation into the determinants of the rise in the debt-to-income ratio

Australia’s household debt to disposable income ratio has increased substantially over the last 30 years. While there has been much theoretical discussion into what has caused this development, the empirical research into the field is limited. In this essay we analyse the determinants of the household debt-to-income ratio, using both long-run cointegration analysis and a short-run error-correction model. We find that in the long run the change in the debt ratio depends positively on house prices and negatively on interest rates. In the short run it depends positively on the change in house prices and the consumer sentiment index and negatively on inflation and long-run equilibrium error term. It is also evident that there is a high degree of inertia in the debt-to-income ratio indicating that it takes a long time for households to adjust their debt levels to current economic conditions.
Municipal Solid Waste Regulation: An Ineffective Solution to a National Problem

The volume of solid waste, particularly in urban areas, is increasing, and both public heath and the environment are in jeopardy because disposal methods have not kept pace. This Comment examines the historical role that municipalities have played in providing adequate methods for solid waste disposal, emphasizes the traditional methods of zoning and critiques the effectiveness of municipal regulation. It reviews recent federal and state solid waste management acts and analyzes the issue of preemption. This Comment also discusses the constitutionality of state and municipal waste bans. In conclusion, this Comment recommends more effective methods for states and municipalities to pursue in solving the problems of solid waste disposal.
The housing and neighbourhood impacts of knowledge-based economic development following industrial closure

Economic development initiatives following large-scale industrial closures often seek to regenerate the local economy through investment in technology and knowledge-intensive activities. The resulting changes in the make-up of the local workforce are in turn likely to generate new forms of demand for housing; demand that will not necessarily be met by the residential offer of the neighbourhoods worst affected by the initial closure. This paper explores these processes through a study of the proposals for a science park as a component of the programme to redevelop the Longbridge site in Birmingham in the UK, following the closure of the Rover automotive plant in 2005. The paper examines the capacity of local workers to take up the anticipated high-technology jobs; the likely configuration of an incoming workforce; and the fit between the housing requirements of these new workers and the residential offer of neighbourhoods in the Longbridge area. It concludes that there is likely to be a poor match between the housing and residential characteristics of neighbourhoods most closely associated with the plant closure and the requirements of an incoming high-tech workforce. This in turn raises a policy dilemma. On the one hand there is a necessity to secure economic diversification for the local economy as a whole, whilst on the other is the requirement to address the specific needs of the discrete neighbourhoods most affected by the closure and whose quality of place offer is often furthest from the requirements of the incoming workforce. A number of policy implications are discussed, drawing on the experience of recent housing and regeneration policy.
Development of a Streptomyces venezuelae-Based Combinatorial Biosynthetic System for the Production of Glycosylated Derivatives of Doxorubicin and Its Biosynthetic Intermediates

ABSTRACT Doxorubicin, one of the most widely used anticancer drugs, is composed of a tetracyclic polyketide aglycone and l-daunosamine as a deoxysugar moiety, which acts as an important determinant of its biological activity. This is exemplified by the fewer side effects of semisynthetic epirubicin (4′-epi-doxorubicin). An efficient combinatorial biosynthetic system that can convert the exogenous aglycone ε-rhodomycinone into diverse glycosylated derivatives of doxorubicin or its biosynthetic intermediates, rhodomycin D and daunorubicin, was developed through the use of Streptomyces venezuelae mutants carrying plasmids that direct the biosynthesis of different nucleotide deoxysugars and their transfer onto aglycone, as well as the postglycosylation modifications. This system improved epirubicin production from ε-rhodomycinone by selecting a substrate flexible glycosyltransferase, AknS, which was able to transfer the unnatural sugar donors and a TDP-4-ketohexose reductase, AvrE, which efficiently supported the biosynthesis of TDP-4-epi-l-daunosamine. Furthermore, a range of doxorubicin analogs containing diverse deoxysugar moieties, seven of which are novel rhodomycin D derivatives, were generated. This provides new insights into the functions of deoxysugar biosynthetic enzymes and demonstrates the potential of the S. venezuelae-based combinatorial biosynthetic system as a simple biological tool for modifying structurally complex sugar moieties attached to anthracyclines as an alternative to chemical syntheses for improving anticancer agents.
A Troubled Past, A Challenging Present, and A Promising Future: Tanzania’s Tourism Development in Perspective

Despite the many assets the continent possesses, tourism in Africa has mostly operated below its potential, and its often poorly planned development has had irreversible negative consequences for both people and the environment. In order to develop sustainable forms of tourism, respectful of the rich natural and cultural African heritage, industry leaders and policy makers must consider the broader historical and socioeconomic contexts in which tourism is implanting itself. Inspired by an anthropological perspective, this article takes Tanzania as a case study. Tourism in this East African country, as in other African countries, is firmly embedded in encompassing — and sometimes conflicting — processes of localization, nationalization, regionalization, and globalization. Only by having a solid understanding of how these different scales are connected, disconnected, and reconnected, and by taking into account the interests of all stakeholders involved, can we begin to build an integrated African hospitality industry that is sustainable as well as economically beneficial. Archival records and recent ethnographic data are combined to show the kinds of challenges and opportunities this poses in the case of Tanzania.
Climate Change: The Evidence from Central England Temperatures

The main aim of this paper is to investigate whether there is evidence to suggest that the underlying trend of the pattern of Central England Temperature (CET) series varies over time. In addition, it is also of particular interest in describing the structure of the data. For this paper, the data is a series of 10-year averages of the CET series from 1663 to 2002. There is no doubt that a linear regression trend in time with an MA (2) noise model describes the series adequately. The model suggests that there is evidence of an overall warming trend, and generally, the temperature is estimated to rise approximately 0.0252 C over a decade. Moreover, the estimated 95% confidence interval for the slope is (0.01148, 0.03892).
Involvement of the protein of Xenopus vasa homolog (Xenopus vasa‐like gene 1, XVLG1) in the differentiation of primordial germ cells

In order to understand the role of the protein of Xenopus vasa homolog (Xenopus vasa‐like gene 1, XVLG1) in germ line cells, an attempt was made to perturb the function of the protein with the anti‐vasa antibody 2L‐13. The 2L‐13 or the control antibody was microinjected with a lineage tracer (FITC‐dextran‐lysine, FDL) into single vegetal blastomeres containing the germ plasm of Xenopus 32‐cell embryos, the descendants of which were destined to differentiate into a small number of primordial germ cells (PGC) and a large number of somatic cells, mostly of endodermal tissues at the tadpole stage. No significant effect of the injection of the antibodies on FDL‐labeled, presumptive PGC (pPGC) was observed in embryos until stage 37/38. However, FDL‐labeled PGC were not observed in almost all the 2L‐13 antibody‐injected tadpoles, although a similar number of labeled somatic cells were always present. As 2L‐13 antibody specifically reacts with XVLG1 protein in the embryos by immunoblotting, the present results suggest that the antibody perturbed the function of XVLG1 protein in the pPGC, resulting in failure of PGC differentiation at the tadpole stage.
International journalism and democracy : civic engagement models from around the world

List of Tables and Figures Acknowledgments Part 1: Deliberative Journalism 1 Deliberation and Journalism, Angela Romano 2 American Public Journalism Versus Other International Media Models, Angela Romano Part 2: Public and Citizen Journalism 3 Public Journalism in South Africa: Experiences and Experiments with Local and Community Media, Brett Davidson 4 Civic Journalism Initiatives in Nigeria, Tokunbo (Tokz) Awoshakin, 5 Sustaining Public Journalism Practices: The Australian Experience, Angela Romano 6 Public Journalism Kiwi Style: Lingering Echoes of a Big Bang, Margie Comrie and David Venables 7 Public Journalism in Japan: Experiments by a National Paper, Yohtaro Hamada 8 Civic and Citizen Journalism in Germany, Klaus Forster 9 Public Journalism in Finnish Mainstream Newspapers, Laura Ruusunoksa 10 Citizen Voices: Public Journalism Made in Colombia, Ana Maria Miralles Part 3: Other Deliberative Models for Peace, Participation, Development and Empowerment 11 Britain's Big Issue: Street Papers as Social Entrepreneurs, Angela Romano 12 Inspiring Public Participation: Environmental Journalism in China, Jiannu Bao 13 Peace Journalism in Indonesia, Gita Widya Laksmini Soejoatmodjo 14 Traditions of 'Public Journalism' in India, Pradip Thomas 15 In the Hands of the People: Citizen Media for Revitalising Puerto Rico's Poor Communities, Angela Romano and Anette Sofia Ruiz Morales 16 Viracao Magazine: Consciousness-Raising Media for Young Brazilians, Paulo Lima and Izabel Leao Part 4: Conclusions 17 Ongoing Issues for Deliberative Journalism, Angela Romano Notes on Contributors Index
Public Investment in the UK

Toigo and Woods consider the role of public investment in the UK fiscal policy framework. First, they examine the general guidelines for public investment policy: these should address both microeconomic considerations concerning efficiency and the costs and benefits of individual projects and macroeconomic considerations about the impact of the aggregate level of public investment in the short and the long term. The Authors examine the arguments supporting a specific treatment of public investment (the potential to self-finance, inter-generational fairness and the political economy issues leading to a bias against public investment) and the way this treatment can be embodied in a rule based framework. Finally, they describe the UK framework both at the macro and micro level and examine the role of Public Private Partnerships. Toigo and Woods conclude noting that the new framework has contributed to addressing the shortfall in public investment which had previously characterised the UK.
Integrated Perspective of Evolving Intrapsychic and Person-Environment Functions: Implications for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Individuals

The authors review and integrate certain diverse theories to explain and suggest appropriate interventions for difficulties in socioemotional functioning experienced by many deaf persons. These diverse perspectives include a hierarchical circular systems approach, psychosocial stage theory, social learning theory, and representational models, or evolving expectancies of others. These perspectives, which can facilitate understanding of social behaviors and development and lead to improved interventions, provide background for a 3-level model proposed in the article. The model focuses on the relationship between the deaf person and the proximal social environment. The model's first level takes into account intrapsychic processes such as self-concept; the second highlights reciprocal interactions between the person and the social environment. The third describes the resulting memories and expectancies that develop and evolve and that influence the person's previous intrapsychic thoughts, feelings, and perceptions. These, in turn, affect social interactions, in a recurrent, spiraling fashion. This hierarchical model can be used as a framework for concurrent or sequential interventions with Deaf people.